Chinese word

不慎

Pronunciation

Pinyinbù shèn

Meaning

  • adverbaccidentally

Example

他不慎把杯子打破了。tā bú shèn bǎ bēi zi dǎ pò le

He accidentally broke the cup.

Illustration for 不慎 (accidentally)

More examples

司机不慎导致了车祸。sī jī bú shèn dǎo zhì le chē huò

The driver accidentally caused a traffic accident.

Core concept

A lapse in care turns an ordinary action into an unintended problem.

Common phrases

  • 不慎导致bú shèn dǎo zhì

    accidentally cause

  • 不慎伤人bú shèn shāng rén

    accidentally hurt someone

  • 不慎跌倒bú shèn diē dǎo

    accidentally fall

Similar words

不小心bù xiǎo xīn: In an accidental way caused by a moment of carelessness or inattention.
粗心大意cū xīn dà yì: In a careless way that overlooks details and leads to mistakes.
不经意bù jīng yì: Unintentionally and without giving the action much conscious thought.
漫不经心màn bù jīng xīn: Casually and carelessly, without giving an action the attention it needs.

Definition in Chinese

因为粗心、轻率或判断失误而造成不良结果，表示行为的方式或态度，书面语中使用频率较高。yīn wèi cū xīn qīng shuài huò pàn duàn shī wù ér zào chéng bù liáng jié guǒ biǎo shì xíng wéi de fāng shì huò tài dù shū miàn yǔ zhōng shǐ yòng pín lǜ jiào gāo

Word origin

不 (bù, "not") combines with 慎 (shèn, "cautious") to present a mistake as the result of failing to act carefully.

Usage tips

  • For conversational Chinese, this word is useful for recognizing a written or formal tone, while simpler everyday wording usually sounds more natural among friends.

Other meanings

  • carelesslyadverb
  • without thinkingadverb

Opposites

  • 谨慎地jǐn shèn dìcautiouslyadverb
  • 小心地xiǎo xīn dìcarefullyadverb

Word lists with this word