毋 (wú) · do not, must not, no (classical prohibitive)

Meanings

1 do not
2 must not
3 no (classical prohibitive)

Characters

毋

wú

do not; must not (classical prohibitive particle)

Examples

HSK 5

毋忘初心。

Wúwàng chūxīn.

Never forget your original intention.

HSK 7-9

毋庸置疑，他是最优秀的候选人。

Wúyōng-zhìyí, tā shì zuì yōuxiù de hòuxuǎnrén.

Without a doubt, he is the best candidate.

Tips

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毋 is a Classical Chinese prohibitive particle, equivalent to modern 不要 (bùyào) or 别 (bié). It survives in formal written Chinese and set phrases such as 毋庸置疑 (needless to say) and 毋须 (need not). It is rarely used in everyday speech.

Components

ideograph

毋 wú

do not; classical prohibitive

毋 derives from 母 (mother) with an added stroke crossing through, turning the picture into a prohibitive: "do not, must not." Itself a Kangxi radical (#80) - abstract marker, not a real-world drawing. Found mostly in classical Chinese and set phrases like 毋庸置疑 (no need to doubt).

Radical

Do Not Kangxi #80

A spinoff of 母 (mother) with one extra stroke marking the prohibitive 'do not'. As an indexing radical 毋 covers a small group of characters that share the same enclosing shape - 母 (mother), 每 (every), 毒 (poison), 毓 (nourish), 贯 (pierce through). The standalone reading survives mainly in formal phrases.