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无能 (wú néng) — incapable; incompetent; powerless

Definition

无能 (wúnéng) is an adjective for a person judged incompetent or powerless, often carrying a strong critical tone. Stronger and more judgmental than the verb 无力 (lack of strength) and more personal than the idiom 无能为力 (helpless in a situation).

adjective
incapableincompetentpowerless

Examples

  • 无能。
    Tā yīn wèi gōng zuò wú néng bèi lǎo bǎn pī píng le.
    He was criticized by his boss for being incompetent at work.
  • ，无能。
    Miàn duì kùn nan, wǒ men bù néng xiǎn de wú néng.
    Facing difficulties, we cannot appear powerless.
  • 无能，。
    Tā jué de zì jǐ hěn wú néng, suǒ yǐ hěn jǔ sàng.
    He feels very incompetent, so he is very depressed.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

无wúhave no
能néngability

无 (have no) and 能 (ability) together mean lacking ability or power.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 無; 无 is its simplified writing.

For the simplified 无, the story is about 無. 無 drew a person dancing with ox tails held in both hands to pray for rain, then was borrowed for 'have no', so the picture does not explain that meaning.

Open 无 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

能 is an old picture of a bear, showing two paws and a face with an open mouth.

Open 能 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Personality & Traits

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