Nantoka/要不是yào bu shìHSK 7–9要不是 (yào bu shì) is a Chinese word meaning “if it were not for; but for”.Meanings1if it were not for2but forPart of speechconjunctionCharacters in 要不是要yāo · (bound form) to demand; to coerce不bù · no; not so是shì · to be (followed by substantives only)Related words是to be (followed by substantives only)是variant of 是[shi4]不no; not so要(bound form) to demand; to coerce要to want; to need; to ask for但是but; however需要to need; to want; to demand; to require是的yes, that's right就是exactly; precisely不过only只是merely; only; just; nothing but不要don't!; must notStudy Chinese with flashcards →