未必 (wèi bì) — not necessarily; maybe not | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

未必 says the conclusion is uncertain — 'not necessarily / maybe not.' Unlike 不必 and 无须 (which mean 'need not'), it expresses doubt about a claim, not permission. Weaker than 不见得, which leans more toward 'probably not.'

adverb

not necessarilymaybe not

Examples

未必。
wèi bì Shì nà yàng.
It's not necessarily like that.
未必。
Tā shuō de wèi bì duì.
What he said may not be correct.
未必。
Nǐ nǔ lì le wèi bì néng chéng gōng.
Even if you work hard, you may not necessarily succeed.

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.

必bìnecessarily

未 says 'not' and 必 says 'necessarily', together giving 'not necessarily'.

Characters in this word

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

The shape 未 shows a tree with extra branches spreading above its trunk, like lush, overlapping limbs.

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

The shape of 必 comes from the handle on the right side of a weapon, with two extra strokes added to its sides.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 6 HSK 2.0 Level 5 Attitudes & Opinions

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