Word.ws English Dictionary

the more things change, the more they stay the same

the more things change, the more they stay the same proverb: turbulent changes do not affect reality on a deeper level other than to cement the status quo.

Proverb

the more things change, the more they stay the same

  1. Turbulent changes do not affect reality on a deeper level other than to cement the status quo.
    • Superficial change is not movement, as is indicated by the saying, “the more things change, the more they stay the same.”1952, “Freedom and Movement—Necessities for Community Well-Being”, in Community Service News, volume 10, number 3, page 65
    • There must be some continuity with the past, “or else the world is a madhouse.” Hence, the more things change, the more they stay the same; the more things stay the same, the more they change.1994, Delwin Brown, Boundaries of Our Habitations: Tradition and Theological Construction, State University of New York Press, →ISBN, page 65
  2. A change of heart must accompany experience before lasting change occurs.
    Synonyms:
    plus ça change

Synonyms of the more things change, the more they stay the same

Origin of the more things change, the more they stay the same

Calque of French plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.

Questions about the more things change, the more they stay the same

What does the more things change, the more they stay the same mean?
The more things change, the more they stay the same means turbulent changes do not affect reality on a deeper level other than to cement the status quo.
What part of speech is the more things change, the more they stay the same?
The more things change, the more they stay the same is a proverb.

Words near the more things change, the more they stay the same in the dictionary

  1. the mixture as before
  2. the moon on a stick
  3. the more fool someone
  4. the more one learns about people, the more one likes one's pet
  5. the more the merrier
  6. the more things change, the more they stay the same
  7. the more you know
  8. the more you know, the higher you go
  9. the nail that sticks out gets hammered down
  10. the nail that sticks up gets hammered down
  11. the natives are getting restless

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: the more things change, the more they stay the same (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/the_more_things_change%2C_the_more_they_stay_the_same. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.