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不住

Mandarin · pinyin bù zhù

(verb complement) unable to firmly or securely (grasp, recall etc)
repeatedly; continuously; constantly

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Characters in this entry

不: bù · no, not; un-; negative prefix
住: zhù · reside, live at, dwell, lodge; stop

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4–4 · bu4 zhu4

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

bat1 zyu6

Cantonese word readings for 不住. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

adv

incessantly; without end; nonstop
fail to (placed after a verb in order to indicate that the objective of an action was not accomplished)

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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