不得而知

bùdé'érzhī

to be unable to know or find out; to remain unknown; to be unable to ascertain

Wiktionary

Homographs

不得而知 bùdéérzhī
  1. unknown
  2. unable to find out

Entry Composition

=1 不得 bùdé
  1. must not
  2. may not
  3. not to be allowed
  4. cannot
=1 不得 bude complement placed after a verb to express impossibility or inability; cannot; be unable to
2 而 ér
  1. and
  2. as well as
  3. and so
  4. but (not)
  5. yet (not)
  6. (indicates causal relation)
  7. (indicates change of state)
  8. (indicates contrast)
=3 知 zhī
  1. to know
  2. to be aware
=3 知 zhì
  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) Original form of 智 (zhì, “knowing, wisdom, intelligence”).
  2. Original form of 智 (zhì, “knowing, wisdom, intelligence”).