When 吧 (ba) is used twice in a sentence, it is used to list two
options that the speaker is debating. It gives the sentence an
indecisive feel, as though the speaker doesn't know which one to
choose. This construction often has a negative connotation, since
the options usually are not ideal.
Structure
[Option 1] + 吧 ,⋯⋯ , [Option 2] + 吧,⋯⋯ 。
If this structure doesn't seem clear to you, the examples will
help.
Examples
- 冬天 去 吧 ,太 冷;夏天 去 吧 ,太 热 。 Dōngtiān qù ba, tài lěng ; xiàtiān qù
ba, tài rè.Going in the winter
is too cold, going in the summer is too hot.
- 工作 吧 ,太 累 ;不 工作 吧 ,无聊 。 Gōngzuò ba, tài lèi ; bù gōngzuò ba,
wúliáo.Working is too tiring; I'll be
bored if I don't.
- 买 吧 , 不 想 花 那么 多 钱 ;不 买 吧 , 又 不 开心 。
Mǎi bā, bù xiǎng huā nàme duō qián ;
bù mǎi bā, yòu bù kāixīn. If I
buy it, too expensive, but if I don't buy them, I won't be
unhappy.
- 早 去 吧 ,需要 等 ;晚 去 吧 ,会 堵车 。 Zǎo qù bā, xūyào děng ; wǎn qù bā, huì
dǔchē. If we go early we'll have to
wait, but if we go later, there will be too much
traffic.
- 不 说 吧 ,他 还 会 做 错 ;说 吧,他 肯定 不 高兴 。
Bù shuō ba, tā hái huì zuò cuò ; shuō
ba, tā kěndìng bù gāoxìng.Not
telling him, he will still do it wrong next time; Telling him, he
must be upset.
- 回去 吧 ,机票 太 贵 ;不 回去 吧 ,家人 肯定 会 想 我 。
Huíqù ba, jīpiào tài guì ; bù huíqù
ba, jiārén kěndìng huì xiǎng wǒ.Going back, the air ticket is too expensive; Not going
back, my family definitely miss me.
See Also
Source and Further Reading
NEEDS SOURCES
Category:B1 grammar points