腦袋有洞 nǎodài yǒudòng

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腦袋有洞

Naodai Youdong

脑袋有洞 · Nǎodài yǒudòng
In one line
Literally “having a hole in one’s head” — a humorous or critical way to describe someone who is acting foolish, brainless, or absent-minded.
Definition

动词短语 VERB PHRASE

Literally meaning “having a hole in the head,” this popular slang expression (especially common in Taiwan) suggests that a person’s brain has a leak or a hole, making them unable to think clearly or logically.

It can range from a lighthearted tease among friends when someone does something silly to a sharp criticism of someone’s foolish decisions.

In mainland China, you will often hear the equivalent phrase 脑子进水 (nǎozi jìnshuǐ, “water in the brain”).

Examples

例句

你nǐ把bǎ电视diànshì遥控器yáokòngqì冰bīng在zài冰箱bīngxiāng里lǐ是shì脑子nǎozi进水jìnshuǐ吗ma？
Do you have a screw loose for putting the TV remote in the fridge?
市长shìzhǎng决定juédìng要yào提高tígāo穷人qióngrén的de税shuì来lái帮助bāngzhù富人fùrén，真zhēn的de是shì脑袋nǎodài不知道bùzhīdào有yǒu几个jǐge洞dòng
The mayor’s decision to increase taxes for the poor to help the rich is really brainless.
我wǒ怎么zěnme可能kěnéng喜欢xǐhuan他tā，你nǐ是shì脑子nǎozi进水jìnshuǐ吗ma？
How could I possibly like him? Are you out of your mind?
Dialogue

对话

A
我wǒ没有méiyǒu护照hùzhào怎么办zěnmebàn？
I don’t have a passport, what can I do?
B
你nǐ要yào护照hùzhào做zuò什么shénme？
What do you want the passport for?
A
明天míngtiān不bù是shì要yào去qù纽约Niǔyuē吗ma？
Aren’t you going to New York tomorrow?
B
我们wǒmen的de班机bānjī是shì从cóng加州Jiāzhōu出发chūfā又yòu不bù是shì从cóng加拿大Jiānádà出发chūfā
Our flight is from California and not from Canada.
A
可是kěshì我们wǒmen坐zuò飞机fēijī去qù，坐zuò飞机fēijī就jiù要yào有yǒu护照hùzhào
But we go by plane, so we need a passport to fly.
B
我wǒ建议jiànyì你nǐ最近zuìjìn都dōu不要búyào低头dītóu比较bǐjiào好hǎo
I suggest you not to bow your head recently.
A
为什么wèishénme？
Why?
B
因为yīnwèi水shuǐ会huì流liú出来chūlái…
Because the water will come out…
Don’t mix these up

辨析

People often confuse different ways to talk about foolishness or poor decision-making in Chinese. Here is how they compare:

TermWhat it actually meansTone
脑袋有洞nǎodài yǒudòng Acting foolish or lacking common sense (Taiwan usage) Humorous, teasing, or critical slang
脑子进水nǎozi jìnshuǐ Having water in the brain — acting thoughtlessly or foolishly (Mainland China usage) Critical, casual slang
愚蠢yúchǔn Stupid or lacking intelligence Formal or serious

The quick test: 脑袋有洞 is popular colloquial slang for doing silly things, and 愚蠢 is a formal description of stupidity.

Flashcards

快闪卡

Tap a card to flip it.

脑袋有洞
nǎodài yǒudòng
Hole in the head — foolish, brainless (Taiwan)
脑子进水
nǎozi jìnshuǐ
Water in the brain — thoughtless, silly (China)
愚蠢
yúchǔn
Foolish / stupid — formal and serious
胡思乱想
húsī luànxiǎng
Overthinking / wild imagination
Beyond Chinese

跨语言

Expressing that someone lacks common sense or has loose screws is a creative global phenomenon.

Korean · 정신 나갔다
정신이 나갔다 (jeongsin-i nagatda, “out of one’s mind”)
너 정신 나갔어? 그런 위험한 일을 왜 해?
Are you out of your mind? Why would you do something so dangerous?
Japanese · いかれポンチ
いかれポンチ (ikare ponchi)
あいつは本当にいかれポンチだね。
That guy is seriously a screwloose fool.
Etymology fact
The phrase “nǎodài yǒudòng” uses the humorous imagery of a physical hole in one’s head or skull. Just like a leaky container, a person with a “hole in the brain” cannot hold logic or common sense properly, leading to hilarious blunders and absurd actions.
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