mong6 saan1 paau2 sei2 maa5望山跑死馬望山跑死马

Jyutpingmong6 saan1 paau2 sei2 maa5

Yalemohng sāan páau séi máh

Definition

A place that appears to be nearby but is actually very far away.

colloquialtraveldescriptions

How it's used

This idiom describes the optical illusion where a destination appears close because it is visible, yet the terrain makes it exhausting or time-consuming to reach. It is frequently used when hiking or traveling in rural areas where the lack of intermediate landmarks makes distance perception unreliable. Unlike standard distance markers, it emphasizes the psychological frustration of seeing the goal without being able to reach it quickly.

Examples

tai2睇lok6落hou2好gan6近ze1啫，dim2點zi1知mong6望saan1山paau2跑sei2死maa5馬，haang4行zo2咗hou2好noi6耐dou1都mei6未dou3到。

It looks close, but it's a case of 'the mountain is in sight but the road is long,' I've been walking for ages and still haven't arrived.

nei5你mai1咪seon3信go3個dei6地tou4圖aa4呀，mong6望saan1山paau2跑sei2死maa5馬，zung6仲jau5有paai4排sin1先dou3到㗎。

Don't trust the map, it's deceptive; it's much further than it looks, we still have a long way to go.

Common phrases

zan1真hai6係mong6望saan1山paau2跑sei2死maa5馬

it really is deceptively far

gaan2簡zik6直hai6係mong6望saan1山paau2跑sei2死maa5馬

it's simply a case of being deceptively far

Common mistake

Learners often mistake this for a literal description of a horse race or a specific mountain, but it is purely metaphorical. It should not be used to describe objects that are actually close, only those that are deceptively far.