无
wú
Without, -less
无 (wú) — paired absence “no A no B”
无 (wú) + A + 无 (wú) + B
HSK 43.0
Pattern diagram
无Noun无Noun
Rule structure
The literary pattern 无 (wú)A无 (wú)B (wú A wú B) expresses a complete absence of something: 无依无靠 (wú yī wú kào) 'with no one to rely on', 无边无际 (wú biān wú jì) 'boundless'. The negation is emphatic: not just 'there is none', but 'there is neither one nor the other'. It appears in fixed four-character expressions and sounds bookish.
Rule structure
The literary pattern 无 (wú)A无 (wú)B (wú A wú B) expresses a complete absence of something: 无依无靠 (wú yī wú kào) 'with no one to rely on', 无边无际 (wú biān wú jì) 'boundless'. The negation is emphatic: not just 'there is none', but 'there is neither one nor the other'. It appears in fixed four-character expressions and sounds bookish.
Examples
他无依无靠。
Tā wúyī-wúkào.
He has no one to turn to.
大海无边无际。
Dà hǎi wúbiān-wújì.
The sea is boundless.
Examples
他无依无靠。
Tā wúyī-wúkào.
He has no one to turn to.
大海无边无际。
Dà hǎi wúbiān-wújì.
The sea is boundless.
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Words from this rule
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “paired absence ‘no A no B’” in Chinese with 无?
Use the structure: 无 (wú) + A + 无 (wú) + B. For example: 他无依无靠。 — “He has no one to turn to”.
What is an example sentence with this grammar rule?
他无依无靠。 — “He has no one to turn to”.
Which HSK level includes this grammar rule?
This grammar rule is part of HSK 3.0 Level 4.
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More HSK 3.0 Level 4 grammar rules
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是 — X is X, Y is Y
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怎么 — no matter how hard one tries
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还 — challenging a claim
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你 — go ahead and do it: 你X你的吧
你 (nǐ) + Verb + 你的 (nǐ de) + 吧 (ba)