adjective / verb phrase HSK 3
Traditional 沒用
méi yòng
useless · of no use · it's no use

Meaning

没用 literally means 'have no use' and describes something or someone as useless, ineffective, or pointless. It can refer to objects that don't work, methods that don't produce results, or even people who are incompetent. The phrase combines 没 (not have) with 用 (use/usefulness).

Usage

Commonly used in everyday speech to express frustration or disappointment. Can describe things ('这把伞没用' - this umbrella is useless) or people ('他真没用' - he's really useless), though calling a person 没用 is quite harsh and insulting. Often appears in the pattern '...也没用' meaning 'even... is useless/won't help'.

Examples

  1. 01
    这个方法对我没用
    Zhège fāngfǎ duì méi yòng.
    This method doesn't work for me.
  2. 02
    你现在后悔也没用了。
    xiànzài hòuhuǐ méi yòng le.
    It's no use regretting it now.

Characters

Common collocations

  • 没用的东西
    méi yòng de dōngxi
    useless thing
  • 说也没用
    shuō méi yòng
    it's no use saying anything
  • 再...也没用
    zài... méi yòng
    even if... it's still useless
  • 完全没用
    wán quán méi yòng
    completely useless

Antonyms

Origin

Direct combination of the negation word 没 and the noun/verb 用. The construction follows a common Chinese pattern of 没 + noun to indicate the absence or lack of that quality.

Related