物是人非

wùshì-rénfēi
idiom #34,305

Meanings

  1. 1 things remain but people have changed
  2. 2 the scenery is the same but the people are gone

Examples

Chóng huí gùxiāng, wùshìrénfēi, bùjīn luòlèi.
Returning to his hometown, he found the scenery unchanged but the people gone, and could not hold back his tears.
Shínián hòu zàijiàn tóngxué, wùshìrénfēi.
Meeting his classmates ten years later, so much had changed about the people even though nothing else had.

Tips

history
From Li Qingzhao's 《》: '物是人非事事.' A signature phrase of nostalgic literature — used when returning to a place associated with someone now absent.

Stroke Order

shì
rén
fēi