Expressing determination with "feiyao"

Most advanced Chinese learners know how to express "wanting to do something" with 要, but sometimes you need to turn it up a degree and express "absolutely insist on doing something". In that case, you can use 一定要 or 非要. Most time 非要 appears with a self-willed emotional color while一定要 is just a expression of "absolutely wanting " or "absolutely insist" without any emotional color.

How to use 非要

Just use 非要 like the auxiliary verb 要. Often use it coupled with 不可.

Subject + 非要 + Verb

Examples

• 他 不 是 我 的 客人，但是 他 非要 我 帮 他 把 行李 提 上 去。
• 你 非要 让 所有人 都 讨厌 你 才 高兴 吗？。
• 她 非要 一 边 吃 饭 一 边 看 电视。
• 孩子 非要 这 个 玩具 不可, 大人 怎么 哄 都 没用。

How to use 非得

非得 is a similar grammar pattern. It can be translated as "must" or "have to". Usually it appears in the grammar structure 非得...不可/不行/不成, which expresses something is supposed to be a certain way and not change, or that something will certainly happen.

Many of you are probably familiar with the grammar structure 非...不可, which is the simplified form of this structure.

Statement, + 非得 + Action + 不可/不行/不成

Examples

• 现在 是 紧急 情况，医生 非得 马上 开 刀 不可。
• 要是 你 想要 当 最好 的 管理员，你 非得 耐心 不成！
• 在 中国 的 传统 文化 中，子女 非得 无条件 服从 长辈 不可。

See also

• Adding emphasis with "fei....buke"

Sources and further reading

NEEDS SOURCES!

HSK6