Kilo Lingo

(bú bì) - need not, not necessary in Mandarin

Traditional: 不必

Line drawing of 不必
Coloured illustration of 不必
#903 of 5,000 Core 1000

Translation

need not, not necessary

Word origin

A two-character expression: 不 'not' (a graph traditionally read as a sprout or as a bird in flight, used early for negation) plus 必 'must'. Together 不必 means 'need not'.

Origin
compound
Root
不 (not) + 必 (must)

Stroke order

Stroke order for 不

Stroke order for 必

Examples

You need not worry.

We do not need to go too early.

There is no need to be polite.

You do not need to worry about money.

I do not have to decide right now.

不必 (bú bì) means need not or not necessary.

Where this fits

Used in

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Mandarin · Free printables

不必: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "不必" (need not, not necessary): 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 19.