不要

别 is what you snap at a friend mid-motion: 别动！ 别走！ 别碰！ 不要 is correct everywhere too, but it lands a little firmer and more deliberate. In Taiwan and much of southern China, people say 不要 far more often than 别. The old man in the story is refusing money, so 不要给我 reads as a solid, polite no. Reach for 别 in quick everyday warnings, and 不要 when the refusal carries weight.

With a thing, 不要 is a plain refusal: 我不要这个。 With an action, 不要 flips into a command: 不要走！ means 'Don't leave!' For 'I don't feel like doing it,' Chinese uses 不想: 我不想去了。 Say 我不要去了 and you sound like a toddler mid-tantrum, or a boss barking orders.

要 also means 'need to,' so 'you don't need to go' tempts learners into 你不要去。 But 不要 plus a verb always comes out as a straight command: don't do it. 不用 is the everyday word for 'no need': 你不用解释。 你不用等我。 It also handles polite refusals: 不用了，谢谢 waves off a second cup of tea.