复蹈前辙 — “To repeat the same old mistakes”

复蹈前辙 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to repeat the same old mistakes”. To follow in the old tracks (and repeat past failures); to fall into the same trap. Literally, “To step on the previous tracks; to tread the same old rut”.

Frequency

复蹈前辙 Pronunciation and Pinyin

复蹈前辙 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
复	fù	9	return, repeat, or complex
蹈	dǎo	17	tread, step, dance
前	qián	9	forward, before, previous
辙	zhé	16	wheel track or repeated mistake

Example Sentence with 复蹈前辙

我们必须吸取过去的经验教训，避免在同样的问题上复蹈前辙

We must learn from past experiences and avoid repeating the same mistakes on similar issues.

Origin and Story of 复蹈前辙

In the Eastern Han Dynasty, Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu placed great trust in his powerful maternal relatives, the Liang family. The Liang family grew arrogant and unchecked, even going so far as to poison Emperor Zhi Liu Zan.

Later, when Emperor Huan Liu Zhi ascended the throne, he decided to eliminate the corrupt Liang family by enlisting the help of five eunuchs. After successfully overthrowing the Liang family, Emperor Huan rewarded these five eunuchs with noble titles and significant power.

Grand General Dou Wu, observing this, became concerned that the emperor was making the same mistake as his predecessors by empowering a new group that could become equally dangerous. He wrote a letter to Emperor Huan, warning him not to "fù dǎo qián zhé," which means to repeat the same old mistakes or follow in the old disastrous tracks.

However, Dou Wu's warning went unheeded, and he was ultimately killed by the very eunuchs he had cautioned against. This tragic event serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of learning from history to avoid repeating past errors.