万不得已 wàn bù dé yǐ

only when absolutely essential (idiom); as a last resort

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency Unknown

Definitions

  1. 1. only when absolutely essential (idiom); as a last resort

Characters

Character Meaning
万 wàn HSK 3
ten thousand; a great number; surname Wan
不 bù HSK 1
not; no; (negative prefix)
得 dé HSK 2
link verb to result or degree; to get; must
已 yǐ HSK 2
already; then; afterwards