Lessons 3, 11, 12: Speculation and estimation: 也许, 大约, 恐怕, 难免

Adverbs expressing uncertain judgment, rough estimates, and what is hard to avoid.

Hanyu textbook · Hanyu 5 · Lesson 3 · Hanyu 5 · Lesson 11 · Hanyu 5 · Lesson 12

我们快走吧，恐怕要下雨。

Wǒmen kuài zǒu ba, kǒngpà yào xiàyǔ.

Let's walk faster; I'm afraid it's going to rain.

Explanation

也许 means an unconfirmed judgment, doubt, or uncertainty. It usually goes before a verb, adjective, or subject as an adverbial. 大约 expresses a not-quite-precise estimate of quantity or time.

恐怕 is used as an adverbial and means assessing a situation, sometimes implying that the speaker is worried. 难免 means hard to avoid (a situation that is not easily avoided); it goes before a verb and is usually followed by 要 or 会.

Structure

1
也许 + V / Adj；也许 + S + ……
An unconfirmed, uncertain judgment; goes before a verb, adjective, or subject.
- 去了以后，也许你会爱上这个美丽的城市。
  Qù le yǐhòu, yěxǔ nǐ huì àishàng zhège měilì de chéngshì.
  Once you go, perhaps you'll love this beautiful city.
- 看样子，也许要下雨。还是带上雨伞吧。
  Kàn yàngzi, yěxǔ yào xiàyǔ. Háishi dàishàng yǔsǎn ba.
  It looks like it may rain soon. We'd better take an umbrella.
- 到现在他还没来，也许就不来了，我们不要等他了。
  Dào xiànzài tā hái méi lái, yěxǔ jiù bù lái le, wǒmen búyào děng tā le.
  He still hasn't come by now; he may not come at all, so let's not wait.
2
大约số lượng / thời gian
A not-quite-precise estimate of quantity or time.
- 新疆与北京的时差大约是两个小时。
  Xīnjiāng yǔ Běijīng de shíchā dàyuē shì liǎng ge xiǎoshí.
  The time difference between Xinjiang and Beijing is about two hours.
- 我们大约十点到那里。
  Wǒmen dàyuē shí diǎn dào nàlǐ.
  We'll get there at about ten o'clock.
- 这个房间大约有三十平方米。
  Zhège fángjiān dàyuē yǒu sānshí píngfāngmǐ.
  This room is about thirty square meters.
- 参加这次大会的代表大约有两千多人。
  Cānjiā zhè cì dàhuì de dàibiǎo dàyuē yǒu liǎng qiān duō rén.
  The delegates attending this congress number a little over two thousand.
3
恐怕…
Used as an adverbial to assess a situation; sometimes the speaker is worried.
- 看样子他恐怕不会来了，我们别等了。
  Kàn yàngzi tā kǒngpà bú huì lái le, wǒmen bié děng le.
  It seems he probably won't come; let's not wait.
- 我们快走吧，恐怕要下雨。
  Wǒmen kuài zǒu ba, kǒngpà yào xiàyǔ.
  Let's walk faster; I'm afraid it's going to rain.
- 她出国恐怕有两年了吧。
  Tā chūguó kǒngpà yǒu liǎng nián le ba.
  She's probably been abroad for two years now.
4
难免要 / 会Vverb
Hard to avoid; goes before a verb and is usually followed by 要 or 会.
- 做事不认真就难免要出问题。
  Zuò shì bú rènzhēn jiù nánmiǎn yào chū wèntí.
  If you don't take your work seriously, problems are hard to avoid.
- 学习外语，写错，说错都是难免的。
  Xuéxí wàiyǔ, xiěcuò, shuōcuò dōu shì nánmiǎn de.
  When studying a foreign language, writing and speaking mistakes are unavoidable.
- 即使朋友之间也难免看法不同。
  Jíshǐ péngyou zhījiān yě nánmiǎn kànfǎ bù tóng.
  Even among friends, differing opinions are hard to avoid.

Usage notes

难免 (hard to avoid) is different from 免得 (so as not to): the textbook corrects "你再告诉他，难免他忘了" to "你再提醒他一声，免得他忘了".

Common mistakes

~~你再告诉他，难免他忘了。~~
你再提醒他一声，免得他忘了。
to avoid an undesirable outcome, use 免得, not 难免

Practice

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