also: しゅきゃくてんとう
noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru'
reversing the order of importance; putting the cart before the horse; mistaking the means for the end
A yojijukugo describing a situation where the relative importance of things is reversed, or where the essential and the trivial are confused. Often used critically when priorities are wrong.
会議の目的を見失い、主客転倒の議論になってしまった。
We lost sight of the meeting's purpose and the discussion turned into a case of putting the cart before the horse.
細かいことにこだわりすぎて、主客転倒している。
You're so fixated on the details that you're mistaking the means for the end.