(idiom) (of one's circumstances) beyond one's control / unable to do anything about it / (of one's actions) not subject to conscious control (i.e. done in spite of oneself)
Headword or pronunciation身不由己
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Text matches for “不”
2,166 results
Matches in definitions, examples and entry notes are identified below.
How results are ordered
Dictionary lookup matches complete headwords and pronunciations, or words in English definitions. Additional readings, names and variants are linked from their principal entries. Related words are separate, and partial pinyin has its own suggestions. General lexical entries precede names and historical references. Available frequency counts help order comparable matches.
Frequency data from Cai & Brysbaert, SUBTLEX-CH (2010), Creative Commons Attribution. Counts describe written forms across their readings. A missing count is unknown.
unreasonable / shocking / outrageous
Headword or pronunciation不像话
not easy to do sth / difficult / unchanging
Headword or pronunciation不易
(idiom) to persevere unremittingly / to keep going until the end
Headword or pronunciation坚持不懈
to feel ill at ease
Headword or pronunciation心神不宁
to think too much of oneself / self-important / arrogant
Headword or pronunciation自命不凡
lit. impervious to sword or spear (idiom) / fig. invulnerable / untouchable / thick-skinned / impervious to criticism
Headword or pronunciation刀枪不入
to look down upon / to despise
Headword or pronunciation看不起
(idiom) nothing more than this / that's all / no big deal / not very impressive
Headword or pronunciation不过如此
not always / not entirely / not necessarily so / not entirely correct
Headword or pronunciation不尽然
exhausted / fatigued to the extreme
Headword or pronunciation疲惫不堪
to not say a word
Headword or pronunciation一声不吭
to not calculate / to not count / to not be considered (as) / to have no weight
Headword or pronunciation不算
extraordinary / remarkable / exceptional
Headword or pronunciation不凡
to not know what sb is driving at / to be unintelligible
Headword or pronunciation不知所云
lit. their number cannot be counted (idiom) / fig. countless / innumerable
Headword or pronunciation不计其数
not to hear, not to question (idiom) / to show no interest in sth / uncritical / not in the least concerned
Headword or pronunciation不闻不问
cannot do without / to be unavoidable / are bound to be many
Headword or pronunciation少不了
one stumble, unable to rise (idiom) / a setback leading to total collapse / ruined at a stroke / unable to recover after a minor hitch
Headword or pronunciation一蹶不振
not necessarily / not likely
Headword or pronunciation不见得
(idiom) invulnerable / indestructible / impregnable
Headword or pronunciation坚不可摧
absolutely necessary / indispensable / essential
Headword or pronunciation必不可少
not one thread loose (idiom) / strictly according to the rules / meticulous / not one hair out of place
Headword or pronunciation一丝不苟
No time to lose! (idiom)
Headword or pronunciation机不可失
necessary / must have
Headword or pronunciation不可或缺
irregular
Headword or pronunciation不规则
to stand aside and do nothing (idiom) / to take no part in
Headword or pronunciation撒手不管
regular and thorough (idiom) / methodically arranged
Headword or pronunciation有条不紊
endlessly / ceaselessly
Headword or pronunciation不休
to be unable to tolerate or endure / to find sth difficult to manage
Headword or pronunciation吃不消
worried too much
Headword or pronunciation焦虑不安
if it were not for / but for
Headword or pronunciation要不是
not to be trifled with / not to be pushed around / stand no nonsense
Headword or pronunciation不好惹
to leave without saying good-bye
Headword or pronunciation不辞而别
to spare no pains or effort (idiom) / to do one's utmost
Headword or pronunciation不遗余力
to vary / to differ
Headword or pronunciation不一
not at all surprising (idiom)
Headword or pronunciation不足为奇
to pursue relentlessly
Headword or pronunciation穷追不舍
infertile / unable to conceive a child / infertility
Headword or pronunciation不孕
stainless steel
Headword or pronunciation不锈钢
Definitions from CC-CEDICT · 125,326 source records · Release 2026-10-27