day 39idioms with 不

idioms with 不

Use the great family of four-character idioms built on 不: 半A半B, 不A不B and 不A而B, to describe crowds, applause, talk, doubts and goodbyes.

today’s words

• 半信半疑 bànxìnbànyí · half-believing, sceptical
• 不知不觉 bùzhībùjué · without realising, before you know it
• 不折不扣 bùzhébùkòu · through and through, out-and-out
• 不辞而别 bùcí'érbié · to leave without saying goodbye
• 不言而喻 bùyán'éryù · it goes without saying
• 不约而同 bùyuē'értóng · with one accord, all at once
• 不翼而飞 bùyì'érfēi · to vanish into thin air
• 不得而知 bùdé'érzhī · unknown, impossible to know
• 不可思议 bùkěsīyì · unbelievable, inconceivable
• 不可或缺 bùkěhuòquē · indispensable
• 不假思索 bùjiǎsīsuǒ · without a moment’s thought
• 不了了之 bùliǎoliǎozhī · to end with nothing done, fizzle out
• 不相上下 bùxiāngshàngxià · equally matched, about the same
• 不以为然 bùyǐwéirán · to disapprove, not think much of
• 不由自主 bùyóuzìzhǔ · can’t help it, involuntarily
• 不知所措 bùzhīsuǒcuò · at a loss, not know what to do
• 不厌其烦 bùyànqífán · patiently, without tiring
• 不耻下问 bùchǐxiàwèn · not ashamed to ask those below you
• 不正之风 bùzhèngzhīfēng · bad practices, corruption
• 不亦乐乎 bùyìlèhū · extremely (busy), like mad
• 必不可少 bìbùkěshǎo · absolutely necessary
• 层出不穷 céngchūbùqióng · to keep appearing, one after another
• 川流不息 chuānliúbùxī · flowing without end (traffic, crowds)
• 络绎不绝 luòyìbùjué · in an endless stream (visitors)
• 经久不息 jīngjiǔbùxī · prolonged (applause)
• 滔滔不绝 tāotāobùjué · to talk on and on
• 赞不绝口 zànbùjuékǒu · to be full of praise
• 源源不断 yuányuánbùduàn · in a steady stream, without end
• 锲而不舍 qiè'érbùshě · to persevere, keep at it
• 恋恋不舍 liànliànbùshě · reluctant to leave
• 依依不舍 yīyībùshě · reluctant to part
• 美中不足 měizhōngbùzú · a fly in the ointment
• 来之不易 láizhībùyì · hard-won
• 微不足道 wēibùzúdào · too small to mention, trivial
• 本事 běnshi · ability, skill

sentences

• 听说狮子不见了，大家都半信半疑。 · When they heard the stone lions had gone, everyone was only half convinced.
• 不知不觉，我在北京已经住了十年。 · Before I knew it, I’d been living in Beijing for ten years.
• 这是一个不折不扣的好消息。 · This is good news through and through.
• 大家不约而同地鼓掌。 · Everyone started clapping at the same moment.
• 来参观胡同的游客络绎不绝。 · Visitors come to see the hutongs in an endless stream.