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事过境迁

shì guò jìng qiāndictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
The issue is in the past, and the situation has changed (idiom). / It is water under the bridge.
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-5b619457b2b0fa32. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

事過境遷 事过境迁 [shi4 guo4 jing4 qian1] /The issue is in the past, and the situation has changed (idiom)./It is water under the bridge./

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 事過境遷

  • 事
    shì

    matter / thing / item / work / affair / CL:件[jiàn],樁|桩[zhuāng],回[huí]

  • 过
    guò

    to cross / to go over / to pass (time) / to celebrate (a holiday) / to live / to get along / excessively / too-

    guo

    (experienced action marker)

    Guō

    surname Guo

  • 境
    jìng

    border / place / condition / boundary / circumstances / territory

  • 迁
    qiān

    to move / to shift / to change (a position or location etc) / to promote

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.