不明不白

bùmíngbùbái

idiom #38,134

Meanings

1 unclear; obscure (idiom)
2 dubious; shady; for no clear reason

Characters

Examples

这笔钱不明不白地消失了，谁也说不清。

Zhè bǐ qián bùmíngbùbái de xiāoshī le, shéi yě shuō bù qīng.

This money vanished for no clear reason — nobody can explain it.

我不想不明不白地被开除。

Wǒ bùxiǎng bùmíngbùbái de bèi kāichú.

I don't want to be fired without any explanation.

Tips

usage

Often implies suspicion or frustration at unexplained circumstances. Common adverbial use: '不明不白地…' ('…without explanation / for no clear reason').

Stroke Order

不 bù

明 míng

白 bái