TongTong
Sign in

不解 (bù jiě) — to not understand, to be puzzled by; indissoluble (in set phrases like 不解之缘)

Definition

不解 (bùjiě) means "puzzled, unable to understand" a situation, decision, or person — a more literary verb than 不知道. In the set phrase 不解之缘 it means "indissoluble" (an unbreakable bond).

verb
to not understandto be puzzled byindissoluble (in set phrases like 不解之缘)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 不解。
    Wǒ duì tā de jué dìng shí fēn bù jiě.
    I am very puzzled by his decision.
  • 不解。
    Zhè ge wèn tí de dá àn lìng rén bù jiě.
    The answer to this question is puzzling.
  • 。
    Tā men zhī jiān yǒu zhe bù jiě zhī yuán.
    They share an indissoluble bond.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

不bùnot
解jiěunderstand

不 expresses not, and 解 expresses understand, so together they mean not understand or indissoluble.

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 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

解 shows 刀 (knife) separating 角 (horn) from 牛 (cow), giving the picture of cutting up an ox.

Open 解 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Thinking & Cognition

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.