Chinese word

不知道

Pronunciation

Pinyinbù zhī dào

Meaning

  • verbnot know

Example

我不知道该怎么做。wǒ bù zhī dào gāi zěn me zuò

I don't know what to do.

Illustration for 不知道 (not know)

More examples

刚发生事故，我不知道发生了什么。gāng fā shēng shì gù wǒ bù zhī dào fā shēng le shén me

An accident just happened, and I don't know what happened.

Core concept

A question reaches a point where the needed information or understanding is missing.

Common phrases

  • 我不知道该怎么办wǒ bù zhī dào gāi zěn me bàn

    not know what to do

  • 不知道发生了什么bù zhī dào fā shēng le shén me

    not know what happened

  • 不知道你的意思bù zhī dào nǐ de yì si

    not understand what you mean

Similar words

不懂bù dǒng: Failing to understand what something means or why it happens.
不会bú huì: Not knowing the method or skill needed to perform an action.
不清楚bù qīng chǔ: Being unsure about facts or specific details because they are unclear.
不了解bù liáo jiě: Having too little knowledge of a situation to grasp its background.

Definition in Chinese

用于表示对某个问题没有答案或不了解情况，常作为对提问的简短回答。yòng yú biǎo shì duì mǒu gè wèn tí méi yǒu dá àn huò bù liáo jiě qíng kuàng cháng zuò wéi duì tí wèn de jián duǎn huí dá

Word origin

The word is formed by placing 不 (bù, "not") before 知道 (zhīdào, "know"), turning knowledge into its absence.

Usage tips

  • For conversational English speakers, the short reply is useful because it can cover both missing facts and an unclear situation without sounding like a long explanation.

Other meanings

  • not understandverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word