adjective HSK 4
yào
unnecessary · not necessary · needless

Meaning

不必要 means 'unnecessary' or 'not needed.' It combines the negation 不 (not), 必 (must), and 要 (need) to express that something is not required or is superfluous. It's commonly used to describe actions, items, or concerns that can be avoided or omitted without consequence.

Usage

Native speakers use 不必要 in both spoken and written contexts to politely indicate something is unnecessary. It's often used in advice-giving or to reassure someone that worry or action isn't needed. Common in phrases like '不必要的担心' (unnecessary worry) or '这是不必要的' (this is unnecessary). It's more formal than just saying '不用' but less strong than '多余'.

Examples

  1. 01
    不必要为这件小事担心。
    yào wèi zhè jiàn xiǎo shì dān xīn.
    You don't need to worry about this small matter.
  2. 02
    我觉得买这么多东西是不必要的。
    jué de mǎi zhè me duō dōng xi shì yào de.
    I think buying so many things is unnecessary.

Characters

Common collocations

  • 不必要的担心
    yào de dān xīn
    unnecessary worry
  • 不必要的麻烦
    yào de fan
    unnecessary trouble
  • 完全不必要
    wán quán yào
    completely unnecessary
  • 不必要
    shì yào de
    is unnecessary

Antonyms

Origin

Formed by negating 必要 (necessary, essential) with 不. The word 必要 itself combines 必 (must) and 要 (need) to mean 'necessary,' so 不必要 literally means 'not-must-need.'

Related