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舍不得 (shě bu de) — to be reluctant to part with or to do (something); to hate to give up or spend

Definition

舍不得 is the opposite of 舍得: it means you 'can't bear to' part with someone, spend money, or do something painful. 心疼 overlaps for money/possessions but centers on feeling sorry, not on reluctance to act.

verb
to be reluctant to part with or to do (something)to hate to give up or spend

Examples

  • 舍不得。
    Tā shě bu de lí kāi jiā rén qù guó wài gōng zuò.
    She is reluctant to leave her family to work abroad.
  • 舍不得。
    Wǒ shě bu de mǎi nà me guì de yī fu.
    I hate to buy such expensive clothes.
  • 舍不得。
    Tā shě bu de rēng diào nà běn jiù shū.
    He can't bear to throw away that old book.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

舍shègive up
不得not able
不bùnot得déable
偏正Modifier + head

舍 means give up, while 不 and 得 together say not able, so the sense is being reluctant to let go.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
余
余yú舍shè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

舍 is 余 plus 口. 余 was the original picture for this word, and 口 was later added to distinguish it.

Open 舍 →

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 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

The old form 㝵 showed a hand picking up a cowry, meaning to obtain; later changes turned that picture into 得.

Open 得 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 5Emotions & Feelings

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