Meaning of 不要紧
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- unimportant
- not serious
- it doesn't matter
- never mind
- it looks all right, but
How to use 不要紧
不要紧 is a common reply when someone apologizes or worries, much like "it's fine" or "never mind." It can also describe a problem as not serious. Example: 对不起，我来晚了。不要紧。(Duìbuqǐ, wǒ lái wǎn le. Bù yàojǐn.) Sorry, I'm late. It doesn't matter.
不 (bù) means not, and 要紧 (yàojǐn) means urgent or important, like something pulled tight 紧 (jǐn). If it is 不要紧, nothing is pulling tight, so there is nothing to worry about.
Common mistake: Learners often read 不 with a fourth tone here, but because 要 (yào) is fourth tone, 不 changes to second tone: bú yàojǐn. Also, do not mix it up with 不要 (búyào), which means "don't" and is used to tell someone not to do something.
不要紧 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
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要 yào · to want · 9 strokes
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紧 jǐn · tight · 10 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 不要紧.
| 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 |
| 重要 | zhòngyào | important; significant; major |
| 不大 | bù dà | not very (clear, far away etc); not too; not often; infrequently |
| 不对 | bùduì | incorrect; wrong |
| 不客气 | bù kèqì | you're welcome; don't mention it |
| 不要 | bùyào | don't!; must not |
| 不过 | bùguò | only; merely |
| 不错 | bùcuò | correct; right |
| 不行 | bùxíng | won't do; be out of the question |
| 只要 | zhǐyào | so long as; provided; if |
Questions about 不要紧
What does 不要紧 mean?
不要紧 (bùyàojǐn) means "unimportant; not serious" and is used as a adjective.
How do you write 不要紧?
不要紧 is made of 3 characters: 不 (4 strokes), 要 (9 strokes), 紧 (10 strokes). That is 23 strokes in total.
Is 不要紧 an HSK word?
Yes. 不要紧 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 不要紧 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 不要紧 is written 不要緊.
What is the difference between 不要紧 and 没关系?
Both can answer an apology with "it's okay." 没关系 (méi guānxi) is the most standard reply to 对不起. 不要紧 leans more toward "it's not serious," so it fits well when someone is worried about an injury, a mistake, or a problem.
Can I use 不要紧 to ask if something is serious?
Yes. You can ask 要紧吗？(Yàojǐn ma?) or 要不要紧？(Yào bu yàojǐn?) to mean "Is it serious?" The other person can answer 不要紧 if it is fine.