Expressing "enough" with "gou"

Good enough with 够

In Chinese the word for "enough" often comes before a verb, rather than after an adjective.

Structure

Subj. + 够 + Verb (+ 了)

Sometimes you'll see a 了 added after the verb for emphasis (as in "no, really, it's enough!").

Examples

• 我们 买 了 很 多 菜，肯定 够 吃。Wǒmen mǎi le hěnduō cài, kěndìng gòu chī. We bought a lot of food. It must be good enough to eat.
• 他 带 了 好 多 衣服 ，应该 够 换。Tā dài le hǎo duō yīfu, yīnggāi gòu huàn. He brought a lot of clothes. It should be enough to change.
• 我们 只 有 三 个 人，你 的 车 肯定 够 坐。Wǒmen zhǐ yǒu sān gè rén, nǐ de chē kěndìng gòu zuò. We only have three people. I'm sure your car is big enough to sit in.
• 这些 菜 够 吃 了，不要 再 买 了。Zhèxiē cài gòu chī le, bù yào zài mǎi le. This food is enough to eat. Don't buy more.
• 我 带 的 钱 够 用 了 ，你 不用 带 了。Wǒ dài de qián gòu yòng le, nǐ bù yòng dài le. I've brought enough money to spend. You don't need to bring any.

Not enough with 不够

Structure

Subj. + 不够 + Verb

Examples

• 你 家 太 小 了，恐怕 不够 住。Nǐ jiā tài xiǎo le, kǒngpà bùgòu zhù. Your house is too small. I'm afraid it's not big enough to live in.
• 你 的 包 太 小 了，这些 东西 肯定不够 放。Nǐ de bāo tài xiǎo le, zhème duō dōngxi kěndìng bùgòu fàng. You bag is too small. This stuff definitely can't fit in it.
• 办公室 的 纸 不够 用 了，你 明天 去 买 一些 吧。Bàngōngshì de zhǐ bùgòu yòng le, nǐ míngtiān qù mǎi yīxiē ba. The paper in the office is not enough to use. You should go buy some tomorrow.
• 我 的 钱 不够 花 了，你 能 不 能 再 给 我 五 百？Wǒ de qián bùgòu huā le, nǐ néng bu néng zài gěi wǒ wǔ bǎi? I don't have enough money to spend. Can you give me another five hundred kuai?

Expressing "had enough of it" with 够了

When a verb is followed by "够了," it means the speaker is "getting sick of [doing] something" or "done with [doing] something."

Structure

Subj. + Verb + 够 (+ 了)

Examples

• 别 说 了！ 这些 话 我 已经 听 够 了！Bié shuō le, zhèxiē huà wǒ yǐjīng tīng gòu le. Stop talking! I've heard enough of it!
• 你 今天 玩 游戏 已经 玩 了 三 个 小时 了，玩 够 了 没有？！Nǐ jīntiān wán yóuxì yǐjīng wǎn le sān gè xiǎoshí le, wán gòu le méiyǒu?! You've been playing games for three hours today. Are you not done yet?
• 我 受 够 了！我 一定 要 跟 他 离婚！Wǒ shòu gòu le! Wǒ yīdìng yào gēn tā líhūn! I had enough of him. I'm definitely going to divorce him.
• 你 天天 都 叫 外卖，还没 吃 够 吗？Nǐ tiāntiān dū jiào wàimài, hái méi chī gòu ma? You order takeout every day. Haven't you gotten sick of eating it?

See also

• The "zui" superlative
• Expressing "excessively" with "tai"