Writing
非 (fēi) — how to say "not" in Chinese
非
Not, non-
verb · adverb · prefix
Radicals / Keys
非
Wrong
#175 · fēi · 8 strokes
Collocations
非正式
fēi zhèngshì
informal
非会员
fēi huìyuán
non-member
Examples
学习一门新语言非一朝一夕之功。
Learning a new language is not the work of a single day.
非常忙。
Very busy.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say "not" in Chinese?
"not" in Chinese is 非 (fēi).
非 meaning in English
非 (fēi) means "Not, non-".
How is 非 pronounced?
It is pronounced fēi (written as fei). You can listen to the pronunciation on this page.
How do you write "not" in Chinese characters?
It is written 非 and has 8 strokes. The Writing section above animates the stroke order and lets you trace it.
What HSK level is 非?
非 belongs to the HSK 5 vocabulary list.
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Grammar with 非
除非 — unless
除非 (chúfēi) + Condition, 才 (cái) + Result / 否则 (fǒuzé) + Negative Result
对 — for… with 而言
对 (duì) / 对于 (duìyú) + Topic + 而言 (ér yán)
非 — absolute must, “have to”
非 (fēi) + Verb / Noun + 不可 (bùkě)
莫非 — could it be that
莫非 (mòfēi) + Speculation?
非得 — must, absolutely have to
Subj. + 非得 (fēiděi) + Verb Phrase + 不可 (bùkě) / 才行 (cái xíng)
无非 — nothing but
无非 (wúfēi) + Noun / Clause (dismissive)