没准儿
méizhǔnr · HSK 7
not sure
🤷 méi = not + zhǔn = accurate/sure; not-sure = maybe, who knows
准 (zhǔn) means accurate or certain, and 没 (méi) negates it, so 没准儿 literally lands as not-certain. The colloquial 儿 ending tags it as casual speech: maybe, could be, who knows.
没 — water 氵 + 殳 (hand with weapon)
Originally depicted something sinking or being submerged in water, combining the water radical 氵 with 殳, suggesting a hand reaching into a whirlpool. The core sense was 'to sink, drown, disappear under water.' From there it extended to 'to vanish, not have,' giving the modern negative meaning 'not, have not.'
准 — ice radical 冫 + falcon 隹
Originally written 準, meaning a water level used to check flatness, hence 'standard' or 'level.' The simplified form 准 was historically a variant used for 'permit' or 'approve.' Modern Chinese merged both senses into 准, covering 'accurate,' 'standard,' and 'to allow.'