纠结不已

糾結不已

jiūjié bùyǐ

phrase

Meanings

1 endlessly torn (between choices)
2 unable to stop agonizing over a decision

Characters

to tangle, twist together

Examples

HSK 7-9

要不要接受这份工作，他纠结不已。

Yàobù yào jiēshòu zhè fèn gōngzuò, tā jiūjié bùyǐ.

He's been endlessly torn over whether to take the job.

HSK 7-9

她在两件裙子之间纠结不已。

Tā zài liǎng jiàn qúnzi zhījiān jiūjié bùyǐ.

She can't stop agonizing between the two dresses.

HSK 7-9

分手后他对这段感情纠结不已。

Fēnshǒu hòu tā duì zhè duàn gǎnqíng jiūjié bùyǐ.

After the breakup he couldn't stop overthinking the relationship.

Tips

grammar

The [verb/adj] + 不已 pattern means "unable to stop X-ing" and pairs with emotional verbs: 感慨不已 (can't stop sighing with emotion), 激动不已 (endlessly excited), 后悔不已 (endlessly regretful), 兴奋不已 (thrilled beyond stopping). 不已 is always post-verbal and literary in register.

usage

纠结 on its own became one of the defining mood words of the 2010s Chinese internet, capturing the overthinking-everything stance of urban millennials. Adding 不已 intensifies it into "hopelessly conflicted."

Stroke Order

纠 jiū

结 jié

不 bù

已 yǐ