# 世态炎凉

shì tài yán liáng

People’s warmth changes with one’s fortune

## Meaning & wording

**Literally:** The world’s attitudes turn hot and cold

**Traditional Chinese:** 世態炎涼

**Register:** Critical · expressive

[People & connection](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/topics/relationships)

## When to use it

Describe fickle treatment linked to wealth or status.

A cynical generalization, not a universal rule.

## Understanding the expression

Heat and cold stand for welcome and indifference. The expression describes how people may show warmth to someone prosperous or influential, then withdraw it when that person loses money or standing. It often carries disappointment after a reversal of fortune. The judgment concerns opportunistic relationships rather than seasonal change. Genuine loyalty can coexist with such behavior, so one painful experience need not prove that every friendship depends on social advantage.

## Examples

失业后，他尝尽世态炎凉。

### Traditional Chinese

失業後，他嚐盡世態炎涼。

shī yè hòu ， tā cháng jìn shì tài yán liáng 。

After losing his job, he experienced the world’s fickle treatment.

昔日好友纷纷疏远，让她感到世态炎凉。

### Traditional Chinese

昔日好友紛紛疏遠，讓她感到世態炎涼。

xī rì hǎo yǒu fēn fēn shū yuǎn ， ràng tā gǎn dào shì tài yán liáng 。

Former friends distanced themselves, making her feel how fickle people can be.

破产后仍有人帮助他，使他不再只看见世态炎凉。

### Traditional Chinese

破產後仍有人幫助他，使他不再只看見世態炎涼。

pò chǎn hòu réng yǒu rén bāng zhù tā ， shǐ tā bú zài zhī kàn jiàn shì tài yán liáng 。

Help after bankruptcy showed him more than the world’s coldness.

这部小说写出了世态炎凉。

### Traditional Chinese

這部小說寫出了世態炎涼。

zhè bù xiǎo shuō xiě chū le shì tài yán liáng 。

The novel portrays people’s changing attitudes toward those whose fortunes decline.

## Sources & reference checks

Original explanations and examples from Chinese Idioms Almanac. Source-checked October 6, 2026.

- [CC-CEDICT · forms & pronunciation](https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=worddict&wdqb=%E4%B8%96%E6%85%8B%E7%82%8E%E6%B6%BC)

- [Ministry of Education · 成語典](https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/idiomView.jsp?ID=761&webMd=1&la=0)

## Keep exploring

- [食言而肥 shí yán ér féi Break a promise ](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/shi-yan-er-fei)

- [守口如瓶 shǒu kǒu rú píng Keep a secret completely ](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/shou-kou-ru-ping)

- [守望相助 shǒu wàng xiāng zhù Help and protect one another ](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/shou-wang-xiang-zhu)

- [手舞足蹈 shǒu wǔ zú dǎo Show joy through excited movement ](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/shou-wu-zu-dao)

## Keep this one close.

Save useful idioms, read offline, and revisit them with flashcards in Almanac.

[View on the App Store ](https://apps.apple.com/app/id6819590452)

[Previous idiom 实事求是 ](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/shi-shi-qiu-shi) [Next idiom 世外桃源 ](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/shi-wai-tao-yuan)