Expressing "less than" with "budao"

The word 到 (dào) means "arrive," but it can also mean "to reach" or "to get to" in an abstract sense. So in this pattern, 不到 (bùdào) means "to not reach (the amount of)," or, to put it another way, "to be less than."

Basic Pattern

Structure

Subj. + 不到 + Number + [Measure Word] + Noun

Examples

• 我 女儿 不到 三 岁 。Wǒ nǚ'ér bùdào sān suì.My daughter is not yet three years old.
• 我 昨天 睡 了 不到 五 个 小时 。Wǒ zuótiān shuì le bùdào wǔ gè xiǎoshí. Yesterday I slept for almost five hours.
• 这 件 衣服 花 了 不到 一 百 块 。Zhè jiàn yīfu huā le bùdào yī bǎi kuài.This piece of clothing costs less than 100 RMB.
• 我 家 到 公司 不到 五 百 米 。Wǒ jiā dào gōngsī bùdào wǔ bǎi mǐ.My house is less than 500 meters from the company.
• 在 美国 ，不到 21 岁 不 能 喝酒 。Zài Měiguó, bùdào èrshí-yī suì, bù néng hējiǔ.In America, people under 21 can't drink alcohol.

Advanced Pattern

Structure

When 不到 (bùdào) is put before a time or a duration of time, it needs to be followed with 就 (jiù). This shows that something (usually referring to the past) has happened earlier than expected.

Subj. + 不到 + Time + 就 + Predicate + 了

Examples

• 她 的 病 不到 一个 星期 就 好 了 。Tā de bìng bùdào yī gè xīngqī jiù hǎo le.It took less than one week for her to recover from her sickness.
• 他们 认识 不到 两 个 月 就 结婚 了 。Tāmen rènshi bùdào liǎng gè yuè jiù jiéhūn le.They've known each other for less than two months and are already married.
• 李 医生 不到 55 岁 就 退休 了 。Lǐ yīshēng bùdào wǔshí-wǔ suì jiù tuìxiū le.Dr. Li is less than 55 years old and he already retired.
• 爷爷 不到 60 岁 就 去世 了 。Yéye bùdào liùshí suì jiù qùshì le.My grandpa was less than 60 years old when he died.
• 老板 不到 30 岁 就 有 白 头发 了 。Lǎobǎn bùdào sānshí suì jiù yǒu bái tóufa le.My boss is less than 30 years old and already has white hair showing on his head.

For other similar uses of 就, see also expressing earliness with "jiu."

See also

• Emphasizing quantity with "dou"
• Referring to "all" using "suoyou"
• Indicating a number in excess
• Indicating the whole with "quan"