(jué bù) - absolutely not, never, under no circumstances in Mandarin
juébùTraditional: 絕不
Translation
absolutely not, never, under no circumstances
Word origin
A compound of 绝 (jué, to cut off, absolutely) and 不 (bù, not), an absolute refusal with the door cut shut behind it.
- Origin
- compound
- Root
- 绝 (jué, to cut off, absolutely) + 不 (bù, not)
Stroke order
绝
不
Examples
。
I will never forget that day.
。
He will absolutely not agree.
。
A thing like this must never happen again.
。
We will never give up.
。
She says she has no regrets whatsoever.
绝不 (jué bù) is the emphatic no: absolutely not, never, under no circumstances. It goes in front of the verb, usually with 会 or 能 close behind, and it belongs to promises, refusals and declarations rather than to reporting facts.
Because it is about will, it points forward. 绝不 is what you say about what you refuse to do; it is not how you say you have never done something. For that you need 从来没 plus 过: 我从来没去过北京 (I have never been to Beijing). Say 我绝不去北京 and you have announced a boycott.
The 绝 gives it real force, so keep it for things you mean. It is the same 绝 as in 绝对 (absolutely) and 拒绝 (to refuse), and the family resemblance is exact: the character draws a thread being cut, and every one of these words is about closing an option off for good.
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绝不: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "绝不" (absolutely not, never, under no circumstances): 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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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 45.