互不 (hù bú) — mutually not; neither (does something) to the other

Definition

互不 is a written/formal adverb meaning 'mutually not' — it negates a symmetric verb so that both sides do not perform the action on each other (e.g. 互不侵犯, 互不干涉). Rare in everyday speech.

adverb
mutually notneither (does something) to the other

Examples

  • 互不，。
    Wǒ men hù bú xiāng gān, gè zǒu gè de lù.
    We have nothing to do with each other; we each go our own way.
  • 互不，。
    Xī wàng dà jiā hù bú dǎ rǎo, zhuān xīn gōng zuò.
    I hope everyone doesn't disturb each other and focuses on work.
  • 互不，。
    Liǎng guó hù bú qīn fàn, hé píng gòng chǔ.
    The two countries do not invade each other and coexist peacefully.

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.

互hùmutually
不bùnot

互 means mutually and 不 means not, together neither side does something to the other.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The form 互 is a tooth shape with a distinguishing mark added.

Open 互 →

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 →

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