Writing
不由得 (bù yóu de) — how to say "can't help but" in Chinese
不由得
Can't help but; involuntarily
verb · manner adverb
How to use it
Goes before the verb and says how the action is done.
我不由得笑了。
wǒ bù yóu de xiào le
I couldn't help laughing.
Character composition
不
not
由
because of; to allow
得
to get; modal particle
Radicals / Keys
彳
Step
#60 · chì · 3 strokes
田
Field
#102 · tián · 5 strokes
一
One
#1 · yī · 1 stroke
Synonyms
Collocations
不由得想起
bù yóu de xiǎng qǐ
couldn't help recalling
不由得笑了
bù yóu de xiào le
couldn't help laughing
Examples
听到这个好消息，他不由得高兴地跳了起来。
Hearing this good news, he couldn't help but jump for joy.
我笑起来了。
I couldn't help but laugh.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say "can't help but" in Chinese?
"can't help but" in Chinese is 不由得 (bù yóu de).
What does 不由得 mean in English?
不由得 (bù yóu de) means "Can't help but; involuntarily".
How is 不由得 pronounced?
It is pronounced bù yóu de (written as bu you de, buyoude). You can listen to the pronunciation on this page.
How do you write "can't help but" in Chinese characters?
It is written 不由得: 不 has 4 strokes, 由 has 5 strokes, 得 has 11 strokes. The Writing section above animates the stroke order of each character and lets you trace it.
What HSK level is 不由得?
不由得 belongs to the HSK 6 vocabulary list.
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