plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose

French

French critic, journalist, and novelist Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr

Etymology

Literally, “the more it changes, the more it’s the same thing”. An epigram by Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr in the January 1849 issue of his journal Les Guêpes (“The Wasps”). Possibly first said by Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (1754–1838). The plus ... plus construction is hyperbolic.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ply sa ʃɑ̃ʒ | ply s‿ɛ la mɛm ʃoz/

Proverb

plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose

1. the more things change, the more they stay the same

Descendants

• English: plus ça change