Zi:不

不 [bù] not; no; neither; non-/un- [bú] (sandhi: as in 不对 búduì); (HDZ:) … [pī] 丕 [bǐ] 鄙 [fǒu] 否 [pǐ] 否 (HDC:) 善不/否, 臧不/否 [fōu] (姓) [fū] 柎: 花萼

2 monosyllabic entries in The ABC Chinese-English Comprehensive Dictionary (namespace Ci):

►¹bù* 不 {A} adv. ①not ②no ◆cons. ① ∼ A ∼ B (where A B are paired synonyms) not A B ‖ ∼huāng∼máng ∼慌∼忙 unhurried ② ∼ A ∼ B (where A B are antonymous stative verbs) neither A nor B ‖ bụ̀dàbùxiǎo ∼大∼小 neither (too) big nor (too) small ③ ∼ A ∼ B (where A B are antonymous verbs) no B without A ‖ bụ̀pòbụ̀lì ∼破∼立 no constructing without destroying ④ ∼ A ér B do B without doing A ‖ bụ̀zhàn'érshèng ∼战而胜 win without fighting ⑤ A ∼ A (the matter/question of) A or not A ‖ bóshì ∼ bóshì, wǒ wúsuǒwèi. 博士∼博士, 我无所谓。 Whether or not I get a PhD makes no difference to me. ⑥ V1 ∼ V1V2 (variant form of V1V2 ∼ V1V2, where V1V2 is a compound verb) whether or not V1V2 ‖ kě ∼ kěnéng? 可∼可能? Is it possible that ...? ◆pref. non-; un-
►bu 不 inf. (used in r.v.) ‖ tīng∼dǒng 听∼懂 don't understand (by listening) See also ¹bù

The Shuōwén Seal form of 不(𠀚) bù/fǒu ‘no (higher)’ is said to depict a bird which flies/soars up into the sky (one can fly no higher) and circling/hovering above does not return back down to the earth (in this sense read 不 fǒu); the top line 一 is short for 上(𠄞丄) shàng ‘(sky) above’ (upper extreme/limit), as in 帝(𢂇) dì ‘god/king’; and the bottom parts of the graph depict the body and wings of the bird, as in the inverted form 至(𦤴) zhì ‘reach/attain (alight/land)’.
    Compare: 乍 zhà ‘try to hide; hastily/suddenly’; 毋 wú ‘stop! do not!’; in both of these characters the 一 component is said to signify restriction/prohibition (crossing out).
    In old texts 不 is used for words now wr. 丕 or 否 (in which it is said to be the phonetic or phonosemantic).
    Note: An old usage of 不 for 柎/拊 fū ‘(botany) thalamus/receptacle/torus; calyx’ (花蒂, 萼足, 花萼/𣎴) seems to relate to the shape of the character, and some say this was the original meaning (HDZ). In botany, the stem of the flower is joined to the thalamus/receptacle/torus, above which is the sepals/calyx (from which the petals/flowers and fruit grow).
    Compare: 𣎴 è/niè ‘tree stump’, in which the top central branch of 木 mù ‘tree’ is cut off; 杯(桮) bēi ‘cup’ (大酒杯 ‘chalice’).
    Note: In modern usage, if the syllable after 不 has a falling tone, then 不 bù (falling tone) becomes 不 bú (rising tone); for example, 不对 bùduì → búduì (for other “tone sandhi” rules, see 一 yī).
    “Picture of a flying bird...” —Karlgren(AD).
    “A bird that rises, flapping the wings, straight towards 一 the skies; 鸟飞上也。从一天也。象形兼指事。...It is now used (假借 jiǎjiè) as an adverb of negation; 为非。为无。” —Wieger.
    HDZ: 不 : bù : (古) 柎 (fū), 象花不形, 鄂足 (花托, 萼 è, 花萼, cf. 𣎴 è); 孳乳为丕, 丕显; 非, 不是; (副词) (否定 (不吃, 不去, 不信); 勿, 不要, 禁止; 不管, 不论, 不介; 不可能; 反问; 疑问); (助词) (加强语气; 调整音节); 丕 (pī): 大; 鄙 (bǐ): 视为鄙陋 • fǒu : 鸟向上飞翔貌; 否 (cf. ䷋) • fōu : (鸟名) 夫不=鳺鴀; (姓) • fū : 柎: 花萼
 ►references: Guǎngyùn:208.23,323.08,475.21,484.17; Wieger:133a; Karlgren:AD37,GSR999a; Hànyǔ Dà Zìdiǎn:1.11.6; Mathews:5379; Kāngxī Zìdiǎn:76.15; Bǐshùn Guīfàn:006.0.04; Wáng(1993):41; EDOC:1
►components: 一
►Cantonese: bat\
►stroke 不 (... strokes)
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Unicode: U+4E0D
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