Lessons 20, 21, 25: Ability, and unavoidable/rare: V+不起, V+得/不得, 免不了, 难得

Explanation

Structure

1. 1
   Vverb+不起

   Indicates that the price is too high or that one lacks the financial means; you can say 付不起, 交不起, 吃不起, 住不起, 坐不起...

   • 房租每天一百元，他住不起。

     Fángzū měitiān yìbǎi yuán, tā zhù bu qǐ.

     The rent is a hundred yuan a day; he can't afford to live there.

   • 一般的中国家庭还买不起汽车。

     Yìbān de Zhōngguó jiātíng hái mǎi bu qǐ qìchē.

     An ordinary Chinese family still can't afford a car.

   • 彭艺云付不起几千英镑的学费，必须争取到奖学金。

     Péng Yìyún fù bu qǐ jǐ qiān yīngbàng de xuéfèi, bìxū zhēngqǔ dào jiǎngxuéjīn.

     Peng Yiyun couldn't pay several thousand pounds in tuition and had to win a scholarship.

2. 2
   Vverb+得 / 不得

   Used after a verb as a potential complement, indicating whether subjective or objective conditions allow or do not allow an action to occur or be completed.

   • 如果说哪本书是“黄色的”，肯定要不得。

     Rúguǒ shuō nǎ běn shū shì “huángsè de”, kěndìng yào bu de.

     If a book is said to be "yellow" (pornographic), it is certainly unacceptable.

   • 吃得 / 吃不得

     chī de / chī bu de

     can be eaten / must not be eaten

   • 去得 / 去不得

     qù de / qù bu de

     can go / must not go (not allowed to go)

3. 3
   免不了+V / cụm chủ vị

   Means 难免, cannot be avoided; can take a verb or a subject-predicate phrase as its object; before the verb there is often 要, 会...

   • 的确，头一次做生意谁也免不了出差错。

     Díquè, tóu yí cì zuò shēngyi shéi yě miǎn bu liǎo chū chācuò.

     That's right. When doing business for the first time, everyone is bound to make mistakes.

   • 刚到一个新的环境，有些不习惯是免不了的。

     Gāng dào yí gè xīn de huánjìng, yǒuxiē bù xíguàn shì miǎn bu liǎo de.

     When you first arrive in a new environment, it's unavoidable to feel a bit unaccustomed.

   • 谁学外语都免不了会出错，外国人学汉语出点儿错是很正常的。

     Shéi xué wàiyǔ dōu miǎn bu liǎo huì chūcuò, wàiguórén xué Hànyǔ chū diǎnr cuò shì hěn zhèngcháng de.

     Everyone who learns a foreign language inevitably makes mistakes; it's perfectly normal for foreigners learning Chinese to make some errors.

   • 同学们一见面，免不了彼此问长问短。

     Tóngxuémen yí jiànmiàn, miǎn bu liǎo bǐcǐ wèn cháng wèn duǎn.

     When friends meet, they are bound to ask each other about all sorts of things.

4. 4
   难得+N / Voptional

   A: not easy to do or obtain. B: indicates something that doesn't happen often (难得 + V: rarely, hardly ever...).

   • 发廊生意很红火，还要排队等候，小姐一直忙着，难得抬一次头。

     Fàláng shēngyi hěn hónghuo, hái yào páiduì děnghòu, xiǎojiě yìzhí mángzhe, nándé tái yí cì tóu.

     The hair salon was doing booming business and there was even a line; the hairdresser was busy nonstop and rarely got to lift her head.

   • 八大行星走到一条线上，这种天文现象是难得见到的。

     Bā dà xíngxīng zǒudào yì tiáo xiàn shang, zhè zhǒng tiānwén xiànxiàng shì nándé jiàndào de.

     With the eight planets lined up in a row, this astronomical phenomenon is very rarely seen.

   • 难得来一次，这次一定要多住几天。

     Nándé lái yí cì, zhè cì yídìng yào duō zhù jǐ tiān.

     I rarely get to come, so this time I must stay a few more days.

   • 这样的朋友很难得。

     Zhèyàng de péngyou hěn nándé.

     A friend like that is hard to come by.

   • 这是难得的机会，你一定不要放过。

     Zhè shì nándé de jīhuì, nǐ yídìng bú yào fàngguò.

     This is a rare opportunity; you must not miss it.

   • 因为工作忙，他难得有旅行的机会。

     Yīnwèi gōngzuò máng, tā nándé yǒu lǚxíng de jīhuì.

     Because he is busy with work, he rarely has the chance to travel.