Meaning of 不大
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- not very (clear, far away etc); not too
- not often; infrequently
How to use 不大
不大 often goes before a verb or adjective to soften it, meaning not very or not often. It is gentler than 不 alone. Example: 我不大明白。(Wǒ bùdà míngbai.) I don't quite understand.
不 (bù) means not and 大 (dà) means big, so 不大 is literally not big. Think of it as turning the volume down on whatever follows: not very much, not very often.
Common mistake: Learners often say 不大 with bù in the fourth tone, but before fourth-tone 大 (dà) it changes to bú, so say bú dà. Also, 不大 before a verb means not often or not very, not literally not big, so 他不大来 means he doesn't come often.
不大 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
不 bù · no · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
大 dà · big · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
Related words
Words that share a character with 不大.
| 对不起 | duìbuqǐ | I'm sorry; excuse me; I beg your pardon; to let (sb) down; to disappoint |
| 是不是 | shì bu shì | is or is not (used to form yes-no questions) |
| 不用 | bùyòng | need not |
| 大学 | dàxué | university; college |
| 大学生 | dàxuéshēng | university student; college student |
| 不对 | bùduì | incorrect; wrong |
| 不客气 | bù kèqì | you're welcome; don't mention it |
| 不要 | bùyào | don't!; must not |
| 大家 | dàjiā | everyone; influential family |
| 不过 | bùguò | only; merely |
| 不错 | bùcuò | correct; right |
| 不行 | bùxíng | won't do; be out of the question |
Questions about 不大
What does 不大 mean?
不大 (bù dà) means "not very (clear, far away etc); not too; not often; infrequently".
How do you write 不大?
不大 is made of 2 characters: 不 (4 strokes), 大 (3 strokes). That is 7 strokes in total.
Is 不大 an HSK word?
Yes. 不大 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 不大 and 不太?
Both mean not very and are often interchangeable before adjectives, as in 不大好 or 不太好. 不太 is more common in everyday speech, while 不大 also has the sense of not often before verbs, like 不大去 (doesn't go often).
Can 不大 still mean not big?
Yes. When describing size or amount, 不大 can simply mean not large, as in 房间不大 (fángjiān bú dà), the room isn't big. Context tells you whether it means size or degree.