📖 Meaning
Times change and circumstances shift accordingly. This idiom expresses that as eras pass, the prevailing conditions, power dynamics, and social realities inevitably transform — what once was no longer holds true. It is often used to justify adapting strategies or reassessing situations in light of new realities.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom first appears in the Qing dynasty scholar Hang Shijun's work "Zhiyi · Zhu Shi" (《质疑·诸史》, "Questions and Doubts · Various Histories"). In a passage discussing the harsh reforms of Shang Yang, the Legalist statesman of the Qin state during the Warring States period, Hang argues that later generations unfairly blame Shang Yang alone. He notes that as times and circumstances changed, each dynasty added its own embellishments to governance — "时移势易，踵事增华" — so it is unreasonable to single out Shang Yang for condemnation. The phrase thus originally carried a sense of historical relativism: judging past figures by present standards ignores how much the world has moved on.
💡 Example Usage
时移势易，当年无人问津的荒地如今成了寸土寸金的核心地段。
Times have changed and circumstances have shifted — the wasteland that nobody wanted back then is now prime real estate worth a fortune.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 时移势易
- Pinyin: shí yí shì yì
- Literal Translation: time, shift, situation, change
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4