Meaning of 无效
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- not valid
- ineffective
- in vain
How to use 无效
无效 describes things that do not work or are not legally valid, such as tickets, passwords, contracts, or treatments. It often appears in formal or official language. Example: 这张票已经无效了。(Zhè zhāng piào yǐjīng wúxiào le.) This ticket is no longer valid.
无 (wú) means "without" and 效 (xiào) means "effect," so 无效 is simply "without effect." Think of it as the opposite of 有效 (yǒuxiào), "having effect."
Common mistake: Learners sometimes write 无效果 when they mean "no result." The natural phrase is 没有效果 (méiyǒu xiàoguǒ), while 无效 already stands on its own. Also keep 效 (xiào) in the fourth tone. Do not confuse it with 校 (xiào, school), which has the 木 radical on the left.
无效 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.
无 wú · not to have · 4 strokes
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- 2
- 3
- 4
效 xiào · result · 10 strokes
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- 2
- 3
- 4
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- 9
- 10
Related words
Words that share a character with 无效.
| 有效 | yǒuxiào | effective; in effect |
| 效果 | xiàoguǒ | result; effect |
| 无法 | wúfǎ | unable to; incapable of |
| 无论 | wúlùn | no matter what or how; regardless of whether... |
| 无聊 | wúliáo | bored; boring |
| 无所谓 | wúsuǒwèi | to be indifferent; not to matter |
| 无数 | wúshù | countless; numberless |
| 无限 | wúxiàn | unlimited; unbounded; infinite |
| 效率 | xiàolǜ | efficiency |
| 无疑 | wúyí | undoubtedly; without doubt |
| 无奈 | wúnài | to have no alternative; frustrated |
| 成效 | chéngxiào | effect; result |
Questions about 无效
What does 无效 mean?
无效 (wúxiào) means "not valid; ineffective" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 无效?
无效 is made of 2 characters: 无 (4 strokes), 效 (10 strokes). That is 14 strokes in total.
Is 无效 an HSK word?
Yes. 无效 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 无效 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 无效 is written 無效.
What does 无效 mean in a hospital context?
In medical reports, 治疗无效 (zhìliáo wúxiào) means the treatment did not work. The phrase 抢救无效 (qiǎngjiù wúxiào) is a formal way of saying emergency treatment failed and the patient died.
Can 无效 go before a noun?
Yes. It can act like an adjective, usually with 的, as in 无效的密码 (wúxiào de mìmǎ), an invalid password. In fixed formal terms it can attach directly, as in 无效合同 (wúxiào hétong), an invalid contract.