Expressing "enough" with "gou"
Contents
Affirmative Form
In Chinese the word for "enough" comes before a verb more often than after an adjective.
Structure
够 + Verb / Adj. + 了
Sometimes you'll see an optional 了 added after the verb for emphasis (as in "no, really, it's enough!").
Examples
- 我们 买 了 很 多 菜 ,够 吃 了 。We bought a lot of food. It's enough for us to eat.
- 这些 纸 够 用 吗 ?Are these papers good enough to use?
- 放心 吧 ,我 带 的 钱 够 花 。Don't worry. I've brought enough money to spend.
When it comes before an adjective, 了 is needed at the end of the sentence.
- 我 对 你 够 好 了 。I've been good enough to you.
- 别 抱怨 了 ,你 够 幸运 了 。Stop complaining. You've been lucky enough.
Negative Form
Structure
Subj. + 不 + 够 + Adj. / Verb
Note that 了 can't be used when it's negated.
Examples
- 他 觉得 他 女朋友 不够 漂亮 。He thinks his girlfriend is not pretty enough.
- 你 说 得 不够 清楚 。You didn't speak very clearly.
- 这些 菜 不够 吃 ,再 点 几 个 菜 。These dishes are not enough to eat. Let's order some more.
- 这里 太 小 了 ,不够 坐 。It's too small here. It's not big enough to sit.
- 你 的 包 太 小 了,这些 东西 肯定不够 放 。Your bag is too small. This stuff definitely can't fit in it.
Colloquial Saying
Literally 够了 means "it's enough." the speaker is "getting sick of [doing] something" or "done with [doing] something." 这些动词比较有限。常用的是:吃、喝、玩、看、听等感官类的。
A few common examples:
- 我 受 够 了 !I had enough of it!
- 天天 吃 外卖 ,我们 都 吃 够了 。We eat take-out every day. We're sick of eating it.
- 你 玩 够了 没有 ?Are you done playing or not?
See also
Sources and further reading
Books