不详 (bù xiáng) — unknown; not clear; not known in detail

Definition

不详 (bùxiáng) is a written/formal predicate meaning 'unknown / not clear in detail', typically used in biographies, reports, or historical records to flag missing information.

verb
unknownnot clearnot known in detail
Easily confused

Examples

  • 不详。
    Tā de chū shēng rì qī bù xiáng.
    His date of birth is unknown.
  • 不详。
    Zhè jiàn shì de xì jié bù xiáng.
    The details of this matter are unclear.
  • 不详。
    Nà wèi zuò jiā de shēng píng bù xiáng.
    That writer's life story is unknown.

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
详xiángdetailed

不 (not) and 详 (detailed) mean not detailed, hence unknown.

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 詳; 详 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánspeech
Sound part声符shēngfú
羊
羊yáng詳xiáng
Same sound today

In the traditional form 詳, 言 points to speech, and 羊 supplies the sound.

Open 详 →

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