变卦

變卦

biànguà

verb #21,416

Meanings

1 to change one's mind
2 to go back on one's word
3 to break a promise

Characters

trigram / hexagram (I Ching)

Examples

他同意了，但后来又变卦了。

Tā tóngyì le, dàn hòulái yòu biànguà le.

He agreed, but then he changed his mind.

不能说话不算数，说好的事情不能变卦。

Bù néng shuōhuà bù suàn shù, shuō hǎo de shìqíng bù néng biànguà.

You can't go back on your word — what's been agreed cannot be changed.

Tips

history

卦 refers to the trigrams (or hexagrams) of the I Ching (易经). When the hexagram changes (变卦), the fortune or situation shifts entirely — hence 变卦 came to mean a sudden reversal of one's position or decision.

Stroke Order

变 biàn

卦 guà