HSK · Level 127
16 words
Chinese word
朝三暮四
Pronunciation
Pinyinzhāo sān mù sì
Meaning
- idiombe fickle
Example
他做事经常朝三暮四，让人很不放心。tā zuò shì jīng cháng zhāo sān mù sì ràng rén hěn bú fàng xīn
He often changes how he does things, which makes people uneasy.
More examples
孩子对玩具的喜好常常朝三暮四，让父母很头疼。hái zi duì wán jù de xǐ hào cháng cháng zhāo sān mù sì ràng fù mǔ hěn tóu téng
The child's toy preferences often change, giving the parents a headache.
Core concept
The direction keeps swinging between alternatives, leaving decisions and actions unsettled.
Common phrases
朝三暮四的主意zhāo sān mù sì de zhǔ yì
fickle plans
朝三暮四的说法zhāo sān mù sì de shuō fǎ
changing explanations
Similar words
朝令夕改zhāo lìng xī gǎi: Frequent changes to policies or orders, leaving them inconsistent.
反复无常fǎn fù wú cháng: Constantly changing feelings or attitudes, with no steady pattern.
三心二意sān xīn èr yì: An unsettled mind that wavers between choices and cannot focus on one task.
见风使舵jiàn fēng shǐ duò: Quickly adjusting a person's stance or behavior to suit the situation or person involved.
Definition in Chinese
形容人常常改变主意、做事不坚持，态度反复无常。xíng róng rén cháng cháng gǎi biàn zhǔ yì zuò shì bù jiān chí tài dù fǎn fù wú cháng
Word origin
朝三暮四 (zhāosānmùsì, "three in the morning and four in the evening") comes from a story about monkeys reacting differently when the same fruit portions are presented in a different order.
Usage tips
- In conversation, the word often judges a person's reliability, which makes it stronger than simply saying that plans have changed.
Other meanings
- change back and forthidiom
Opposites
- 始终如一shǐ zhōng rú yīconsistentidiom