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不论 (bù lùn) — no matter (what, who, how, etc.), regardless of

Definition

Conjunction meaning 'no matter (what, who, how, etc.)' used in formal/written Chinese. Pairs naturally with 都/总 or a 都 phrase. 不管 is the everyday spoken equivalent; 无论 is similar but typically pairs with 都/也/总, not 都 alone.

conjunction
no matter (what, who, how, etc.)regardless of

Examples

  • 不论，。
    bù lùn Tiān qì zěn me yàng, wǒ men dōu qù gōng yuán.
    No matter what the weather is like, we are going to the park.
  • 不论，。
    bù lùn Xué xí yǒu duō nán, tā dōu bù xiǎng fàng qì.
    No matter how hard studying is, he doesn't want to give up.
  • 不论，。
    bù lùn Nǐ shén me shí hou lái, wǒ dōu huì děng nǐ.
    No matter when you come, I will wait for you.

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
论lùnconsider or discuss

不 says not, and 论 means to consider, so it means regardless of what is considered.

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 論; 论 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánsay
Sound part声符shēngfú
侖
侖lún論lùn
Same sound today

The traditional form 論 pairs 言 (“say”) with 侖 as a sound component; the simplified 论 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 论 →

Grammar

Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 4Cause, Effect & Logic5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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