Meaning of 非
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to not be; not
- wrong; incorrect
- non-; un-; in-; de-
- to reproach; to blame
- (coll.) to insist on; simply must
- abbr. for 非洲[Fei1 zhou1], Africa
How to use 非
非 is mostly a prefix meaning "non-" or "un-", as in 非法 (fēifǎ, illegal), and it appears in common words like 非常 (fēicháng, very). In speech, 非 also means "insist on": 他非要去。(Tā fēi yào qù.) He insists on going.
非 (fēi) looks like two rows of lines facing away from each other, like two sides turning their backs. Things that oppose each other suggest "not" or "wrong."
Common mistake: Learners often use 非 alone where 不 (bù) or 不是 (bú shì) is needed. Say 我不是老师 (wǒ bú shì lǎoshī), not 我非老师, which sounds bookish. Also do not confuse 非 with 韭 (jiǔ, chives), which has an extra stroke at the bottom.
非 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.
非 fēi · to not be · 8 strokes
- 1
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- 3
- 4
- 5
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- 8
Related words
Words that share a character with 非.
| 非常 | fēicháng | very; really; unusual; extraordinary |
| 除非 | chúfēi | only if (..., or otherwise, ...); only when |
| 并非 | bìngfēi | really isn't |
| 非法 | fēifǎ | illegal |
| 非得 | fēiděi | (followed by a verb phrase, then – optionally – 不可, or 不行 etc) must |
| 非凡 | fēifán | out of the ordinary; unusually (good, talented etc) |
| 莫非 | mòfēi | can it be possible that; could it be |
| 是非 | shìfēi | right and wrong; quarrel; dispute |
| 无非 | wúfēi | only; nothing else |
| 面目全非 | miànmù-quánfēi | nothing remains the same (idiom); change beyond recognition |
| 非金属 | fēijīnshǔ | nonmetal (chemistry) |
| 似是而非 | sìshì-érfēi | apparently right but actually wrong; specious (idiom) |
Questions about 非
What does 非 mean?
非 (fēi) means "to not be; not; wrong; incorrect" and is used as a adverb and prefix.
How do you write 非?
非 is made of 1 character: 非 (8 strokes). That is 8 strokes in total.
Is 非 an HSK word?
Yes. 非 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do you use 非……不可?
非……不可 means "must" or "have to." The verb goes in the middle, as in 这件事非你去不可 (zhè jiàn shì fēi nǐ qù bùkě), only you can go for this. In casual speech 不可 is often dropped.
Why does 非 sometimes mean Africa?
非 is short for 非洲 (Fēizhōu), Africa, so you see it in words like 中非 (Zhōng Fēi), China and Africa. In this sense it is written with a capital in pinyin, Fēi.