有事

yǒushì

verb HSK 6 #8,169

Meanings

1 to be busy; to have something to do
2 something is up; there's a matter/problem

Characters

to have; there is

matter; thing; affair

To have a matter — to be occupied or have something going on.

Examples

我今天有事，不能去了。

Wǒ jīntiān yǒu shì, bù néng qù le.

I have something to do today, I can't go.

你有事吗？看你不太开心。

Nǐ yǒu shì ma? Kàn nǐ bù tài kāixīn.

Is something up? You don't look very happy.

有事请打电话给我。

Yǒu shì qǐng dǎ diànhuà gěi wǒ.

If anything comes up, please call me.

没事没事，我没有事。

Méi shì méi shì, wǒ méiyǒu shì.

It's nothing, I'm fine.

Tips

usage

有事 is a very common polite way to decline invitations without giving specifics — like saying 'I have something to do' in English. The opposite 没事 (méi shì) means 'no problem' or 'I'm fine.'

Stroke Order

有 yǒu

事 shì