Chinese word

不得不

Pronunciation

Pinyinbù dé bù

Meaning

  • adverbhave to

Example

我不得不去上班。wǒ bù dé bú qù shàng bān

I have to go to work.

Illustration for 不得不 (have to)

More examples

孩子生病，父母不得不留在家里照顾。hái zi shēng bìng fù mǔ bù dé bù liú zài jiā lǐ zhào gù

Because the child was sick, the parents had to stay home and take care of the child.

Core concept

A blocked path makes one course of action unavoidable.

Common phrases

  • 不得不接受bù dé bù jiē shòu

    have to accept

  • 不得不放弃bù dé bú fàng qì

    have to give up

  • 不得不面对bù dé bú miàn duì

    have to face

Similar words

只好zhí hǎo: Shows that someone reluctantly chooses an action because no better option is available.
只能zhǐ néng: Shows that only one possible action remains.
不得已bù dé yǐ: Describes acting under pressure when circumstances make avoidance impossible.
必须bì xū: Expresses a necessary duty or requirement that must be carried out.

Definition in Chinese

表示在没有其他选择或无法避免的情况下，只能做某事。biǎo shì zài méi yǒu qí tā xuǎn zé huò wú fǎ bì miǎn de qíng kuàng xià zhǐ néng zuò mǒu shì

Word origin

不得不 (bùdébù, "have to") is formed from 不 (bù, "not") + 得 (dé, "be able to") + 不, creating a double negative that means avoiding the action is not possible.

Usage tips

  • It often presents a decision as a response to circumstances rather than as a rule imposed from outside, making it useful when explaining a reluctant decision.

Opposites

Word lists with this word