看不出

kànbuchū
verb

Meanings

  1. 1 can't tell (by looking)
  2. 2 can't discern
  3. 3 you wouldn't have guessed

Examples

Zhēn kàn bu chūlái nǐ yǐjīng sìshí suì le!
I really couldn't tell you're already forty!
Wǒ kàn bu chū zhè liǎng zhāng tú yǒu shénme qūbié.
I can't see any difference between these two pictures.

Tips

grammar
Potential complement: 'look' + 'can't' + 'come out / detect.' Positive form is 看得出 'can tell.' The longer form 看不出 is just as common and means the same thing. Used as a compliment: 看不出 = 'You can't tell at all!'

Stroke Order

kàn
chū