bu san bu si??

[taijiphoenix]

Not sure if this is the correct place to post this. I was wondering if someone could explain to me what bu san bu si (不三不四) means. My teacher said it means something like 'not a good person', she wasn't able to elaborate. How does one use this in a sentence?

Thanks guys,

taijiphoenix

[skylee]

take a look -> http://www.nciku.com/search/zh/detail/%E4%B8%8D%E4%B8%89%E4%B8%8D%E5%9B%9B/1301251

[Kenny同志]

不三不四

Chinese definition:

(cited from 汉典http://www.zdic.net/cy/ch/ZdicE4ZdicB8Zdic8D3515.htm)

拼音】：bù sān bù sì

【zdic.net 漢 典 网】

【解释】：指不正派，也指不象样子。

【出处】：明·施耐庵《水浒全传》第七回：“这伙人不三不四，又不肯近前来，莫不要攧洒家。”

【示例】：也该撒泡尿自己照照！～，就想天鹅屁吃！ ◎清·吴敬梓《儒林外史》第三回

【近义词】：不伦不类、非僧非俗

【反义词】：一本正经、正襟危坐、堂堂正正

【语法】：联合式；作谓语、定语、补语；含贬义，形容人的品行不好

不三不四 is used to describe someone who you think behaves in a strange and (traditionally ) unacceptable way. For example, in the 80s and early 90s (and even today in some areas, say, the remote countryside)in China, a person would risk being labelled 不三不四 if he had his hair dyed blond or fair.

Besides, 不三不四 is also used to describe persons like gangsters, thieves, etc., as well as people behaving in a way that tempts you to think they are such sort of persons.

Edited January 6, 2010 at 01:58 AM by kenny2006woo

[ousijia]

不三不四- bù​sān​bù​sì​ - means untrustworthy / shady / neither one thing or the other. It is usually used to describe a really bad, scandalous person.

[Kenny同志]

It is usually used to describe a really bad, scandalous person.

Such a person may be considered 不三不四, but those regarded 不三不四 are not necessarily bad guys.

[doraemon]

In my opinion, when somebody's described as 不三不四, it means you should keep away from them because they'll either have a bad influence on you or bring you trouble and so on...

[semantic nuance]

This is how I look at this phrase: it is not 三 nor 四 either, which might signal a frivolous character (輕浮) or someone who does not act or behave with proper decorum.

Here's the explanation from Baidu

Hope it helps!