要不是 — if it weren't for

要不是

yàobúshì

if it weren't for

conjunction · HSK 5 · topic “Linking ideas”

How to pronounce it

要不是 is read yào bú shì: 3 syllables. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.

yào — 4th tonesharply falling, like “Stop!”

bú — 2nd tonerising, like a surprised “huh?”

shì — 4th tonesharply falling, like “Stop!”

How to write it

要

yào — want; need

Below, 女 “woman”.

不

bù — not, no

Before a fourth tone it is read bú: 不是 bú shì.

是

shì — be

On top, 日 “sun”.

Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “要不是”.

Examples

Sentences from the course lessons with 要不是. Tap the sound icon to listen.

要不是你提醒我我就忘了yàobúshìnǐtíxǐngwǒ,wǒjiùwàngleIf you hadn't reminded me, I'd have forgotten.

More words from the lesson “What if”

Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.

Frequently asked questions

What does 要不是 mean?

要不是 (yàobúshì) means “if it weren't for”.

How do you write 要不是?

要不是 is 3 characters: 要 (yào) — want; need; 不 (bù) — not, no; 是 (shì) — be. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.

How do you pronounce 要不是?

要不是 is read yàobúshì. Tones: yào — fourth tone, bú — second tone, shì — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.

“if it weren't for” in the lesson “What if”

This word is from the topic “Linking ideas” of HSK 5. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.

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