Difference between revisions of "Expressing "mistakenly think that" with "yiwei""

Revision as of 09:41, 1 November 2018

Level

B1 / HSK4
Level

B1
Level

HSK4
Similar to
Similar to
Used for

Expressing attitude
Keywords

为, 以, 以为

When we talk about mistaken beliefs in English, we just use the word "thought," and the context and the rest of the sentence makes clear that we were wrong. In Chinese, there's a specific verb just for "think mistakenly": 以为 (yǐwéi).

Structure

In English, the verb "to think" can apply to both correct and incorrect notions. Chinese has a specific verb for "to mistakenly think that": 以为 (yǐwéi). Literally, these two characters mean, "take to be," i.e. someone takes one thing to be something else.

Subj. + 以为 ⋯⋯

The part that follows 以为 will be a whole phrase that is actually incorrect information. Note that while it's quite common to refer to things that happened in the past, it could also refer to a situation in the present or even the future. It can also be used for commands, usually of the negative "don't think that..." type.

Examples

我以为他是英国人。Wǒ yǐwéi tā shì Yīngguó rén.I thought he was British.
我们以为你不在家。Wǒmen yǐwéi nǐ bù zài jiā .We thought you weren't at home.
同事们都以为我二十岁。Tóngshì men dōu yǐwéi wǒ èrshí suì.My colleagues all thought I was twenty.
我们都以为你生气了。Wǒmen dōu yǐwéi nǐ shēngqì le.We all thought you were angry.
老师以为学生都听懂了。Lǎoshī yǐwéi xuéshēng dōu tīngdǒng le.The teacher thought all the students understood.
不要以为他是你的朋友。Bùyào yǐwéi tā shì nǐ de péngyou.Don't think that he's your friend.
她是你外婆？我以为是你妈妈。Tā shì nǐ wàipó? Wǒ yǐwéi shì nǐ māma.She's your grandma? I thought she was your mother.
你去吃四川火锅了？我以为你不爱吃辣。Nǐ qù chī Sìchuān huǒguō le? Wǒ yǐwéi nǐ bù ài chī là.You went to eat Sichuan hotpot? I thought you don't like eating spicy food.
你们分手了？我以为你们还在一起。Nǐmen fēnshǒu le? Wǒ yǐwéi nǐmen hái zài yīqǐ.You guys broke up? I thought you were still together.
我看到那张照片，以为你有男朋友了。 Wǒ kàndào nà zhāng zhàopiàn, yǐwéi nǐ yǒu nánpéngyou le.I saw that picture and I thought you had a boyfriend.

Sources and further reading

Books

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Grammar Box}}
-We often have mistaken beliefs about various topics. With this article, we learn how to express them in Chinese!
+When we talk about mistaken beliefs in English, we just use the word "thought," and the context and the rest of the sentence makes clear that we were wrong. In Chinese, there's a specific [[verb]] just for "think mistakenly": 以为 (yǐwéi).
 == Structure ==
-In English, the verb "to think" can imply that the belief is incorrect, e.g. in "I thought it was legal here." Chinese has a specific verb for this kind of mistaken belief: 以为 (yǐwéi). Literally these two characters mean "take to be," i.e. someone takes one thing to be something else.
+In English, the verb "to think" can apply to both correct and incorrect notions. Chinese has a specific verb for "to mistakenly think that": 以为 (yǐwéi). Literally, these two characters mean, "take to be," i.e. someone takes one thing to be something else.
 <div class="jiegou">
@@ Line 11: / Line 11: @@
 </div>
-The phrase will be a whole new statement that is actually incorrect.
+The part that follows 以为 will be a whole phrase that is actually incorrect information. Note that while it's quite common to refer to things that happened in the past, it could also refer to a situation in the present or even the future. It can also be used for commands, usually of the negative "don't think that..." type.
 == Examples ==
@@ Line 22: / Line 22: @@
 *我们 都 <em>以为</em> 你 生气 了 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒmen dōu <em>yǐwéi</em> nǐ shēngqì le.</span><span class="trans">We all thought you were angry.</span>
 *老师 <em>以为</em> 学生 都 听懂 了 。<span class="pinyin">Lǎoshī <em>yǐwéi</em> xuéshēng dōu tīngdǒng le.</span><span class="trans">The teacher thought all the students understood.</span>
-*大家 都 <em>以为</em> 他 是 大 老板 。<span class="pinyin">Dàjiā dōu <em>yǐwéi</em> tā shì dà lǎobǎn.</span><span class="trans">Everybody thought he was the big boss.</span>
+* 不要 <em>以为</em> 他 是 你的 朋友 。<span class="pinyin">Bùyào <em>yǐwéi</em> tā shì nǐ de péngyou.</span><span class="trans">Don't think that he's your friend.</span>
 *她 是 你 外婆 ？我 <em>以为</em> 是 你 妈妈 。<span class="pinyin">Tā shì nǐ wàipó? Wǒ <em>yǐwéi</em> shì nǐ māma.</span><span class="trans">She's your grandma? I thought she was your mother.</span>
 *你 去 吃 四川 火锅 了 ？我 <em>以为</em> 你 不 爱 吃 辣 。<span class="pinyin">Nǐ qù chī  Sìchuān huǒguō le? Wǒ <em>yǐwéi</em> nǐ bù ài chī là.</span><span class="trans">You went to eat Sichuan hotpot? I thought you don't like eating spicy food.</span>