TongTong
Sign in

毫无 (háo wú) — not in the least; to completely lack

Definition

毫 means 'a single hair' — 毫无 is a written emphatic 'not a trace of / completely lacking,' stronger and more formal than the everyday 毫不 ('not at all'). Use before abstract nouns like 兴趣, 关系, 意义.

phrase
not in the leastto completely lack

Examples

  • 毫无。
    Tā duì zhè ge diàn yǐng háo wú xìng qù.
    He has no interest in this movie at all.
  • 毫无。
    Zhè jiàn shì gēn wǒ háo wú guān xì.
    This matter has nothing to do with me.
  • 毫无。
    Tā de jiàn yì háo wú yì yì.
    His suggestion is completely meaningless.

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.

毫háotiny bit
无wúnot have

毫 means a tiny bit and 无 means not have, together not have a bit.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

The written form 毫 is built from 高 and 毛.

Open 毫 →

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 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 6Quantity & Amount2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 6 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.