风水轮流转

風水輪流轉

fēngshuǐlúnliúzhuàn

phrase

Meanings

1 fortunes rise and fall in turn
2 the wheel of fortune keeps turning
3 times change, luck changes hands

Characters

wheel, take turns

to revolve, turn

Examples

风水轮流转，今年到我家。

Fēngshuǐ lúnliú zhuàn, jīnnián dào wǒ jiā.

The wheel of fortune turns — this year it's our family's turn.

别得意，风水轮流转，谁知道明年怎么样。

Bié déyì, fēngshuǐ lúnliú zhuàn, shéi zhīdào míngnián zěnmeyàng.

Don't get cocky — fortunes turn, who knows what next year will look like.

Tips

culture

Built on 风水 (fēngshuǐ) — Chinese geomancy, the belief that the flow of 'wind and water' through a place determines its fortune. The phrase imagines that flow as a wheel (轮 lún) that periodically rotates, redistributing luck. Often delivered with mild schadenfreude when someone formerly on top falls.

usage

The full proverbial form is 风水轮流转，今年到我家 (fēngshuǐ lúnliú zhuàn, jīnnián dào wǒ jiā) 'the wheel turns, this year it's at our house'. The first half is often quoted on its own.

Stroke Order

风 fēng

水 shuǐ

轮 lún

流 liú

转 zhuǎn