You may be familiar with using 太 (tài) to express "too," such as when something is "too expensive" or "too hot." 不太 (bù tài) is a similar pattern for the negative, which just means "not very" or "not so" (literally "not too"). Note that this pattern does not normally use 了 (le).

不太 (bù tài) with Adjectives

Structure

Note: This pattern can also be used with non-adjectives. See below for more info.

Examples

我家 不太 大。Wǒ jiā bù tài dà.My house is not too big.
那个地方 不太 远。Nàge dìfang bù tài yuǎn.That place is not very far away.
老板今天 不太 高兴。 Lǎobǎn jīntiān bù tài gāoxìng.The boss is not very happy today.
这个店的衣服 不太 贵。Zhège diàn de yīfu bù tài guì. The clothes in this shop are not too expensive.
我觉得他 不太 聪明。Wǒ juéde tā bù tài cōngming.I think he is not too smart.

不太 (bù tài) with Verbs

Structure

This pattern can be used with some psychological verbs (e.g. 喜欢 (xǐhuan), 想 (xiǎng), 明白 (míngbai)), as is the case with the next examples. These verbs are relatively limited.

Examples

我 不太 懂。Wǒ bù tài dǒng.I don't really understand.
我 不太 会说英语。Wǒ bù tài huì shuō Yīngyǔ.I can't really speak English.
他们 不太 想去。 Tāmen bù tài xiǎng qù.They don't really want to go.
我哥哥 不太 喜欢他的工作。Wǒ gēge bù tài xǐhuan tā de gōngzuò.My older brother doesn't really like his job.
他 不太 明白老板的意思。Tā bù tài míngbai lǎobǎn de yìsi. He didn't really understand what the boss meant.

不太 (bù tài) with Adjectives

Structure

Examples

不太 (bù tài) with Verbs

Structure

Examples

See also

Sources and further reading

Books