Difference between revisions of "Expressing "more and more" with "yuelaiyue""

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"越 ⋯⋯ 越⋯⋯" (yuè...yuè...) is used frequently in Chinese to express that some quality or state is increasing with time, or in tune with another factor.  There are two forms of this pattern, the "simple" one (using 来), and the more complex one (which uses two different adjectives/verbs).
 
"越 ⋯⋯ 越⋯⋯" (yuè...yuè...) is used frequently in Chinese to express that some quality or state is increasing with time, or in tune with another factor.  There are two forms of this pattern, the "simple" one (using 来), and the more complex one (which uses two different adjectives/verbs).
  
==Basic Structure with 越来越 ==
+
== Using 越来越 before an Adjective ==
  
 
This structure expresses that something is becoming more and more ''[[adjectives|adjective]]'' over time, with the latter adjective changing with the verb. The most common structure is:
 
This structure expresses that something is becoming more and more ''[[adjectives|adjective]]'' over time, with the latter adjective changing with the verb. The most common structure is:
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*汽油 <em>越来越</em> 贵 了。<span class="pinyin">Qìyóu <em>yuèláiyuè</em> guì le.</span><span class="trans">Gasoline is getting more and more expensive.</span>
 
*汽油 <em>越来越</em> 贵 了。<span class="pinyin">Qìyóu <em>yuèláiyuè</em> guì le.</span><span class="trans">Gasoline is getting more and more expensive.</span>
 
*上海 的 房价 <em>越来越</em> 高 了。<span class="pinyin">Shànghǎi de fángjià <em>yuèláiyuè</em> gāo le.</span><span class="trans">The housing price in Shanghai is getting higher and higher.</span>
 
*上海 的 房价 <em>越来越</em> 高 了。<span class="pinyin">Shànghǎi de fángjià <em>yuèláiyuè</em> gāo le.</span><span class="trans">The housing price in Shanghai is getting higher and higher.</span>
 
</div>
 
 
== Complex Structure with 越 ⋯⋯ 越 ⋯⋯ ==
 
 
This structure can be expanded further by replacing 来 with another verb. This expresses that one change causes another change. To be exact, there are four structures to use. (The examples make it clear how this works.)
 
 
=== Structure ===
 
 
<div class="jiegou">
 
 
Subj.  + 越 +  Adj. 1,越 +  Adj. 2
 
 
</div>
 
 
=== Examples ===
 
 
<div class="liju">
 
 
*<em>越</em> 早 <em>越</em> 好。<span class="pinyin"> <em>Yuè</em> zǎo <em>yuè</em> hǎo.</span><span class="trans">The earlier, the better. </span>
 
*工作 <em>越</em> 多,压力 <em>越</em> 大。<span class="pinyin">Gōngzuò <em>yuè</em> duō, yālì <em>yuè</em> dà.</span><span class="trans">The more the work is, the greater the pressure is.</span>
 
*是 不 是 公司 <em>越</em> 大 ,员工 <em>越</em> 多?<span class="pinyin">Shì bu shì gōngsī <em>yuè</em> dà, yuángōng <em>yuè</em> duō?</span><span class="trans">Is it true that the bigger the company is, the more employees they have? </span>
 
 
</div>
 
 
=== Structure 2 ===
 
 
<div class="jiegou">
 
 
Subj. + 越 +  Adj.,越 +  Verb
 
 
</div>
 
 
=== Examples ===
 
 
<div class="liju">
 
 
*孩子 <em>越</em> 小,<em>越</em> 需要 大人  照顾。<span class="pinyin">Háizi <em>yuè</em> xiǎo, <em>yuè</em> xūyào dàren zhàogu. </span><span class="trans">The younger the child is, the more care they need to be take of by the adults.</span>
 
* 人 <em>越</em> 老, <em>越</em> 喜欢 回忆 过去 <span class="pinyin">Rén <em>yuè</em> lǎo, <em>yuè</em> xǐhuan huíyì guòqù.</span><span class="trans"> The older people get, the more they like to recall the past.</span>
 
 
</div>
 
 
=== Structure 3 ===
 
 
<div class="jiegou">
 
 
Subj. + 越 +  Verb,越 +  Verb
 
 
</div>
 
 
=== Examples ===
 
 
<div class="liju">
 
 
* 她 <em>越</em> 想 <em>越</em> 怕。<span class="pinyin">Tā <em>yuè</em> xiǎng <em>yuè</em> pà.</span><span class="trans"> The more she thought about it, the more she fears.</span>
 
