English–Chinese

“have no choice but” in Chinese

Chinese

Also不能不 (bù néng bù)

Pronunciation

Pinyinzhǐ hǎo

Example

他忘了钥匙，只好在门外等。tā wàng le yào shi zhí hǎo zài mén wài děng

He forgot his keys, so he had no choice but to wait outside the door.

Illustration for 只好 (have no choice but)

How to say “have no choice but” in Chinese

“Have no choice but” in Chinese is 只好 (zhǐ hǎo).

A narrowing set of possibilities leaves one workable action, accepted without enthusiasm.

Full entry for 只好: usage tips, similar words and word origin

Example sentences with 只好

车坏了，我们只好走路回家。chē huài le wǒ men zhí hǎo zǒu lù huí jiā

The car broke down, so we had no choice but to walk home.

Tips for using 只好

  • The adverb normally stands directly before the action verb, while a preceding reason helps show why the choice feels forced.

Other Chinese words for “have no choice but”

2

不能不

bù néng bù

adverbhave no choice but

我不能不接受这个条件。wǒ bù néng bù jiē shòu zhè ge tiáo jiàn

I have no choice but to accept this condition.

“have no choice but” in other languages