Expressing wasted efforts with "bai"

白 (bái) doesn't only mean "white." When added before a verb it means to do that verb "in vain" or "with no effect."

Structure with just 白

All you have to do is put 白 before the verb. One important thing to note is that 白 is usually used with mono-syllabic words, like 做, 学, 跑, etc. You should put a 地 after 白.

白 + Verb + 了

Examples

• 白 花 了 一 百 块 钱，这 件 衣服 不 能 穿。Bái huā le yībǎi kuài qián, zhè jiàn yīfú bù néng chuān.I just wasted a hundred kuai. I can't even wear these clothes.
• 他 不 回来 吃饭 了？！我 这些 菜 白 做了。Tā bù huílái chīfàn le?! Wǒ zhèxiē cài bái zuò le.He's not coming back to eat?! I made all this food for nothing.
• 你 一 句 汉语 都 不 会 说，白 学 了 这么 长 时间。Nǐ yījù Hànyǔ dōu bù huì shuō, bái xué le zhème cháng shíjiān.You can't speak even one sentence in Chinese! All that time studying was a waste.
• 我 去 的 时候 他 不 在 家， 所以 我 白 跑 了 一 趟。Wǒ qù de shíhòu tā bù zàijiā, suǒyǐ wǒ bái pǎo le yī tàng.He wasn't home when I got there, so I wasted all of that time going over there.
• 不好意思， 让 你 白 忙 了 一 个 早上，我们 老板 今天 来 不了 了。Bù hǎoyìsi, ràng nǐ bái máng le yīgè zǎoshang, wǒmen lǎobǎn jīntiān lái bùliǎole.Sorry to make you work this whole morning for nothing. Our boss just said that he couldn't come today.

Structure with 白白

白 can also be replaced with 白白 with basically the same meaning, although 白白 has a stronger emphasis on the "wasted effort." 白白 is also usually paired with a disyllabic verb, like 帮助, 准备, 学习 etc. Unlike 白, 白白 can be used with a 地.

Examples

• 明天 不 考 中文， 小王 白白 准备 了 一 天。Míngtiān bù kǎo Zhōngwén, Xiǎo Wáng báibái zhǔnbèi le yītiān.There's no Chinese test tomorrow. Little Wang spent the whole day studying in vain.
• 他 还是 没有 听 我 的 建议， 我 白白 给 他 说 了 这么 长 时间。Tā háishì méiyǒu tīng wǒ de jiànyì, wǒ báibái gěi tā shuō le zhème cháng shíjiān.He still doesn't listen to my advice. I spent such a long time talking to him, all for nothing.
• 他 没有 来，我 在 飞机场 白白 等 了 他 四 个 小时。Tā méiyǒu lái, wǒ zài fēijīchǎng báibái děng le tā sì gè xiǎoshí.He didn't come. I wasted four hours at the airport waiting for him.
• 父母 白白 养 了 你 这么 多 年，你 一点 也不 关心 你 的 父母。Fùmǔ báibái yǎng le nǐ zhème duō nián, nǐ yīdiǎn yě bù guānxīn nǐ de fùmǔ.Your parents raised you for so many years, just for you not to care about them at all.
• 她 白白 学 了 十 年 的 英语 。 她 看得懂 英文，但是 连 简单 的 对话 都 不 会 说！Tā báibái xué le shí nián de Yīngyǔ. Tā kàn dedǒng Yīngwén, dànshì lián jiǎndān de duìhuà dōu bù huì shuō!She spent ten years fruitlessly studying English. She can read English, but she can't even hold a simple conversation!

白 as "For Free"

There are a group of mono-syllabic verbs that combine with 白 in the same structure, but for these verbs, 白 means "for free." Think of these as set phrases. All relate to the senses or some form of "consumption." This list is not exhaustive:

• 白吃bái chīto eat for free
• 白喝bái hēto drink for free
• 白住bái zhùto stay (overnight) for free

Sources and further reading

• 现代汉语八百词 (pp. 58) 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 →buy
• Chinese Grammar - Broken down into 100 items - Basic and Intermediate Levels (汉语语法百项讲练 - 初中级) (pp. 160-161) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy

HSK5