Lesson 15: The structure 非……不可 and the adverb 千万

非……不可 indicates inevitability or determination; 千万 is used to earnestly urge or remind someone.

Hanyu textbook · Hanyu 6 · Lesson 15

这次球赛我们非赢他们不可。

Zhè cì qiúsài wǒmen fēi yíng tāmen bùkě.

We must beat them in this match.

Explanation

非……不可 (“must; cannot do without”)

A. Indicates inevitability and necessity (表示必然性、必要性). B. Indicates determination and a wish (表示决心和愿望).

千万 (“be sure (not) to; must”): “千万” means 一定、务必 (definitely). It is used to express an earnest request or reminder; used as an adverbial. Note: “千万” cannot be used in a sentence with a first-person pronoun as the subject; you cannot say *我千万不去.

Structure

1
非người / V / 要……不可
A. Inevitability and necessity (必然性、必要性): something will definitely happen / must definitely be so. B. Determination and a wish (决心和愿望). Common patterns: 非 + person + 不可, 非 + V + 不可, 非要……不可.
- 要踢赢这场球，非你上不可。
  Yào tīyíng zhè chǎng qiú, fēi nǐ shàng bùkě.
  To win this match, we absolutely need you on the field.
- 酒后驾车，非出事不可。
  Jiǔ hòu jiàchē, fēi chūshì bùkě.
  Drinking and driving is bound to lead to an accident.
- 我非把这件事办成不可。
  Wǒ fēi bǎ zhè jiàn shì bànchéng bùkě.
  I'm determined to finish this task.
- 这次球赛我们非赢他们不可。
  Zhè cì qiúsài wǒmen fēi yíng tāmen bùkě.
  We must beat them in this match.
- 这事他要知道了，非说我不可。
  Zhè shì tā yào zhīdào le, fēi shuō wǒ bùkě.
  If he finds out about this, he'll definitely scold me.
- 我们班的林老师见我躺在床上不能动，就非要我住到她家去不可。
  Wǒmen bān de Lín lǎoshī jiàn wǒ tǎng zài chuáng shàng bù néng dòng, jiù fēiyào wǒ zhùdào tā jiā qù bùkě.
  When our teacher Ms. Lin saw me lying in bed unable to move, she insisted that I come and stay at her place.
2
千万别 / 不要optionalVverb
“千万” = 一定、务必: used to express an earnest request or reminder; used as an adverbial. Not used in a sentence whose subject is the first person.
- 要把护照和钱装好，千万别丢了。
  Yào bǎ hùzhào hé qián zhuānghǎo, qiānwàn bié diū le.
  Keep your passport and money safe, and be sure not to lose them.
- 你刚喝了不少酒，千万不要开车。
  Nǐ gāng hēle bù shǎo jiǔ, qiānwàn bú yào kāichē.
  You've just had quite a lot to drink, so be sure not to drive.
- 你千万别走，等我回来。
  Nǐ qiānwàn bié zǒu, děng wǒ huílai.
  Whatever you do, don't go; wait for me to come back.
- 老师说：“千万别客气，你就把老师家当做自己的家吧。”
  Lǎoshī shuō: “Qiānwàn bié kèqi, nǐ jiù bǎ lǎoshī jiā dàngzuò zìjǐ de jiā ba.”
  The teacher said: “Don't be polite; just treat my home as your own.”

Common mistakes

~~我千万不去~~
“千万” is not used when the subject is the first person; use 一定 to express your own determination

Practice

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