并不 (bìng bù) — by no means, not at all (emphatic negation)

Definition

并不 (bìng bù) is the written/emphatic 'not at all / by no means' — stronger and more formal than plain 不, used in careful writing or speech to deny an assumption the listener might have.

adverb
by no meansnot at all (emphatic negation)

Examples

  • 并不，。
    Wǒ bìng bù tǎo yàn tā, zhǐ shì jué de bú tài hé shì.
    I by no means dislike him; I just think it's not quite suitable.
  • 并不，。
    Zhè jiàn shì bìng bù fù zá, nǐ bú yòng dān xīn.
    This matter is not at all complicated; you don't need to worry.
  • 并不。
    Tā bìng bù xiàng nǐ shuō de nà me zì sī.
    He is by no means as selfish as you said.

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.

并bìngactually; emphatic
不bùnot

'并' adds emphasis, '不' gives negation, together meaning not at all.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 并 →

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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