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- {{Grammar Box}}
- To describe a situation as being one of only two possibilities, you can use the structure: "不是⋯⋯就是⋯⋯" (búshi...jiùshì...)
- == Structure ==
- <div class="jiegou">
- 不是 + A，就是 + B
- </div>
- This is like saying "if it's not A, then it's B" in English. A and B can be verbs, adjectives or nouns.
- == Examples ==
- <div class="liju">
- * 他 整天 <em>不 是</em> 打游戏 <em>就 是</em> 睡觉。<span class="trans">All day, if he's not playing games, he's sleeping.</span>
- * 他们 约会 <em>不是</em> 去 咖啡馆 <em>就是</em> 去 电影院。<span class="trans">When they go on dates, if it's not to a coffee shop, then it's to the movie theater.</span>
- * 我 买 的 衣服 <em>不是</em> 大 <em>就是</em> 小，都 不 能 穿。<span class="trans">The clothes that I bought are either too big or too small, I can't wear any of them.</span>
- * 她 穿 的 衣服 <em>不是</em> LV <em>就是</em> Gucci！<span class="trans">If the clothes that she wears aren't Louis Vuitton, then they're Gucci!</span>
- </div>
- ==See also==
- *[["Not… but rather…" with "er shi"]]
- *[[Expressing "either ... or ..." with "yaome"]]
- *[[Providing two options with double "huozhe"]]
- == Sources and further reading ==
- === Books ===
- * [[New Practical Chinese Reader 4 (新实用汉语课本4)]] (pp. 84) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561913192/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=7561913192 →buy]
- [[Category:B2 grammar points]]
- {{Basic Grammar|就是|B2|不是⋯⋯，就是⋯⋯|<em>不是</em> 成功，<em>就是</em> 失败。|grammar point|ASGEXR6R}}
- {{Rel char|不是}}
- {{Rel char|不}}
- {{Rel char|就}}
- {{Rel char|是}}
- {{Similar|"Not… But Rather…" with "er shi"}}
- {{Similar|Expressing "either ... or ..." with "yaome"}}
- {{Similar|Providing two options with double "huozhe"}}
- {{Structure|Sentence Patterns}}
- {{Used for|Giving alternatives}}
- {{Used for|Differentiating}}
- {{Translation|either}}
- {{Translation|or}}
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