How to Say “Sorry” in Chinese
Greetings and politeness · HSK 1
"Sorry" in Chinese is 对不起 (duì bù qǐ). 对不起 (duìbuqǐ, literally "cannot face you") is a genuine apology for wrongdoing. 不好意思 (bù hǎo yìsi, "embarrassed") covers minor social friction like bumping into someone.
Primary translation
对不起
duì bù qǐ
Traditional: 對不起
Variants by register
Casual
抱歉
bào qiàn
When to use it
对不起 (duìbuqǐ, literally "cannot face you") is a genuine apology for wrongdoing. 不好意思 (bù hǎo yìsi, "embarrassed") covers minor social friction like bumping into someone. 抱歉 (bàoqiàn) is a more formal written "regret / apologise" often used in emails. Don't overuse 对不起; Chinese speakers reserve it for real offences; 不好意思 handles 90 percent of the polite-English "sorry" cases.
Example sentences
对不起，我来晚了。
Duìbuqǐ, wǒ lái wǎn le.
Sorry, I am late.
不好意思，打扰了。
Bù hǎoyìsi, dǎrǎo le.
Excuse me, sorry to bother you.
抱歉，我们无法退款。
Bàoqiàn, wǒmen wúfǎ tuìkuǎn.
We regret that we cannot issue a refund.