miàn面facemù目appearancequán全entirelyfēi非not
Changed beyond recognition; completely transformed.
Literal meaning
face (面) — appearance (目) — entirely (全) — not (非)
Origin
A classical four-character phrase describing a drastic change in appearance or condition.
Examples
shí十nián年guò过qù去le了,jiā家xiāng乡yǐ已jīng经biàn变de得miàn面mù目quán全fēi非。
Ten years have passed, and my hometown has changed beyond recognition.
jīng经guò过zhè这cì次gǎi改gé革,gōng公sī司yǐ已jīng经miàn面mù目quán全fēi非。
After this reform, the company has been completely transformed.
Usage & nuances
Used to describe significant and often negative changes.
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