无关 (wú guān) — unrelated; having nothing to do with

Definition

Used like a verb to say two things 'have nothing to do with each other'. Compare 与...有关 (related) — 无关 is its direct opposite, but 无关 itself is the negative, stative form.

verb

unrelatedhaving nothing to do with

Examples

无关。
Zhè jiàn shì gēn wǒ wú guān.
This matter has nothing to do with me.
无关。
Tā de yì jiàn wú guān zhè ge wèn tí.
His opinion is unrelated to this issue.
无关。
Zhè liǎng jiàn shì wán quán wú guān.
These two matters are completely unrelated.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

无wúno/without

关guānrelation

The sense comes from 无 (no/without) plus 关 (relation), giving no connection.

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 →

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 關; 关 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

門門méndoor

Sound part声符shēngfú

𢇅

𢇅𢇅關guān

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 关, the traditional form 關 shows 門 as a door and 𢇅 as two wooden sticks locking it, with ring-like marks on top.

Open 关 →

Appears in