Expressing "unless" with "chufei"

除非 (chúfēi) can be used as a conjunction and means "unless." 否则 (fǒuzé) or 要不然 (yàobùrán) often appear in the following phrase, to form a construction meaning "unless x, otherwise y":

Pattern with 除非

The simplified construction more directly maps to the basic English usage of "unless," as in, "I won't do it unless you pay me."

Structure

Result / Fact ，除非 + Condition

The sentences below place emphasis on the part after 除非.

Examples

• 我 不 去 ，除非 你 也 去 。Wǒ bù qù, chúfēi nǐ yě qù.I won't go unless you go too.
• 你 不能 进 ，除非 你 有 预约 。Nǐ bù néng jìn, chúfēi nǐ yǒu yùyuē.You can't come in unless you have an appointment.
• 我 不 说 ，除非 你 答应 我 你 不会 生气 。Wǒ bù shuō, chúfēi nǐ dāyìng wǒ nǐ bù huì shēngqì.I won't tell you unless you promise me you won't get upset.
• 你 不 会 这么 快 升职 ，除非 你 表现 很 好 。Nǐ bù huì zhème kuài shēngzhí, chúfēi nǐ biǎoxiàn hěn hǎo.You won't get promoted so soon unless you perform very well.
• 我们 公司 一般 不 允许 员工 请假 ，除非 理由 很 充分 。Wǒmen gōngsī yībān bù yǔnxǔ yuángōng qǐngjià, chúfēi lǐyóu hěn chōngfèn.The company won't allow its staff time off unless they have a really good reason.

Pattern with Just 要不然

This simplified construction using 要不然 (or 不然) more directly maps to the basic English usage of "otherwise," as in: "Pay me. Otherwise, I won't do it."

Structure

Condition, (要) 不然 + Result

Examples

• 你 也 去，要不然 我 不 去 。Nǐ yě qù, yàobùrán wǒ bù qù.You go too. Otherwise, I won't go.
• 马上 帮 我 叫车 ，要不然 我 赶不上 飞机 。Mǎshàng bāng wǒ jiào chē, yàobùrán wǒ gǎnbushàng fēijī.I won't catch my flight unless you call a cab for me right now.
• 老师 ，您 要 给 我们 一点 提示 ，要不然 谁 都 想不出 答案 。Lǎoshī, nín yào gěi wǒmen yīdiǎn tíshì, yàobùrán shéi dōu xiǎng bù chū dá'àn.Teacher, we need you to give us a little hint. Otherwise, none of us will be able to figure out the answer.

Full Pattern with 除非 and 否则 / 不然

In the full construction, 除非 comes first, and the meaning is "Unless x, otherwise y."

Structure

除非 + Condition ，[否则 / 不然] + [Result / Fact]

Examples

• 除非 你 是 会员 ，否则 不能 进去 。Chúfēi nǐ shì huìyuán, fǒuzé bù néng jìnqù.Unless you have a membership, you can't come in.
• 除非 有 奇迹 ，不然 他 的 病 治 不好 。Chúfēi yǒu qíjī, bùrán tā de bìng zhì bù hǎo.Unless a miracle happens, his disease can't be cured.
• 除非 你 听 我 的 ，否则 我 不 会 帮 你 。Chúfēi nǐ tīng wǒ de, fǒuzé wǒ bù huì bāng nǐ.Unless you listen to me, I won't help you.
• 除非 你 有 证据 ，不然 谁 会 相信 ？Chúfēi nǐ yǒu zhèngjù, bùrán shéi huì xiāngxìn?Unless you have proof, who is going to believe it?
• 除非 你 是 名牌 大学 毕业 的 ，否则 老板 不会 考虑 你 的 。Chúfēi nǐ shì míngpái dàxué bìyè de, fǒuzé lǎobǎn bù huì kǎolǜ nǐ de.The boss won't consider you unless you graduated from a big name university.

Reverse Pattern with 除非 and 才

除非 is also used in the patterns below. The meaning expressed is the same as the sentences above, but below the "Y" part expresses what won't happen unless the 除非 condition is met. It might be more helpful to think of 除非 here as meaning "only if."

除非 x，才 y

So that's "Only if x, y."

A few examples:

• 除非 你们 买 很 多 ，才 能 便宜 点 。Chúfēi nǐmen mǎi hěn duō, cái néng piányí diǎn.Only if you buy a lot can I give you a cheaper price.
• 除非 旧 的 坏 了 ，我 才 会 买 新的 。Chúfēi jiù de huài le, wǒ cái huì mǎi xīn de.Only if the old one is broken will I buy a new one.
• 除非 老板 给 我 加薪 ，我 才 会 留下来 。Chúfēi lǎobǎn gěi wǒ jiā xīn, wǒ cái huì liú xiàlái.Only if the boss gives me a pay raise will I stay.

This use of 才 is similar to the "only after" use.

See also

• Expressing "even if…" with "jishi"
• Expressing "otherwise" with "yaobu"

Sources and Further Reading

• HSK Standard Course 4下 (pp. 6) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
• Common Chinese Patterns 330 (汉语常用格式330例) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
• 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 (pp. 166) 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 →buy

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