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无 (wú) — no A to B

无 (wú) + Noun + 可 (kě) + Verb

HSK 7–93.0

Pattern diagram

无Noun可Action

Rule structure

A fixed four-character pattern 无 (wú)A可 (kě)B (wú A kě B): A is a noun, B is a verb, literally "there is no A that one can B." Common examples: 无话可说 (wú huà kě shuō), 无路可走 (wú lù kě zǒu), 无家可归 (wú jiā kě guī). It is a distinct pattern, not to be confused with 无 (wú)A不 (bù)B (wú A bù B).

Rule structure

A fixed four-character pattern 无 (wú)A可 (kě)B (wú A kě B): A is a noun, B is a verb, literally "there is no A that one can B." Common examples: 无话可说 (wú huà kě shuō), 无路可走 (wú lù kě zǒu), 无家可归 (wú jiā kě guī). It is a distinct pattern, not to be confused with 无 (wú)A不 (bù)B (wú A bù B).

Examples

她已经无家可归了。

Tā yǐjīng wújiā-kěguī le.

She no longer has a home to return to.

Examples

她已经无家可归了。

Tā yǐjīng wújiā-kěguī le.

She no longer has a home to return to.

Try this rule

Two short exercises: see how the rule works in a dialogue and in a sentence. No sign-up needed.

Words from this rule

wú

Without, -less

kě

Can, may; but

tā

She

yǐjīng

Already

jiā

Family, home; measure word for businesses and establishments

guī

To return

le

Particle (completed action or change of state)

tā

He

shuō

To speak, to say, to tell

zhǐ hǎo

Have to, have no choice but to

zǒu

To walk, to leave, to move

Frequently asked questions

How do you say “no A to B” in Chinese with 无?

Use the structure: 无 (wú) + Noun + 可 (kě) + Verb. For example: 她已经无家可归了。 — “She no longer has a home to return to”.

What is an example sentence with this grammar rule?

她已经无家可归了。 — “She no longer has a home to return to”.

Which HSK level includes this grammar rule?

This grammar rule is part of HSK 3.0 Levels 7–9.

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More HSK 3.0 Levels 7–9 grammar rules

动不动就 — at the slightest thing, just

Subj. + 动不动 (dòngbudòng) 就 (jiù) + Verb

仅次于 — second only to

Subj. + 仅次于 (jǐn cì yú) + X

个 — casual small action

Verb + 个 (ge) + Noun

除外 — except for, excluding

Noun + 除外 (chúwài)

不亚于 — no worse than

Subject + 不亚于 (bú yà yú) + Noun

可不 — enthusiastic agreement

可不 (kě bu) / 可不是嘛 (kě bú shì ma) — a standalone confirming reply

说到哪儿去了 — polite reply to praise

说到哪儿去了 (shuō dào nǎr qù le) — a standalone polite reply

非 — neither A nor B

非 (fēi) + Noun/Adj. A + 非 (fēi) + Noun/Adj. B