Standard negation with "bu"

Revision as of 09:35, 12 October 2014 by Noemi (talk | contribs) (→‎Examples)

Use 不 (bù) to negate verbs in the present or future.

Negating Verbs

Structure

The standard way to negate verbs in Chinese is with 不 (bù). To negate a verb, simply place 不 (bù) before it:

Subject + 不 + Verb + Object

Examples

  • 德国人。 shì Déguó rén.I am not German.
  • 喜欢 你。 xǐhuān nǐ.He does not like you.
  • 酒。 jiǔ.She doesn't drink beer.
  • 好 学生。 shì hào xuéshēng.I am not a good student.
  • 想 工作 xiǎng gōngzuò .I don't want to work.
  • 很多 年轻 人 运动Hěnduō niánqīng rén yùndòng .Many young people don't exercise.
  • 今天 我 去 上课Jīntiān wǒ qù shàngkè .Today I am not going to class.
  • 喜欢 这 个 派对。 xǐhuān zhè gè pàiduì.I don't like this party.
  • 这么 贵,我 Zhème guì, wǒ mǎi .How expensive! I'm not buying it.
  • 为什么 你 喜欢 喝 咖啡?Wèishéme nǐ xǐhuān hē kāfēi?Why don't you like to drink coffee?

Almost all verbs can be negated with 不 (bù) (unless you're talking about the past). The only verb that can never be negated with 不 (bù) is 有 (yǒu).

  • 不有 时间。
  • 没有 时间。I don't have time.

Negating Adjectives

Surprise! The structure is basically the same.

Structure

Subject + 不 + Adjective

Examples

  • 饿I'm not hungry.
  • He is not hot.
  • 这 个 This is not expensive.
  • 我们 学校 Our school is not big.
  • 这里 的 咖啡 好喝The coffee here is not good.
  • 我 觉得 那 个 女 孩子 漂亮I think that girl is not pretty.
  • 我 哥哥 ,但是 很 帅。My older brother is not tall, but he is very handsome.
  • 我 很 高兴I am not happy.
  • 这 个 人 This person is not good.
  • 吃 这 种 东西 健康Eating this stuff is not healthy.

See also

Sources and Further Reading

Books

Videos