Definition
不到 can act as a verb meaning 'cannot reach' (a place, time, or goal) or 'be insufficient, fall short of' (a number or standard). It is also commonly used as a potential complement after another verb (V + 不到) to express inability to achieve the result of that action, e.g. 看不到 'cannot see', 吃不到 'cannot eat' — the opposite of 得到 (dédào) 'to be able to V'.
v.
cannot reach (a place, time, or goal)be less thanfall short of (a number or amount)(verb complement after another verb) unable to accomplish the result of the verb
Examples
- ，不到。Zhè tàng gāotiě zhǐ dào Shànghǎi, bù dào Běijīng.This high-speed train only goes to Shanghai, not to Beijing.
- 不到，。Tā de cúnkuǎn bù dào yī wàn yuán, mǎi bù qǐ fángzi.His savings are less than ten thousand yuan, so he can't afford a house.
- ，。Zhè dào tí tài nán le, wǒ xiǎng bù dào rènhé jiějué fāngfǎ.This problem is too difficult — I can't think of any solution.
Grammar
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