Expressing the only two possibilities

Revision as of 09:14, 19 October 2020 by Malihua (talk | contribs) (→‎Examples)

To describe a situation as being one of only two possibilities, you can use the structure: "不是⋯⋯就是⋯⋯" (búshi...jiùshì...)

Structure

不是 + A,就是 + B

This is like saying "if it's not A, then it's B" in English. A and B can be verbs, adjectives or nouns.

Examples

  • 他 整天 不 是 打游戏 就 是 睡觉。Tā zhěng tiān bùshì dǎ yóuxì jiùshì shuìjiào.All day, if he's not playing games, he's sleeping.
  • 他们 约会 不是 去 咖啡馆 就是 去 电影院。Tāmen yuēhuì bùshì qù kāfēi guǎn jiùshì qù diànyǐngyuàn.When they go on dates, if it's not to a coffee shop, then it's to the movie theater.
  • 我 买 的 衣服 不是就是 小,都 不 能 穿。Wǒ mǎi de yīfú bùshìjiùshì xiǎo, dōu bùnéng chuān.The clothes that I bought are either too big or too small, I can't wear any of them.
  • 她 穿 的 衣服 不是 LV 就是 Gucci!Tā chuān de yīfú bùshì LV jiùshì Gucci!If the clothes that she wears aren't Louis Vuitton, then they're Gucci!
  • 不是就是 他 干的,别人 一点 都 不 知道。Bùshìjiùshì tā gàn de, biérén yīdiǎn dōu bù zhīdào.Either you or he did it, and no one else knows anything about it.
  • 不是就是 闹,你 还 能不能 好好 工作 了?Bùshìjiùshì nào, nǐ hái néng bùnéng hǎohǎo gōngzuò le?If it's not crying or screaming, can you still do your job properly?
  • 不是 点 外卖 就是 出去 吃,我 从来 不 自己 做饭。bùshì diǎn wàimài jiùshì chūqù chī, wǒ cónglái bù zìjǐ zuòfàn.I either order take-away food or go out to eat.
  • 不是 嫌 这 不好 就是 嫌 那 不好,十分 挑剔。bùshì xián zhè bùhǎo jiùshì xián nà bùhǎo, shífēn tiāoti.He is either too picky about this or too picky about that.
  • 今年 一直 没有 去旅游, 不是 觉得 地方 远 就是 觉得 自己 累。Jīnnián yīzhí méiyǒu qù lǚyóu, bùshì juéde dìfang yuǎn jiùshì juéde zìjǐ lèi.This year, I haven't been on any trips, either because I find the places far away or because I feel tired.
  • 这个星期 不是 今天 开会 就是 明天 开会。Zhège xīngqí bùshì jīntiān kāihuì jiùshì míngtiān kāihuì.This week, I'm having a meeting either today or tomorrow.

See also

Sources and further reading

Books

HSK5