(bié) - do not (imperative); other in Mandarin

bié

Traditional: 別

HSK 2

#96 of 5,000 Core 1000

Translation

do not (imperative); other

Word origin

别 'to separate, other' is composed of a left element (in older forms relating to bone, 冎) and the knife radical 刂on the right, conveying the idea of cutting or dividing things apart. From 'separate' it extended to 'other' and to the prohibitive 'do not'.

Origin: compound
Root: left element (冎, bone) + 刂(knife radical)

Stroke order

别

Examples

！

Do not worry!

，。

Stop talking, I already know.

？

Is there any other way?

，。

Do not get angry, I was joking.

。

I would like to look at another colour.

Where this fits

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Appears in 6 words

Multi-character compounds in the corpus that contain 别.

别人bié rénother people, others, someone else 特别tè biéespecially, particularly, special 别的bié deother, else, other things 别说bié shuōdo not say; let alone 别动bié dòngdon't move, stay still 别管bié guǎnnever mind, don't bother about, leave it alone

Used in

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(6)

Grammar articles

(15)

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Mandarin · Free printables

别: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "别" (do not (imperative); other): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

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This word is part of lesson 2.