Chinese word

不肯

Pronunciation

Pinyinbù kěn

Meaning

  • verbrefuse

Example

我邀请他，他不肯来。wǒ yāo qǐng tā tā bù kěn lái

I invited him, but he refused to come.

Illustration for 不肯 (refuse)

More examples

在会议上，他不肯让步。zài huì yì shàng tā bù kěn ràng bù

At the meeting, he refused to give in.

Core concept

A person holds back consent and does not cross into the requested action.

Common phrases

  • 不肯承认bù kěn chéng rèn

    refuse to acknowledge

  • 不肯让步bù kěn ràng bù

    refuse to give in

  • 不肯来bù kěn lái

    refuse to come

  • 不肯吃亏bù kěn chī kuī

    refuse to suffer a loss

Similar words

拒绝jù jué: Decline an offer, request, or proposal in a clear way.
不愿意bú yuàn yì: Lack the willingness to take a particular action.
不想bù xiǎng: Lack the desire to do something and stay away from that action.
回绝huí jué: Give a direct refusal in response to an offer or request.

Definition in Chinese

表示不愿意接受、同意或做某事的否定态度，常用于“不肯＋动词”的结构。biǎo shì bú yuàn yì jiē shòu tóng yì huò zuò mǒu shì de fǒu dìng tài dù cháng yòng yú bù kěn dòng cí de jié gòu

Word origin

不 (bù, "not") placed before 肯 (kěn, "be willing") turns willingness into its absence and gives the word its refusal sense.

Usage tips

  • This word presents a refusal as a firm personal choice, so it often sounds stronger than simply saying that someone does not want to do something.

Other meanings

  • be unwillingverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word