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變化無常

简变化无常 · 繁變化無常

Mandarin · pinyin biàn huà wú cháng

(idiom) changeable; fickle

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Characters in this entry

變: Look up this written character
化: huà · change, convert, reform; -ize
無: Look up this written character
常: cháng · common, normal, frequent, regular
变: biàn · change, transform, alter; rebel
无: wú · negative, no, not; Kangxi radical 71

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4–4–2–2 · bian4 hua4 wu2 chang2

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

變化無常 · find source passages ↗ · 变化无常 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

bin3 faa3 mou4 soeng4

Cantonese word readings for 變化無常. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

phrase

(idiomatic) irregular, fickle, capricious

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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