Making judgments with "suan"

The word 算 (suàn) has a number of uses which can be translated in a number of ways. The common theme is that 算 indicates some kind of judgment and may be thought of as "counts as" or "is considered to be."

Used with a Noun

This essentially expresses that one "considers" something to be something else, as in, "I consider her a genius."

Structure

Subj. (+ 不) + 算 + Noun

Examples

• 她 算 天才 。Tā suàn tiāncái.She is considered a genius.
• 这 算 秘密 吗 ？Zhè suàn mìmì ma?Is this considered a secret?
• 她 算 不 算 你 女朋友 ？Tā suàn bu suàn nǐ nǚpéngyou?Can she be considered your girlfriend or not?
• 美国 的 中国 菜 算 中国 菜 吗 ？Měiguó de Zhōngguó cài suàn Zhōngguó cài ma?Can American Chinese food be considered Chinese food?
• 我们 认识 ，但是 不 算 朋友 。Wǒmen rènshi, dànshì bù suàn péngyou.We know each other, but can't be considered friends.

Used with an Adjective

Affirmative Form

算 can also be used with an adjective. It adds a sense of "comparatively speaking," as in, "in the grand scheme of things, this counts as...."

Structure

Subj. + 算 + Adj. + 的

Examples

• 这 家 店 的 东西 算 便宜 的 。Zhè jiā diàn de dōngxi suàn piányi de.The things in this shop are pretty cheap.
• 我 女儿 算 听话 的 。Wǒ nǚér suàn tīnghuà de.My daughter pretty much does what she's told.
• 在 我们 公司 ，我 算 年轻 的 。Zài wǒmen gōngsī, wǒ suàn niánqīng de.I'm considered young in our company.
• 你 老板 算 大方 的 ，我 老板 更 小气 。Nǐ lǎobǎn suàn dàfang de, wǒ lǎobǎn gèng xiǎoqì.Your boss could be said to be generous. My boss is even stingier.

Negative Form

This is essentially a straight negation of the affirmative form, but because it's so commonly used, it's worth giving providing extra examples.

Structure

Subj. + 不 + 算 (+ Adv.) + Adj.

Note that you don't need add a 的 here.

Examples

• 这 次 考试 不 算 难 。Zhè cì kǎoshì bù suàn nán.This exam isn't that difficult.
• 三十 岁 结婚 不 算 晚 。Sānshí suì jiéhūn bù suàn wǎn.Getting married when you're 30 can't be considered late.
• 他 才 一 米 七 五 ，不 算 高 。Tā cái yī mǐ qī wǔ, bù suàn gāo.He's only 1.75 meters tall. He can't be considered very tall.
• 剪 个 头发 五十 块 ，不 算 贵 。Jiǎn gè tóufa wǔshí kuài, bù suàn guì.Fifty kuai for a haircut. It can't be considered expensive.

Adding a Tone of Reluctance with 算是

For both the noun and adjective patterns above, the "judgment" indicated by 算 can be made more reluctant by following 算 immediately with a 是.

• 他 算 天才 。Tā suàn tiāncái.He is considered a genius.
• 他 算 是 天才 。Tā suàn shì tiāncái.You could say he's a genius (I guess).

Colloquial Sayings

A few common examples:

• 算 你 狠！Suàn nǐ hěn!Well aren't you tough!
• 你 算 老几 ？Nǐ suàn lǎojǐ?So you think you're some kind of big shot?
• 这 不 算 什么 。Zhè bù suàn shénme.It's no big deal.