Expressing "except" and "in addition" with "chule… yiwai"

Using 除了 (chúle)⋯⋯ 以外 (yǐwài) will help you spruce up your sentences when you want to express "except," "besides," and "in addition." You may feel that "except" has a pretty different meaning form the other two. Well, read on!

Expressing "except"

Structure

"除了⋯⋯ (以外), 都⋯⋯ " (chúle... (yǐwài), dōu...) is a pattern used to express "except." Make a special note of the 都!

除了 + ⋯⋯ (+ 以外) ，Subj. + 都 + Predicate

Examples

• 除了 妈妈 以外 ，我们 全家 都 去 香港 。 Chúle māma yǐwài, wǒmen quánjiā dōu qù Xiānggǎng.Except for mother, the whole family went to Hong Kong.
• 除了 白酒 以外 ，他 什么 酒 都 喝 。 Chúle báijiǔ yǐwài, tā shénme jiǔ dōu hē.He will drink anything except white wine.
• 除了 星期天 以外 ，我们 每 天 都 上班 。 Chúle Xīngqītiān yǐwài, wǒmen měi tiān dōu shàngbān.Except for Sunday, we work every day.

An important note is that either 除了 or 以外 (usually it's 以外) can be omitted from the sentence without losing its meaning.

Expressing "in Addition"

Structure

"除了⋯⋯ (以外), 也/还⋯⋯ " (chúle... (yǐwài), yě/hái... ) is a pattern used to express "in addition." Make a special note of the 也 or 还!

除了 + ⋯⋯ (+ 以外) ， Subj. + 也 / 还 + Predicate

Examples

• 除了 英语 ，我 也 会 说 法语 和 西班牙语 。Chúle Yīngyǔ, wǒ yě huì shuō Fǎyǔ hé Xībānyáyǔ.In addition to English, I can also speak French and Spanish.
• 中国 的 功夫 明星 除了 成龙 ， 李连杰 也 很 有名 。 Zhōngguó de gōngfu míngxīng chúle Chéng Lóng, Lǐ Liánjié yě hěn yǒumíng.In addition to Jackie Chen, Jet Li is also very famous as a Chinese kung fu star.
• 除了 运动 以外 ，你 还 有 什么 爱好 吗 ？Chúle yùndòng yǐwài, nǐ háiyǒu shénme àihào ma?In addition to sports, what other hobbies do you have?
• 除了 海鲜 以外 ，你 还 对 什么 过敏 ？ Chúle hǎixiān yǐwài, nǐ hái duì shénme guòmǐn?In addition to seafood, what else are you allergic to?
• 除了 猫 和 狗 以外 ，我 小时候 还 养 过 兔子 。Chúle māo hé gǒu yǐwài, wǒ xiǎoshíhou hái yǎng guo tùzi.In addition to cat and dog, I've also a rabbit when I was young.

See also

• "Unless" with "chufei"
• "In addition" as "lingwai"

Sources and further reading

Books

• Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar (pp. 80) →buy
• Common Chinese Patterns 330 (汉语常用格式330例) (pp. 50, 52) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 218-9)　→buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 2, Part 1 (pp. 16-7) →buy
• Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide (pp. 355-6) →buy
• New Practical Chinese Reader 3 (新实用汉语课本3) (pp. 170) →buy
• 40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课上册） (p. 271)→buy