Expressing something is "not worth doing" with "buxie"

In this article, we look at at a grammar at the grammar pattern 不屑. Normally, you may think of 屑 as having to do with bits of something, like 木屑, 铁屑 etc. It also means "to believe something is worth doing ." In that case, 不屑 means "to believe that something is not worth doing."

It is important to note that there is an element of disdain to 不屑, so the subject using 不屑 looks down on doing the action.

Structure

In this structure, you can say 不屑 or 不屑于. Both have the same meaning, though 不屑于 is a bit more literary.

Subject + 不屑(于) + verb/verb phrase

Examples

• 我 的 同事 是 一位 很 诚实 的 人 ，他 不屑 说谎。
• 要是 你 想要 向 雷锋 同志 学习 ，你 应该 不屑于 说 别人 的 坏话。
• 在我看来 ，许多 官员 表面 上 不屑于 收 贿赂，反对 腐败，但是 他们 实际上 做 了 很 多 坏事。

Sources and further reading

Books

HSK6