Navigation
Grammar Levels
Resources
Expressing "unknown" or "unclear" with 不明 (bùmíng)
Structure
不明 + 的 + Noun / Noun + 不明
Explanation
不明 (bùmíng) means "unknown," "unclear," or "unidentified," used to describe something whose identity, cause, or nature has not been determined. It commonly modifies nouns, as in 不明身份的男子 (an unidentified man) or 原因不明 (cause unknown). It is frequently seen in news reports and formal writing.
Examples
警方正在调查一名不明身份的男子。
Jǐngfāng zhèngzài diàochá yì míng bùmíng shēnfèn de nánzǐ.
The police are investigating an unidentified man.
事故原因不明，目前还在进一步调查中。
Shìgù yuányīn bùmíng, mùqián hái zài jìnyíbù diàochá zhōng.
The cause of the accident is unknown and is still under further investigation.
天空中出现了不明飞行物，引起了很多人的关注。
Tiānkōng zhōng chūxiàn le bùmíng fēixínwù, yǐnqǐ le hěn duō rén de guānzhù.
An unidentified flying object appeared in the sky, attracting a lot of attention.