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看不起

kànbuqǐ
verb HSK 6 #17,841

Meanings

  1. 1 to look down upon
  2. 2 to despise
  3. 3 to hold in contempt

Characters

看
kàn
to look; to see
不
bu
not
起
qǐ
to rise; up
Literally 'cannot look up at'. If you can't look up at someone, you look down on them.

Examples

HSK 3
不要看不起别人。
Búyào kànbuqǐ biérén.
Don't look down on others.
HSK 3
你不应该看不起自己。
Nǐ bù yīnggāi kànbuqǐ zìjǐ.
You shouldn't look down on yourself.
HSK 5
他从来不看不起穷人。
Tā cónglái bù kànbuqǐ qióngrén.
He never looks down on poor people.

Tips

grammar
This is a resultative complement structure: 看 + 不 + 起. The positive form is 看得起 (to think highly of).
usage
看不起 is a strong expression. For milder disapproval, use 不尊重 (to not respect).

Stroke Order

看 kàn
不 bù
起 qǐ