Chinese Conversation · Level 30
90 words
Chinese word
何必
Pronunciation
Pinyinhé bì
Meaning
- adverbwhy bother
Example
何必难过，事情会好起来的。hé bì nán guò shì qíng huì hǎo qǐ lái de
There is no need to be sad; things will get better.
More examples
既然大家都有不同的意见，何必争执呢？jì rán dà jiā dōu yǒu bù tóng de yì jiàn hé bì zhēng zhí ne
Since everyone has different opinions, why quarrel?
Core concept
A rhetorical question that pushes an unnecessary action aside.
Common phrases
何必争执hé bì zhēng zhí
why quarrel
何必放在心上hé bì fàng zài xīn shàng
why worry about it
Similar words
不必bú bì: State that there is no requirement to do something.
没必要méi bì yào: State that doing something has no real need or value.
不用bú yòng: Tell someone that doing something is not needed.
用不着yòng bù zháo: State that the circumstances make an action or object unnecessary.
Definition in Chinese
常置于句首或句中，用于反问或劝阻，表示某事并非必要，应当免去，含义接近‘没必要’。cháng zhì yú jù shǒu huò jù zhōng yòng yú fǎn wèn huò quàn zǔ biǎo shì mǒu shì bìng fēi bì yào yīng dāng miǎn qù hán yì jiē jìn méi bì yào
Word origin
何 (hé, "what") + 必 (bì, "necessary") presents an action as a question of necessity, which gives the phrase its rhetorical sense of dismissing needless action.
Usage tips
- English speakers may hear the question form as a real request for a reason, but 何必 (hébì, "why bother") commonly signals a speaker's judgment about the situation.
Other meanings
- why do ___ needlesslyadverb
Opposites
- 必须bì xūmustadverb