陰差陽錯
Chinese edit
(of weather) overcast; Yin; feminine (of weather) overcast; Yin; feminine; moon; cloudy; negative (electric.); shady |
differ from; short of; to lack differ from; short of; to lack; poor; send; a messenger; a mission; to commission; uneven; difference; discrepancy; to differ; error; to err; to make a mistake |
positive (electric.); sun; male | mistake; error; blunder mistake; error; blunder; fault; cross; uneven; wrong | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
trad. (陰差陽錯) | 陰 | 差 | 陽 | 錯 | |
simp. (阴差阳错) | 阴 | 差 | 阳 | 错 | |
Literally: “both yin and yang are wrong”. |
Etymology edit
Constructed from 陰陽/阴阳 (yīnyáng) and 差錯/差错 (chācuò).
Pronunciation edit
Idiom edit
陰差陽錯
- an accident, mistake or event arising from many different unforeseen causes; a strange combination of circumstances; accidentally; serendipitously