Chinese idiom · 成语
斗转星移
Meaning
The Dipper turns, stars shift; time passes or changes occur.
Character by character
Origin and story
Literary imageThe turning of the Northern Dipper and the changing positions of stars supply a natural image for the passage of time. The exact expression appears in Yuan drama: Bai Pu's Qiangtou mashang uses it for waiting as the night advances, while Ma Zhiyuan's Chen Tuan gaowo expands it into an image of vast changes occurring during prolonged sleep.
The first setting emphasizes the slow hours of waiting, while the second enlarges the same celestial image to suggest an immense span of change. It is most commonly a poetic way to speak of time passing and circumstances changing, whether over a night or across many years.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
斗转星移，当年的小店已经变成了社区书店。
Time has passed, and the little shop from those days has become a neighborhood bookstore.
Poetic or reflective language for passing time, not a precise duration.