回旋镖

迴旋鏢

huíxuánbiāo

noun

Meanings

1 boomerang (literal)
2 (internet slang) an attack that comes back on the person who threw it; karma coming back around

Characters

to rotate, to spin

dart, throwing weapon

Examples

HSK 5

这条评论变成了大回旋镖。

Zhè tiáo pínglùn biànchéng le dà huíxuánbiāo.

That comment turned into a massive boomerang (came right back on him).

HSK 6

他骂别人没素质,结果被拍到自己插队,真是回旋镖。

Tā mà biéren méi sùzhì, jiéguǒ bèi pāi dào zìjǐ chāduì, zhēnshì huíxuánbiāo.

He trashed others for being rude, and then got filmed cutting in line himself - total boomerang.

Tips

culture

In Chinese internet discourse around 2022, 回旋镖 became the go-to word for the moment when a person's own words or standards come back to hit them. Closely tied to the culture of 双标 (double-standards) call-outs. A typical comment: 'The boomerang hits hard' 回旋镖打得真狠.

register

Literal sense is neutral; figurative sense is strongly colloquial/online. Frequently paired with verbs 打 (hit), 收 (catch): 收下这个回旋镖 'here, take this boomerang back'.

Stroke Order

回 huí

旋 xuán

镖 biāo