Difference between revisions of "Emphasizing a noun with "cai""

Revision as of 04:43, 27 November 2020

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Level

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Level
Level
Similar to
Similar to
- Expressing "as long as" with "zhiyao" (HSK3, HSK4)
- Expressing "if" with "ruguo... dehua" (HSK3)
- Expressing "if... then..." with "ruguo... jiu..." (HSK3)
- Expressing "once...then..." with "yidan...jiu..." (HSK5)
Used for
Keywords

This is one of the simpler 才 patterns, providing a way to emphasize that it's THIS one (not THAT one).

Structure

Noun + 才 + Verb Phrase⋯⋯

While this pattern has many uses, one of the most common (and most childish) is as a not-so-witty comeback, in the form of, "no, YOU are!"

Examples with 才是

你 才是 笨蛋！Nǐ cái shì bèndàn!YOU're the idiot!

Other Examples

在某些西方国家里，白人 才是 真正的西方人。我不同意。 Zài mǒuxiē Xīfāng guójiā lǐ, báirén cái shì zhēnzhèng de Xīfāngrén. Wǒ bù tóngyì.In some western countries, it's only white people that are the "real" westerners. I don't agree.

Sources and further reading

Books

Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide (pp. 95, 263, 266) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy

@@ Line 7: / Line 7: @@
 Noun + 才 + Verb Phrase⋯⋯
 </div>
+While this pattern has many uses, one of the most common (and most childish) is as a not-so-witty comeback, in the form of, "no, ''YOU'' are!"
 === Examples with 才是 ===
 <div class="liju">
-*我 花 了 八 千 块 <em>才</em> 买 到 了 旅游 的 东西。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ huā le bā qiān kuài <em>cái</em> mǎi dào le lǚyóu de dōngxi.</span><span class="trans">Only after spending 8000 RMB was I able to buy all the things for the trip.</span>
+*你 <em>才 是</em> 笨蛋 ！<span class="pinyin">Nǐ <em>cái shì</em> bèndàn!</span><span class="trans">YOU're the idiot!</span>
-*小明 花 了 很 多 心思 <em>才</em> 设计 出 了 这 张 海报。<span class="pinyin">Xiǎo Míng huā le hěn duō xīnsi <em>cái</em> shèjì chū le zhè zhāng hǎibào.</span></span><span class="trans">Only after putting a lot of thought into it was Xiao Ming able to design this poster.</span>
-*他 用 了 很 多 年 <em>才</em> 原谅 了 他的 妈妈。 <span class="pinyin">Tā yòng le hěn duō nián <em>cái</em> yuánliàng le tā de māma.</span></span><span class="trans">Only after many years was he able to forgive his mom.</span>
-*那 本 书 我 看 了 两 遍 <em>才</em> 看 懂。<span class="pinyin">Nà běn shū wǒ kàn le liǎng biàn <em>cái</em> kàn dǒng.</span></span><span class="trans">I had to read that book twice to understand it.</span>
-*我 去 了 三 次 北京 <em>才</em> 见 到 了 那个 客户。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ qù le sān cì Běijīng <em>cái</em> jiàn dào le nàge kèhù.</span></span><span class="trans">Only after making three trips to Beijing was I finally able to meet that client.</span>
-*他 找 了 好几 个 月 <em>才</em> 找到 合适 的 房子 。<span class="pinyin">Tā zhǎo le hǎojǐ gè yuè <em>cái</em> zhǎodào héshì de fángzi.</span></span><span class="trans">Only after searching for quite a few months was he able to find a suitable apartment.</span>
 </div>
-Note that for each of these examples, events have ''already occurred''. The fuller [[Expressing "only if" with "zhiyou"|只有……才…… pattern]] is more appropriate for the future or for hypothetical situations.
 === Other Examples ===
@@ Line 29: / Line 21: @@
 <div class="liju">
-*她 做 完 了 功课 <em>才</em> 睡觉。<span class="pinyin">Tā zuò wán le gōngkè <em>cái</em> shuìjiào.</span></span><span class="trans">Not until she finished her homework did she go to sleep.</span>
+* 在 某些 西方 国家 里 ， 白人 <em>才 是</em> 真正 的 西方人 。 我 不 同意 。 <span class="pinyin">Zài mǒuxiē Xīfāng guójiā lǐ, báirén <em> cái shì </em> zhēnzhèng de Xīfāngrén. Wǒ bù tóngyì.</span><span class="trans">In some western countries, it's only white people that are the "real" westerners. I don't agree.</span>
-*他 锁 上 了 门 <em>才</em> 想起来 没有 带 钥匙。<span class="pinyin">Tā suǒ shàng le mén <em>cái</em> xiǎng qǐlái méiyǒu dài yàoshi.</span></span><span class="trans">He didn't realize he had forgotten to bring his key until after he had locked the door.</span>
-*我 把 牛奶 喝 完 了， <em>才</em> 发现 牛奶 过期 了。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ bǎ niúnǎi hē wán le, <em>cái</em> fāxiàn niúnǎi guòqī le.</span></span><span class="trans">I finished off the milk, and only then did I discover that it was expired.</span>
-*等 妈妈 打 来 了 电话，宝宝 <em>才</em> 不 哭 了。<span class="pinyin">Děng māma dǎ lái le diànhuà, bǎobao <em>cái</em> bù kū le.</span></span><span class="trans">Only after her mom called did the baby stop crying.</span>
 </div>