Comparisons with "buru"
Revision as of 02:59, 9 November 2011 by Jonathan.pope (talk | contribs)
不如 means "not as good as", and can be used to make comparisons in the same way as the 比 structure.
A + 不如 + B + (adjective)
Here are some examples:
- 城市 的 生活 环境 不如 乡下 舒服。
- 红茶 的 口感 不如 铁观音 清爽。
- 浙江 人 特别 会 做 生意，连 广东 人 都不如他们！
Unlike the 比 structure, the adjective in this structure can be omitted, as in the last example sentence, to give a feeling that A does not live up to, or is unequal to B.
When facing a choice, 不如 can also be used to mean "might as well" to emphasize the choice is the better of two options.
For example:
- 既然 已经 做 了 一半，你 不如 坚持 下去。
- 与其 空想，不如 马上 行动，做 出 点儿 成绩。
As in the last example sentence, 不如 often occurs in the 与其...不如 structure, meaning "rather than X... might as well Y".
Sources and further reading
Books
- Boya Chinese Lower Intermediate 1 (博雅汉语准中级加速篇) pp.38-39
- Short-term Spoken Chinese: Elementary (汉语口语速成基础篇) pp.80-81
