不是

Chinese
not; no be; yes; this
simp. and trad.
(不是)		 不 是

Pronunciation

Note: bùshi - (1) for the noun, standard Mainland pronunciation and variant Taiwan pronunciation (2) for the verb, variant pronunciation.

Verb

不是

  1. to not be
    這不是我的書。／这不是我的书。  ―  Zhè bùshì wǒ de shū.  ―  This is not my book.
    這不是我的書嗎？／这不是我的书吗？  ―  Zhè bùshì wǒ de shū ma?  ―  This is not my book? (e.g. when you are told that the book is not yours.)
    不是我不明白，我只是不想說。 [MSC, trad.]
    不是我不明白，我只是不想说。 [MSC, simp.]
    Bùshì wǒ bù míngbái, wǒ zhǐshì bù xiǎng shuō. [Pinyin]
    It's not that I don't know; it's just that I don't want to say it.
  2. Used in interrogative sentences, to express a certain emotion. Equivalent to “... not ... ?”
    我不是說了別叫我弟弟嗎？ [MSC, trad.]
    我不是说了别叫我弟弟吗？ [MSC, simp.]
    Wǒ bùshì shuō le bié jiào wǒ dìdi ma? [Pinyin]
    Didn't I already tell you not to call me "little bro"?
    看，那不是姚明嗎？／看，那不是姚明吗？  ―  Kàn, nà bùshì Yáo Míng ma?  ―  Look! Isn't that Yao Ming?
    這不是我的書嗎？／这不是我的书吗？  ―  Zhè bùshì wǒ de shū ma?  ―  Isn't this my book? (e.g. when you find other person holding your book)

Usage notes

In sense 2, 不是 is usually weakened, pronounced with neutral tone, while in sense 1, 不是 is stressed.

Synonyms
Dialectal synonyms of 不是 (“to not be”) [map]
Variety Location Words
Classical Chinese 非
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 不是, 否
Mandarin Beijing 不是
Taiwan 不是
Jinan 不是
Xi'an 不是
Wuhan 不是
Chengdu 不是
Yangzhou 不是
Hefei 不是
Malaysia 不是
Singapore 不是
Cantonese Guangzhou 唔係
Hong Kong 唔係
Macau 唔係
Taishan 唔係
Yangjiang 無係
Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu) 唔係
Singapore (Guangfu) 唔係
Gan Nanchang 不是
Hakka Meixian 毋係
Miaoli (N. Sixian) 毋係
Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian) 毋係
Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu) 毋係
Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu) 毋係
Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping) 毋係
Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an) 毋係
Kuching (Hepo) 唔係
Jin Taiyuan 不是
Min Bei Jian'ou 伓是
Min Dong Fuzhou 伓是
Matsu 伓是
Min Nan Xiamen 毋是
Quanzhou 毋是, 𱍤
Zhangzhou 毋是
Dongshan 毋是
Taipei 毋是
New Taipei (Sanxia) 毋是
Kaohsiung 毋是
Yilan 毋是
Changhua (Lukang) 毋是
Taichung 毋是
Tainan 毋是
Hsinchu 毋是
Kinmen 毋是
Penghu (Magong) 毋是
Penang (Hokkien) 毋是
Singapore (Hokkien) 毋是
Manila (Hokkien) 毋是
Chaozhou 唔是, 𱍤
Shantou 唔是, 𱍤, 唔𱍤
Shantou (Chaoyang) 唔是
Jieyang 唔是, 𱍤
Haifeng 唔是
Singapore (Teochew) 唔是, 𱍤
Leizhou 伓是
Wenchang 無是
Qionghai 無是
Singapore (Hainanese) 無是
Puxian Min Putian 伓是
Xianyou 伓是
Wu Shanghai 勿是
Suzhou 勿是
Wenzhou 否是
Xiang Changsha 不是
Shuangfeng 不是

Derived terms

See also

Noun

不是

  1. fault; mistake; wrongdoing
    都是我的不是。  ―  Dōu shì wǒ de bùshì.  ―  It's all my fault.
    快去賠個不是。／快去赔个不是。  ―  Kuài qù péi ge bùshì.  ―  Quickly go and apologise.

Synonyms
Synonyms of 不是

Derived terms
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