Saying "a lot" with "youdeshi"

In Chinese, there are "a lot" of ways to say "a lot." “有的是” (yǒudeshì) is one of those ways. However, we need to be very clear: "有的是" is not the same as "有的+是". Unfortunately, these two phrases are extremely close, but their meanings are not the same at all! "有的是" indicates that the amount or quantity of something is very large, and it can sometimes indicate a mood of exaggeration.

Structure

Subject + 有的是 + Noun

Examples

• 我 家里 有的是 这样 的 铅笔，这些都送给你。There are a lot of this kind of pencil in my house, I'm going to give them to you.
• 我 有的是 零钱，不用 去 换钱 了。I have a lot of spare change, you don't need to give me change.
• 上海 有的是 川菜。There a lot of Sichuanese food in Shanghai.
• 世界上 有的是 男人，为什么 非要 这个？There are a lot of men in the world. Why do you insist on going after this one?

You can also put the noun at the beginning of the sentence, and put "有的是" at the end, like so:

Noun + Subject + 有的是

Examples

• 这样的 铅笔 我家里 有的是。There's a lot of this kind of pen in my house.
• 零钱 我 有的是。I have a lot of spare change.
• 川菜 上海 有的是。Shanghai has a lot of Sichuanese food.
• 男人 世界上 有的是。There are a lot of men on Earth.

It's important to note that "有的是" can not be negated. If you want to say the negative statement, you'll have to say "没有很多".

• 我不有的是零钱。
• 我没有的是零钱。
• 我没有很多零钱。

Sources and Further Reading

NEEDS SOURCES

HSK5