Expressing "it depends" with "kan"

Although there are a number of ways to express "it depends" in Chinese, the most common ones in spoken Chinese involve the verb 看 (kàn). Some common expressions include:

• 要看 (yào kàn)
• 得看 (děi kàn)

Both 得看 (děi kàn) and 要看 (yào kàn) mean "depends on." Literally, they both mean "have to look at," so the logic is not hard to understand. Both of them are informal spoken patterns. If you're looking for more formal language, consider 取决于 (qǔjué yú), "to be dependent on."

As an answer to a question

If you're answering a question with "it depends on..." then this is the pattern you want. It's a bit simpler than 取决于 (qǔjué yú).

Structure

(这 / 那) + 得看 / 要看 + [What "It" Depends On]

Examples

Keep in mind that the "answers" below are meant to be an answer to some imaginary question that we don't include.

• 这 要看 你 妈妈 说 什么 。It depends on what your mom says.
• 那 得看 他 有 没有 女朋友 。That depends on whether or not he has a girlfriend.
• 那 要看 老板 的 决定 。That depends on the boss's decision.
• 那 要看 我 那 天 忙 不 忙 。That depends on whether I'm busy or not that day.
• 这 要看 她 喜欢 什么 。It depends on what she likes.
• 那 要看 公司 加 不 加班 。It depends on whether we need to work overtime or not.
• 这 得看 我 这 几 个 月 找 工作 的 情况 。It depends on how my job hunting goes in the next few months.
• 这 要看 天气 怎么样 。It depends on how the weather is.
• 那 得看 面试 结果 。That depends on the results of the job interview.
• 那 得看 客户 的 时间 。That depends on when the client is available.

As part of a full sentence

Structure

If you're going to write a full sentence explaining what "it" depends on, then you're going to need to lead off with some kind of explanation of the "unknown outcome" of what "it depends" on. So you'll start with the "unknown outcome" in the first part of the sentence (before 要看 / 得看), and then end up with what "it depends on" (after 要看 / 得看).

[Unknown Outcome] + 得看 / 要看 + [What "It" Depends On]

The "unknown outcome" normally includes some kind of question word, meaning something like "whether or not x happens" or "what x does," etc.

Examples

• 今晚 能 不 能 回家 吃饭 要看 公司 加 不 加班 。Whether I can go home for dinner tonight depends on whether we need to work overtime or not.
• 大学 毕业 以后 做 什么 得看 我 这 几 个 月 找 工作 的 情况 。What I'm going to do after graduation depends on how my job hunting goes in the next few months.
• 这个 周末 去 不 去 黄山 要看 天气 怎么样 。Whether we're going to Yellow Mountain this weekend or not depends on how the weather is.
• 过年 发 不 发 红包 得看 公司 利润 有 多少 。Whether the company gives bonuses for Spring Festival depends on how much profit the company has made.
• 去 哪儿 度 蜜月 要看 我 老公 银行卡 有 多少 钱 。Where we spend our honeymoon depends on how much money my husband's got in his bank account.
• 谁 会 得到 这 份 工作 得看 面试 结果 。Who will get the job depends on the results of this job interview.
• 老板 来 不 来 参加 周五 的 会 要看 那 天 忙 不 忙 。Whether the boss will be able to come to the meeting this Friday depends on whether he's busy or not.
• 什么时候 去 跟 这个 客户 见面 得看 他 的 时间 。When to meet this client depends on what time he will be available.
• 女朋友 生日 送 什么 礼物 要看 她 喜欢 的 是 什么 。What presents to give to your girl friend for her birthday depends on what she really likes.
• 能 不 能 找到 一 份 好 工作 得看 你的 工作 经验 和 推荐 。Whether or not you'll be able to find a nice job depends on your working experience and recommendation.

Sources and further reading

Books

• Common Chinese Patterns 330 (汉语常用格式330例) (p. 168)→buy