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时过境迁 (shí guò jìng qiān) — (chengyu) circumstances change with the passage of time; things are different now

Definition

A chengyu meaning circumstances have changed over time, often with a hint of nostalgia or wistfulness. Pairs naturally with 了 to mark the change (时过境迁了).

idiom
(chengyu) circumstances change with the passage of timethings are different now

Examples

  • ，时过境迁。
    Èr shí nián hòu zài jiàn miàn, dà jiā dōu jué de shí guò jìng qiān le.
    When we met again after twenty years, everyone felt that circumstances had changed.
  • 时过境迁。
    Xiǎo shí hou cháng qù de nà tiáo xiǎo hé xiàn zài yǐ jīng shí guò jìng qiān le.
    The small river I often went to as a child has now changed with time.
  • ，时过境迁，。
    Huí dào mǔ xiào, wǒ fā xiàn shí guò jìng qiān, xiào yuán lǐ duō le hěn duō xīn jiàn zhù.
    Returning to my alma mater, I found that circumstances had changed — the campus had many new buildings.

Origin

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 時; 时 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun; day
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī時shí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 時 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 之 as the part that gives the sound; the simplified 时 is not the form described.

Open 时 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 過; 过 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
咼
咼wāi過guò
Same sound today

The traditional form 過 pairs 辵 (walk) with 咼 as a sound component; the simplified 过 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 过 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
土土tǔearth
Sound part声符shēngfú
竟
竟jìng境jìng
Same sound today

境 pairs 土 (earth) with 竟, which gives the sound; the 土 part carries the meaning.

Open 境 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 迁 →
Appears in
Change & ProcessIdioms & Set Phrases

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