How to Say ‘Cannot’ in Simplified Chinese
不能
bù néng
[boo nung]
💬 Usage Tip: [不能] is "cannot / not able to," often because something isn't possible in the situation. It's different from [不] alone: [我不能扫码] means "I can't scan," not just "I don't scan."
Phrase Breakdown
不能
bù néng
[boo nung]
cannot / not able to
Used to express inability or that something is not allowed.
我手机没电了，所以不能扫码。
My phone is dead, so I can’t scan to pay.
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