由不得 yóubude

由不得（yóubude）means “由不得: not be up to (someone); leave one no choice”. 由 means 'be up to / decided by', and 不得 negates it, so 由不得 means something is NOT for a given person to decide — it is out of their control. Formation: 由不得 + 某人（不容某人自主）；事情 + 由不得 + 某人

由不得: not be up to (someone); leave one no choice

HSK6

Formation

由不得 + 某人（不容某人自主）；事情 + 由不得 + 某人

Explanation

由 means 'be up to / decided by', and 不得 negates it, so 由不得 means something is NOT for a given person to decide — it is out of their control. 由不得 + 某人 says the matter is not up to that person (这事由不得你 = this isn't for you to decide). In the pattern 由不得 + 某人 + 不 + verb, the double negative means 'leave one no choice but to …'. It is emphatic and somewhat formal.

Examples

这件事 由不得 你。
zhè jiàn shì yóubude nǐ.
This isn't for you to decide.
这事儿 由不得 我自己做主。
zhè shìr yóubude wǒ zìjǐ zuòzhǔ.
This matter isn't for me to decide on my own.

Note

得 and 不 are both neutral tone here (yóubude). 由不得…不 = leave no choice but to.

FAQ

由不得 — what does it mean and how is it used?

由不得: not be up to (someone); leave one no choice. 由 means 'be up to / decided by', and 不得 negates it, so 由不得 means something is NOT for a given person to decide — it is out of their control. 由不得 + 某人 says the matter is not up to that person (这事由不得你 = this isn't for you to decide). In the pattern 由不得 + 某人 + 不 + verb, the double negative means 'leave one no choice but to …'. It is emphatic and somewhat formal.

由不得 — how do you form it?

由不得 + 某人（不容某人自主）；事情 + 由不得 + 某人

由不得 — any usage notes?

得 and 不 are both neutral tone here (yóubude). 由不得…不 = leave no choice but to.

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