丝毫不／毫无
not in the slightest; without any
Structure
丝毫不／毫不／丝毫没（有） 动词／形容词 · 毫无 名词（多为双音节）
What it means
Both say “not in the slightest”. 丝毫 means “the tiniest bit” and needs a negative after it; 毫无 already contains the negative (= 一点儿也没有).
How it is built
丝毫不／毫不／丝毫没（有） + verb／adjective; 毫无 + two-syllable abstract noun: 他对足球毫无兴趣 (he has no interest at all in football).
When to use it
Both are written and emphatic; in speech say 一点儿也不 or 一点儿都没有. 毫无 takes 疑问, 办法, 兴趣, 关系 or a phrase built on one (毫无见面的可能). 毫不 goes before verbs: 毫不犹豫.
Watch out
✗ 他丝毫满意 (no negative). ✓ 他丝毫不满意。 ✗ 毫不兴趣 ✓ 毫无兴趣: 毫不 cannot take a noun.
Examples
牛郎星和织女星相距十几光年，毫无见面的可能。
The two stars are more than a dozen light years apart, with no chance at all of meeting.
这些小节日的分量丝毫不比大节日轻。
These smaller festivals carry not one bit less weight than the big ones.
他对足球毫无兴趣，比赛一开始就去睡觉了。
He has no interest whatsoever in football and went to bed as soon as the match started.
Learn this in Lesson 41 · HSK 5–6: 元宵、七夕与重阳 (The smaller festivals)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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