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不会 (bù huì) — haven't learned to; can't (due to lack of skill); won't; be unlikely (negative prediction)

Definition

不会 has two main uses: 'can't / haven't learned to' (lack of skill — e.g. 不会开车) and a soft negative prediction 'won't / is unlikely to' (e.g. 不会下雨).

auxiliary verb
haven't learned tocan't (due to lack of skill)won'tbe unlikely (negative prediction)

Examples

  • 不会，。
    Tā bù huì shuō rì yǔ, zhī huì shuō zhōng wén.
    He can't speak Japanese, only Chinese.
  • 不会，。
    Míng tiān bù huì xià yǔ, nǐ fàng xīn chū mén ba.
    It won't rain tomorrow; feel free to go out.
  • ，不会。
    Tā nà me máng, bù huì yǒu shí jiān lái de.
    He's so busy, he's unlikely to have time to come.

Origin

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 會; 会 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
合合héto meet
Sound part声符shēngfú
𡆧
𡆧𡆧會huì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

Traditional 會 pairs 合 (to meet) with 𡆧, an original form for ironware, to give the sound. The simplified 会 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 会 →

Grammar

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