Expressing "even if…" with "napa"

哪怕 (nǎpà) means "even if", and has a slightly stronger tone than 即使 or 就算. It is therefore often used to disregard hypothetical statements of a more serious nature. It is also used in conjunction with 也.

Structure

哪怕 + hypothetical statement + 也 + action.

Examples

  • 哪怕 要 花 一百万, 要 把 你 的 病 治好。Even if it's gonna cost one million bucks for you to be cured,we are still doing it.
  • 哪怕 就 陪 孩子 玩 一小会儿 ,她 会 很 开心的。<span class="trans"It would cheer her up even if you spend only a few minutes with them.
  • 哪怕 你 要 送 我 一 辆 宝马,我 不 要 嫁 给 你!I‘m not gonna marry you even if you're gonna give me a B.M.W.
  • 哪怕 你 打扮 得 像 电影 明星 一样,他 不 会 看 你 一眼!Even if you dress up like a movie star,he wouldn't take a damn look at you!


哪怕 is often followed by 再 to give further emphasis to the severity of situation the speaker is disregarding.

Note that the clause used after 哪怕 must be hypothetical, otherwise 虽然 should be used:

  • 现在 虽然 是 高峰期,但 我 无论如何 都 要 出去
  • 哪怕 现在 是 高峰期,我 要 出去

In the first sentence, it being rush hour is not a hypothetical statement, so it is incorrect to use 哪怕.

See also

Sources and further reading

Books

HSK5