Approximations with "chabuduo"
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Keywords
差不多 (chàbùduō), translated literally, means "the difference is not much." Essentially what it means in Chinese is "more or less," and is useful for expressing rough approximations. It can be used as an adjective or an adverb.
Contents
"差不多" as an Adjective
Simple Structure
When several things are 差不多 (chàbùduō), it means they are "more or less the same." (The part that means "the same" is understood in Chinese.)
Structure
Subj. + 差不多
Examples
- 这 几 个 地方 都 差不多。These places are all pretty much the same.
- 这 两 个 词 的 意思 差不多。These two words' meanings are more or less the same.
- 我们 的 想法 差不多。Our ways of thinking are pretty much the same.
- 这 两 家 餐厅 的 菜 都 差不多。These two restaurants' dishes are all more or less the same.
- 我们 的 中文 水平 差不多。Our levels of Chinese are more or less the same.
Structure
Another often used structure is:
A 跟/和 B + 差不多
Examples
- 上海 和 纽约 差不多。Shanghai and New York are basically the same.
- Starbucks 和 Costa 差不多。Starbucks and Coster are almost the same.
- 他 的 衣服 跟 老师 的 衣服 差不多。His clothes and the teacher's clothes are more or less the same.
- 你 的 工作 跟 我 的 工作 差不多。Your job and my job are more or less the same.
- 这 里 的 天气 跟 北京 差不多。 The weather here is pretty much like Beijing.
Antonym "差很多"
When 差不多 (chàbùduō) is an adjective, it literally means "the difference is not much." The opposite, then would be 差很多 (chà hěn duō), which literally means "the difference is very great." Less literally, if 差不多 (chàbùduō) means "more or less the same," then 差很多 (chà hěn duō) means "not the same at all."
Structure
This first pattern tells you the two are not roughly equal, but it is not always clear which is better or which is worse. Sometimes it just means they are "very different."
Subj. + 差 很 多
A 跟/和 B + 差 很 多
Examples
- 我 和 我男朋友 的 年龄 差 很 多 。There is a big difference between my age and my boyfriend's age.
- 中国 文化 和 西方 文化 差 很 多 。Chinese culture and western culture are quite different.
- 我 的 收入 跟 我老板 的 收入 差 很 多 。There is a huge difference between my income and my boss'.
- 这 两 家 店 的 东西 价格 差 很 多 。There is a big difference in price between these two shops.
- 这 两 个 词 的 意思 差不多，但是 用法 差 很 多 。The meanings of these two words are basically the same, but their usages are very different.
"差不多" as an adverb
When using 差不多 (chàbùduō) as an adverb, place it before the adjective or verb.
Structure
差不多 + Adj./Verb
Examples
- 这 两 个 孩子 差不多 大。These two children are more or less the same age.
- 我 跟 我哥哥 差不多 高。My elder brother and I are more or less the same height.
- 我 差不多 到 公园 门口 了。I'm almost at the entrance of the park.
- 电影 差不多 要 开始 了。The movie is almost about to start.
- 今天 的 工作 差不多 做 完 了。Today‘s work is almost over.
“差不多" with a quantity or time phrase
After 差不多 (chàbùduō) you can also add a phrase that expresses quantity or time. This makes it clear that you're giving a rough estimate.
Structure
差不多 ＋[quantity phrase] / [time phrase]
Examples
- 你 儿子 差不多 五 岁 了 吧？Your son should be about 5 years old now, right?
- 他 住 在 上海 差不多 三 个 月 了。He has lived in Shanghai for about three months.
- 我 在 这 家 公司 工作 差不多 十 年 了。I worked in this company for almost ten years.
- 我父母 结婚 差不多 二十 年 了。My parents have been married for about twenty years.
- 差不多 两 个 星期 以前，我 在 北京 见 过 他。About two weeks ago I met with him in Beijing.
See also
Sources and further reading
Books
- 现代汉语八百词（增订本） (p. 111) →buy
- Integrated Chinese: Level 2, Part 1 (pp. 54-5) →buy
- Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar (p. 116) →buy
Dictionaries
- 现代汉语词典（第5版） (p. 145) →buy
