wǒ bù chī mǐfàn.

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Breakdown of wǒ bù chī mǐfàn.

• 不bù: not
• 吃chī: to eat
• 米饭mǐfàn: rice

Questions & Answers about wǒ bù chī mǐfàn.

Why is it 不 and not 没(有) here?

• Use 不 for general truths, habits, preferences, scheduled facts, or refusals: 我不吃米饭.
• Use 没(有) for past events or non-occurrence of an action: 我没(有)吃米饭 = I didn’t eat rice (on that occasion).
• You don’t use 不 to negate a completed past action, and you don’t add 了 after 没 in negation.

Does 我不吃米饭 mean I never eat rice, or just that I don’t want to eat it now?

• Default reading: a general statement/habit or a refusal in the moment.
• To say never: add 从来不 → 我从来不吃米饭 (I never eat rice).
• To say you don’t feel like it now: 我现在不想吃米饭.
• To express a temporary policy (e.g., dieting): 我暂时不吃米饭.

What’s the difference between 米饭, 饭, and 米?

• 米饭 (mǐfàn): cooked rice (what you eat).
• 饭 (fàn): meal; in set phrases like 吃饭 = to have a meal. In many places (esp. northern China) 饭 can also mean cooked grain (often rice) depending on context.
• 米 (mǐ): uncooked rice grains; you normally don’t say 吃米.
• Extra: in Taiwan you’ll often hear 白饭 for plain cooked rice.