Expressing "hard to avoid" with "nanmian"

难免 (nánmiǎn) means "to be unavoidable" or "inevitable" and is most commonly placed before a verb phrase, often including an auxiliary verb such as 会 or 要. It is normally used to introduce an inevitable situation that is negative.

Structure

(Subj. +) 难免 + Verb Phrase

Examples

• 刚 开始 说 外语 时 难免 会 有 一些 误会。Gāng kāishǐ shuō wàiyǔ shí nánmiǎn huì yǒu yīxiē wùhuì.When you first start speaking a foreign language, there are inevitably going to be some misunderstandings.
• 年轻 人 难免 会 遇到 挫折，关键 是 学习 怎么 克服。Niánqīng rén nánmiǎn huì yù dào cuòzhé, guānjiàn shì xuéxí zěnme kèfú.Young people can't avoid facing setbacks, but the most important thing is to learn how to overcome them.
• 第一 次 坐 飞机 出国 难免 会 有点 兴奋 。Dì-yī cì zuò fēijī chūguó nánmiǎn huì yǒudiǎn xīngfèn.There‘s no way to not feel excited about it the first time you get on a plane to go abroad.
• 现在 是 高峰期，地铁 难免 会 拥挤。Xiànzài shì gāofēng qī, dìtiě nánmiǎn huì yōngjǐ.It's rush hour right now. There's no way to avoid the congestion in the subway.
• 这 家 公司 的 实习生 难免 要 做 一些 打杂 的 事。Zhè jiā gōngsī de shíxí shēng nánmiǎn yào zuò yīxiē dǎzá de shì.There's no way for the interns at this firm to avoid doing some random odd jobs.
• 刚 离开 家 的时候 难免 会 想家。Gāng líkāi jiā de shíhou nánmiǎn huì xiǎng jiā.When you first leave home, you can't help but feel homesick.
• 车上 人 多 难免 会 遇到 小偷，你 要 小心点。Chē shang rén duō nánmiǎn huì yùdào xiǎotōu, nǐ yào xiǎoxīn diǎn.There are a lot of people on the bus, so you will inevitably run into thieves. You need to be careful.
• 刚 开始 工作，经验 不 多， 难免 会 出错。Gāng kāishǐ gōngzuò, jīngyàn bù duō, nánmiǎn huì chūcuò.When you first start working, you will inevitably make mistakes because you don't have much experience.
• 投资 可以 很 快 变 富，但是 也 难免 有 风险。Tóuzī kěyǐ hěn kuài biàn fù, dànshì yě nánmiǎn yǒu fēngxiǎn.Investments can make you rich quickly, but you can't avoid risk.
• 这 是 我 第一 次 表演 难免 有 一些 紧张。Zhè shì wǒ dì-yī cì biǎoyǎn nánmiǎn yǒu yīxiē jǐnzhāng.This is my first time performing, so I can't help but feel a little nervous.

Sources and further reading

Books

• 现代汉语八百词 (pp. 408-409) 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 →buy

HSK5