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信不过 (xìn bú guò) — to mistrust, to not trust; (attributive) incredible, untrustworthy

Definition

信不过 is a resultative verb meaning 'don't trust' or 'untrustworthy' — used as both a verb (transitive) and an attributive adjective (信不过的). It contrasts with 信任 (xìnrèn, 'to trust / trust'), its plain affirmative opposite.

verb
to mistrustto not trust(attributive) incredibleuntrustworthy

Examples

  • 信不过。
    Wǒ xìn bú guò tā.
    I don't trust him.
  • 信不过。
    Zhè shì yí gè xìn bú guò de xiāo xi.
    This is an incredible piece of news.
  • 信不过，。
    Tā zhè ge rén xìn bú guò, nǐ bié xiāng xìn tā.
    This person is untrustworthy; don't believe him.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

信xìntrust
不过
不bùnot过guòpass
偏正Modifier + head

信 means trust, 不 means not, and 过 means pass, so trust does not pass, giving mistrust.

Characters in this word

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánwords
Sound part声符shēngfú
人
人rén信xìn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

信 pairs 人 as the sound part with 言 (words) as the meaning part.

Open 信 →

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 過; 过 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
咼
咼wāi過guò
Same sound today

The traditional form 過 pairs 辵 (walk) with 咼 as a sound component; the simplified 过 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 过 →
Appears in
Thinking & Cognition

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