(bù dé bù) - have to, cannot but, must in Mandarin

bùdébù

Traditional: 不得不

HSK 4

#860 of 5,000 Core 1000

Translation

have to, cannot but, must

Word origin

A three-character set phrase, literally 'not able not': 不 'not', 得 'to be able, to get', and 不 'not'. The double negative yields the meaning 'have no choice but to' or 'must'.

Origin: compound
Root: 不 (not) + 得 (able) + 不 (not)

Stroke order

不

得

不

Examples

。

I have to leave.

。

She cannot but accept reality.

。

He had no choice but to apologize.

雨yǔ，。

Because of the rain, we had to cancel.

。

He had no choice but to accept this fact.

不得不 (bù dé bù) means have to, cannot but, must. It is used as an expression in everyday Mandarin speech.

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Mandarin · Free printables

不得不: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "不得不" (have to, cannot but, must): 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 18.