tuōpán lǐ bùnéng yǒu jīshuǐ.

to have

Breakdown of tuōpán lǐ bùnéng yǒu jīshuǐ.

• 里lǐ: inside
• 不能bùnéng: cannot; must not
• 托盘tuōpán: plant saucer

Questions & Answers about tuōpán lǐ bùnéng yǒu jīshuǐ.

Why is 里 used after 托盘?

里 means inside / in. After a noun, it turns that noun into a location phrase.

So:

• 托盘 = tray
• 托盘里 = in the tray / inside the tray

This is a very common pattern in Chinese:

• 盒子里 = in the box
• 房间里 = in the room
• 杯子里 = in the cup

In this sentence, 托盘里 tells you the location where something must not be present.

Why isn’t there a 在 before 托盘里?

In Chinese, a location phrase can often appear without 在, especially in short instructions, notices, or formal statements.

So both of these are possible:

• 托盘里不能有积水。
• 在托盘里不能有积水。

The version without 在 sounds concise and natural, especially in written instructions or rules.

A rough way to feel the difference:

• 托盘里不能有积水 = In the tray, there must not be standing water.
• 在托盘里不能有积水 = There cannot be standing water in the tray.

Both are understandable, but the original is tighter and more typical for a warning or requirement.

What does 不能 mean here? Is it cannot or must not?