Chinese idiom · 成语
出尔反尔
Meaning
To go back on one’s word; to act inconsistently.
Character by character
Origin and story
Philosophical dialogueIn Mencius (孟子), Liang Hui Wang II (梁惠王下), the ruler of Zou complains that his people did not die defending officials during fighting with Lu. Mencius reminds him that when famine struck, officials had failed to help the suffering population despite full state stores. Their present lack of support reflects how they were previously treated.
He invokes a warning attributed to Zengzi: what comes from you returns to you. In this context the idea is reciprocity and consequences, not breaking a promise. Later usage developed the familiar criticism of reversing one’s words or actions. Keeping the two senses separate makes the old conversation intelligible.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
你昨天答应周末帮忙，今天又出尔反尔，我只好另找人了。
Yesterday you promised to help this weekend, but now you have gone back on it, so I will have to ask someone else.
Criticizes inconsistency or reneging, not every reasonable change of mind.