出尔反尔

Traditional: 出爾反爾

chū ěr fǎn ěr

Dictionary entry

old: to reap the consequences of one's words (idiom, from Mencius); modern: to go back on one's word

What does 出尔反尔 mean?

出尔反尔 (chū ěr fǎn ěr) has the following dictionary meaning.

1old: to reap the consequences of one's words (idiom, from Mencius); modern: to go back on one's word

2to blow hot and cold

3to contradict oneself

4inconsistent

Character breakdown

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出chūto go out; to come out · to arise; to occur 尔ěrvariant of 爾|尔[er3]反fǎncontrary · in reverse

Reviewed examples

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How to pronounce 出尔反尔

出尔反尔

chū ěr fǎn ěr

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Base dictionary data: CC-CEDICT · CC BY-SA 4.0.