*我 <em>越</em> 看 <em>越</em> 喜欢。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ <em>yuè</em> kàn <em>yuè</em> xǐhuan.</span><span class="trans">The more I look at it, the more I like it.</span>
 
*我们 <em>越</em> 吃 <em>越</em> 想 吃。<span class="pinyin">Wǒmen <em>yuè</em> chī <em>yuè</em> xiǎng chī.</span><span class="trans">The more we eat, the more we want to eat.</span>
 
* 她 <em>越</em> 问,我 <em>越</em> 不 想 说。<span class="pinyin">Tā <em>yuè</em> wèn, wǒ <em>yuè</em> bù xiǎng shuō.</span><span class="trans"> The more she asks, the more I don't want to tell her.</span>
 
 
</div>
 
 
=== Structure 4 ===
 
 
<div class="jiegou">
 
 
Subj. + 越 +  Verb,越 +  Adj.
 
 
</div>
 
 
=== Examples ===
 
 
<div class="liju">
 
 
*他 <em>越</em> 喝 <em>越</em> 渴。<span class="pinyin">Tā <em>yuè</em> hē <em>yuè</em> kě.</span><span class="trans">The more he drinks, the thirstier he gets.</span>
 
*老板 <em>越</em> 说 <em>越</em> 生气。<span class="pinyin">Lǎobǎn <em>yuè</em> shuō <em>yuè</em> shēngqì.</span><span class="trans">The more the boss talks, the angrier she gets.</span>
 
*我 <em>越</em> 想 <em>越</em> 难过。<span class="pinyin"> Wǒ <em>yuè</em> xiǎng  <em>yuè</em> nánguò.</span><span class="trans">The more I think about it, the more upset I gets. </span>
 
 
</div>
 
 
== Complex Structure with Complement ==
 
 
You can also use "越⋯⋯越⋯⋯" with a complement. In this case, "越" has to follow the "得." This construction usually uses [[state complement]]s or [[result complement]]s.
 
 
<div class="jiegou">
 
 
Subj. + Verb 得 + 越⋯⋯,(Verb 得)越 ⋯⋯
 
 
</div>
 
 
=== Examples ===
 
 
<div class="liju">
 
 
*买 得 <em>越</em> 多 <em>越</em> 便宜。<span class="pinyin">Mǎi de <em>yuè</em> duō <em>yuè</em> piányi.</span><span class="trans">The more you buy, the cheaper it gets.</span>
 
*说 得 <em>越</em> 多 <em>越</em> 流利。<span class="pinyin">Shuō de <em>yuè</em> duō <em>yuè</em> liúlì.</span><span class="trans">The more you speak, the more fluent you will be.</span>
 
* 吃 得 <em>越</em> 多 <em>越</em> 容易 胖 。<span class="pinyin">Chī de <em>yuè</em> duō <em>yuè</em> róngyì pàng.</span><span class="trans">The more you eat, the easier it is to get fat.</span>
 
  
 
</div>
 
</div>

Revision as of 04:15, 23 November 2016

"越 ⋯⋯ 越⋯⋯" (yuè...yuè...) is used frequently in Chinese to express that some quality or state is increasing with time, or in tune with another factor. There are two forms of this pattern, the "simple" one (using 来), and the more complex one (which uses two different adjectives/verbs).

Using 越来越 before an Adjective

This structure expresses that something is becoming more and more adjective over time, with the latter adjective changing with the verb. The most common structure is:

Structure

Subj. + 越来越 + Adj. + 了

Examples

  • 天气 越来越 冷 了。Tiānqì yuèláiyuè lěng le.The weather is getting colder and colder.
  • 你 女儿 越来越 漂亮 了。Nǐ nǚér yuèláiyuè piàoliang le.Your daughter is getting more and more beautiful.
  • 你 做 的 菜 越来越 好吃 了。Nǐ zuò de cài yuèláiyuè hǎochī le.The food that you cook is more and more delicious.
  • 汽油 越来越 贵 了。Qìyóu yuèláiyuè guì le.Gasoline is getting more and more expensive.
  • 上海 的 房价 越来越 高 了。Shànghǎi de fángjià yuèláiyuè gāo le.The housing price in Shanghai is getting higher and higher.

See also

Sources and further reading

Books