Difference between revisions of "Expressing "not at all" with "yidianr ye bu""
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| − | Sometimes we may want to say something is "not even the least bit [adjective]." For example, we might say in English: "I am not at all hungry." In Chinese, we can use 一点也不 (yīdiǎnr yě bù) or 一点都不 (yīdiǎnr dōu bù) to express "not at all" | + | Sometimes we may want to say something is "not even the least bit [adjective]." For example, we might say in English: "I am not at all hungry." In Chinese, we can use 一点也不 (yīdiǎnr yě bù) or 一点都不 (yīdiǎnr dōu bù) to express "not at all [adjective]." |
== 一点也/都不 with an adjective == | == 一点也/都不 with an adjective == | ||
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{{Used for|Denying and refusing}} | {{Used for|Denying and refusing}} | ||
{{Similar|Expressing "all" with "shenme dou"}} | {{Similar|Expressing "all" with "shenme dou"}} | ||
| + | {{Similar|Comparing "youdian" and "yidian"}} | ||
{{POS|Verbs}} | {{POS|Verbs}} | ||
{{Subprop|Verbs}} | {{Subprop|Verbs}} | ||
Revision as of 08:21, 6 February 2014
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Sometimes we may want to say something is "not even the least bit [adjective]." For example, we might say in English: "I am not at all hungry." In Chinese, we can use 一点也不 (yīdiǎnr yě bù) or 一点都不 (yīdiǎnr dōu bù) to express "not at all [adjective]."
Contents
一点也/都不 with an adjective
The phrases "一点也不" (or 一点儿也不) and "一点都不" (or 一点儿都不) can both be used to express "not at all."
Subject + 一点也/都 + 不 + Adjective
Examples
- 你 一点 也 不 性感。You're not even a little bit sexy.
- 他的朋友 一点 都 不 可爱。His friend is not cute at all.
- 我的同事一点 都 不 幽默。My colleague is not humorous at all.
一点也/都不 with a verb
This describes the subject as being "not at all adjective" or "not even slightly adjective". Psychological verbs can also appear in place of the adjective in this structure.
Subject + 一点也/都 + 不 + Verb
Examples
- 他 一点 也 不 喜欢 啤酒。He doesn't like beer even a little bit.
- 你 一点 也 不 会 说 吗？You can't even speak a little?
- 她 好像 一点 都 不 知道 这 件 事。She doesn't seem to know even a little about this.
- 我 一点 也 不 习惯熬夜。I’m not used to staying up late at all.
一点也/都不 with 没
The phrases "一点也没 " and "一点都没 " can also be used to express "not at all ." This is used when the statement uses or implies the verb negative form of 有 in the past.
Subject + 一点都/也 + 没 + Verb
Examples
- 我 一点 也 没 生气。I didn't get even a little bit angry.
- 宝宝 打针 的 时候 一点 都 没 哭。The baby didn't even cry a little when it got the shot.
- 今天 她 一点 也 没 吃东西。She didn't even eat a little today.
- 工作 虽然 很累，但 他 一点 都 没 抱怨。Although the job was tiring，he didn't even complain a bit.
Sources and further reading
Books
- Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar (pp. 36-7) →buy
- Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (pp. 37- 9) →buy
