身不由己 shēn bù yóu jǐ

unable to control oneself; against one's will

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency 17483rd word

Definitions

  1. 1. without the freedom to act independently (idiom); involuntary
  2. 2. not of one's own volition
  3. 3. in spite of oneself

Characters

Character Meaning
身 shēn HSK 2
body; oneself; personally
不 bù HSK 1
not; no; (negative prefix)
由 yóu HSK 4
from; because of; due to
己 jǐ HSK 3
self; oneself