Lessons 17, 26: Choosing and comparing: 或……或……, 与其……不如……, 宁可……也……

Explanation

Structure

1. 1
   或+A+或+B

   Choosing one of two consecutive elements; examples: 或多或少, 或大或小, 或快或慢, 或前或后.

   • 刚到一个新地方，或多或少会有点儿不习惯。

     Gāng dào yí gè xīn dìfang, huò duō huò shǎo huì yǒudiǎnr bù xíguàn.

     When you first arrive in a new place, you're bound to feel a bit unaccustomed to things, more or less.

   • 外国人说汉语或多或少都有点儿洋腔洋调。

     Wàiguórén shuō Hànyǔ huò duō huò shǎo dōu yǒudiǎnr yángqiāng yángdiào.

     Foreigners speaking Chinese all have a bit of a foreign accent, more or less.

   • 几乎每天都有交通事故发生，或大或小。

     Jīhū měitiān dōu yǒu jiāotōng shìgù fāshēng, huò dà huò xiǎo.

     Traffic accidents happen almost every day, whether big or small.

   • 人对自己习惯了的角色，如果有一天突然发生转变，总会或多或少有点儿不适应。

     Rén duì zìjǐ xíguànle de juésè, rúguǒ yǒu yì tiān tūrán fāshēng zhuǎnbiàn, zǒnghuì huò duō huò shǎo yǒudiǎnr bú shìyìng.

     When you've grown used to a role and suddenly it changes one day, people will inevitably have some difficulty adapting, more or less.

2. 2

   与其 A，不如 B

   After comparing, not choosing A but choosing B (the latter).

   • 与其在这儿等，不如我们去找她一下。

     Yǔqí zài zhèr děng, bùrú wǒmen qù zhǎo tā yíxià.

     Rather than wait here, we might as well go and find her.

   • 与其买不好的便宜东西，不如多花点儿钱买好的。

     Yǔqí mǎi bù hǎo de piányi dōngxi, bùrú duō huā diǎnr qián mǎi hǎo de.

     Rather than buy cheap stuff that isn't good, you might as well spend a bit more money and buy something good.

   • 做任何事情，开始的时候，与其想得容易些，不如想得困难些。

     Zuò rènhé shìqing, kāishǐ de shíhou, yǔqí xiǎng de róngyì xiē, bùrú xiǎng de kùnnan xiē.

     Whatever you do, it's better to think it hard at the beginning than to think it easy.

   • 与其在讲台上出洋相，还不如趁早给自己找个台阶下去。

     Yǔqí zài jiǎngtái shàng chū yángxiàng, hái bùrú chènzǎo gěi zìjǐ zhǎo ge táijiē xiàqu.

     Rather than make a fool of myself on the platform, I'd better find a way out for myself early.

3. 3
   宁可 A，也+B

   “宁可” (also “宁肯”, “宁愿”): after weighing the pros and cons, choosing one course of action; usually used before the verb, but can also be used before the subject, and often goes with “也”.

   • 她宁可一死，也不进马家的门。

     Tā nìngkě yì sǐ, yě bú jìn Mǎ jiā de mén.

     She would rather die than step through the door of the Ma family.

   • 我宁可不休息，也要把这个任务完成。

     Wǒ nìngkě bù xiūxi, yě yào bǎ zhège rènwu wánchéng.

     I'd rather not take a break than fail to complete this task.

   • 无论干什么事，宁可把困难想得多一些，也不要把事情看得太容易。

     Wúlùn gàn shénme shì, nìngkě bǎ kùnnan xiǎng de duō yìxiē, yě bú yào bǎ shìqing kàn de tài róngyì.

     Whatever you do, you'd rather think of the many difficulties than treat everything as too easy.