CHENGYU
朝三暮四(zhāo sān mù sì)meaning, story and origin
- Register:
- literary, mildly critical
- Source:
- 《庄子·齐物论》
MEANING
- Literal
- three in the morning, four in the evening
- Figurative meaning
- to be changeable and inconsistent; to play tricks with words
ORIGIN STORY
In the Zhuangzi, a monkey keeper announced: "Three chestnuts in the morning, four at night." The monkeys raged. "Then four in the morning, three at night," he said — and they were delighted. The total never changed, only the wording.
NATURAL EQUIVALENT
“to blow hot and cold”
EXAMPLES
他做事朝三暮四，今天学这个明天学那个。Tā zuòshì zhāo sān mù sì, jīntiān xué zhège míngtiān xué nàge.HSK6
He is changeable — studying this today and that tomorrow.
恋爱不能朝三暮四，要专一。Liànài bù néng zhāo sān mù sì, yào zhuānyī.HSK6
In love one must not be fickle; be devoted.
COMMON MISTAKE
Watch out: Note the reading: 朝 is zhāo (morning), not cháo (court).
CHARACTER BREAKDOWN
Tap a character to explore it
TRUST & SOURCES
- Reviewed by
- AI-assisted editorial review
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-15
- CC-CEDICT 2026-01-01