1.
flipping the table; sudden dramatic reversal
Literally overturning a low dining table (ちゃぶ台) in a fit of rage; figuratively, abruptly overturning a plan or decision that was nearly settled, throwing everything into disorder.
社長のちゃぶ台返しで計画が白紙になった。
The president's about-face scrapped the whole plan.
完成間近での仕様変更は、まさにちゃぶ台返しだ。
A spec change just before completion is a textbook table-flip.
父が怒ってちゃぶ台返しをするのは昔の漫画の定番だった。
A father flipping the dinner table in anger was a staple of old manga.
From the image of an angry household head overturning the ちゃぶ台 (low dining table). Now mostly figurative: scrapping a near-finished plan or agreement at the last moment.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- ちゃぶ台返しをする: to overturn (a plan); to flip the table
- 大ちゃぶ台返し: a massive last-minute reversal
USAGE:
Colloquial, with a vivid and slightly humorous tone.