How to use 别
别 + Verb
别 before a verb asks or tells someone not to perform an action. The listener is often understood, so an explicit subject is optional. Follow 别 with the complete action phrase, including an object or other information needed to specify what should be avoided. This creates an instruction rather than a factual denial.
The form is short and common in everyday conversation. It can sound urgent, friendly, reassuring, or stern according to the situation and intonation; it is not inherently harsher in every use than 不要. A time phrase can define when the instruction applies. When asking someone to stop an activity already in progress, a final 了 often makes that changed expectation explicit.
Examples with pinyin and English
别走。
Don't leave.
别说话！
Don't speak!
别笑！
Don't laugh!
别动！
Don't move!
What to remember
- Place 别 before the prohibited action.
- An explicit listener is often unnecessary.
- Delivery determines how forceful it sounds.
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Source and editorial notes
Explanation rewritten for Laowai. Examples are adapted from the Laowai English grammar curriculum, with editorial corrections where needed. The original curriculum credits AllSet Learning’s Chinese Grammar Wiki as used with permission. Read the retained source credits.
Difficulty labels describe the level of the explanation; they are not official HSK placement. Send a correction with this page’s URL.