📖 Meaning
To be of two minds and three hearts; to be fickle and indecisive. It describes someone who cannot make up their mind or whose willpower is unsteady, constantly wavering between different choices.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from Ming Dynasty author Feng Menglong's collection 'Yushi Mingyan' (Stories to Enlighten the World), Volume 27. In the original passage, a character is warned not to be tempted by wealth and despise poverty, urging them not to be of two minds and three hearts lest they bring regret upon themselves. The phrase is a variant of the more common '三心二意' (three hearts, two minds), conveying the same idea of wavering resolve.
💡 Example Usage
既然决定了要去，就别再两意三心了。
Since you've decided to go, stop being of two minds about it.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 两意三心
- Pinyin: liǎng yì sān xīn
- Literal Translation: two, mind, three, heart
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4