Expressing "let alone" with "geng buyong shuo"

更不用说 means "let alone," and is used in the same way as the English, where we might say: "he can't even boil an egg, let alone prepare a banquet"

Structure

连 + A + 都 / 也 + Verb， 更不用说 + B + 了

Notice that the order used in this pattern is the opposite to the 别说 structure.

Examples

• 他 都 不 会 煮 鸡蛋， 更不用说 做 一 大 桌子 的 菜 了。Tā dōu bù huì zhǔ jīdàn, gèng bùyòng shuō zuò yī dà zhuōzi de cài le.He can't boil an egg, let alone prepare a banquet.
• 他 连 自己 国家 的 国旗 都 不 认识， 更不用说 其他 国家 的 了。Tā lián zìjǐ guójiā de guóqí dōu bù rènshí, gèng bùyòng shuō qítā guójiā de le.He can't even recognize his own country's flag, not to mention any other countries' flags.
• 他 从来 没有 出 过 远门， 更不用说 出国 了。Tā cónglái méiyǒu chūguò yuǎnmén, gèng bùyòng shuō chū guó le.He's never traveled very far, let alone out of the country.

Unless the first action is negated with 没有, using 更不用说 generally requires using 了 to emphasize that the speaker is adding his/her own comment.

See also

• "Let alone" with "bie shuo"
• "Let Alone" with "hekuang"
• Advanced uses of "lian"
• Expressing "Even" with "lian" and "dou"

Sources and Further Reading

HSK5