取而代之的是……
Reach for this when one thing disappears and something else fills the empty slot. It is the written, slightly literary way to say 'and what took its place was…' Common in news, essays, and reflective writing where you first describe what is gone, then announce the replacement. Speech prefers 后来…… or 现在……变成……; this phrase belongs in a paragraph that wants a clean rhetorical pivot from old situation to new.
Structure
[OLD SITUATION]，取而代之的是 [NEW SITUATION]。
qǔ ér dài zhī de shì...
How to Think About It
Picture two things on a single chair. The first must stand up before the second can sit down — 取而代之的是 names whoever just sat down. The phrase always points forward, never back: everything before the comma is the chair being vacated, everything after 是 is the new occupant.
Examples
纸质报纸渐渐消失了，取而代之的是手机上的新闻应用。
Zhǐzhì bàozhǐ jiànjiàn xiāoshī le, qǔ ér dài zhī de shì shǒujī shang de xīnwén yìngyòng.
Paper newspapers have gradually disappeared; what replaced them is news apps on the phone.
旧的工厂被拆掉了，取而代之的是一座现代化的购物中心。
Jiù de gōngchǎng bèi chāidiào le, qǔ ér dài zhī de shì yī zuò xiàndàihuà de gòuwù zhōngxīn.
The old factory was torn down; in its place stands a modern shopping mall.
他脸上的笑容不见了，取而代之的是深深的失望。
Tā liǎn shang de xiàoróng bù jiàn le, qǔ ér dài zhī de shì shēnshēn de shīwàng.
The smile on his face was gone; what replaced it was deep disappointment.
Common Mistake
Learners drop 的是 and try to use 取而代之 like a verb (取而代之新的政策). It is fixed: the chunk 取而代之的是 must stay intact, and a noun phrase (not a clause with 了) follows it.
旧政策结束了，取而代之新政策开始了。
旧政策结束了，取而代之的是新政策。
Don't Confuse With
代替
代替 is the everyday verb 'to replace' (我代替他去). 取而代之的是 is a written connector that introduces what replaced something already gone.
相反，……
相反 contrasts two coexisting situations. 取而代之的是 requires the first situation to have ended or vanished.
而是……
而是 corrects a wrong assumption (不是A而是B). 取而代之的是 narrates a real-world succession, not a logical correction.
Practice
Fill in the blank: 老式收音机消失了，____代之的是智能音箱。
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取而
Fill in the blank: 旧楼拆了，取而代之____是一个公园。
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的
Arrange into a sentence: 是 / 取而代之的 / 电动车 / 燃油车 / 减少了 / ，
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燃油车减少了，取而代之的是电动车。
Translate to Chinese: The old rules were abolished, and what replaced them was a stricter system.
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旧规则被废除了，取而代之的是一个更严格的制度。
Describe one change in your city or workplace using 取而代之的是.
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小区门口的报亭关掉了，取而代之的是一台自助快递柜。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 1 Fluentide episode: