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[What links
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[](# "wikilink")
Expressing "less than" with "budao"
===================================
[](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/ASG10CAE)
-
Level
[B1](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/B1_grammar_points)
-
Similar to
Used for
[Expressing
quantity](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_quantity)
-
Keywords
[不到](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%E4%B8%8D%E5%88%B0)
-
Translations
[less
than](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Less_than)
Contents
--------
[hide]([# "wikilink")\]
- [1 Basic
Pattern](#Basic_Pattern "wikilink")
- [1.1
Structure](#Structure "wikilink")
- [1.2
Examples](#Examples "wikilink")
- [2 Advanced
Pattern](#Advanced_Pattern "wikilink")
- [2.1
Structure](#Structure_2 "wikilink")
- [2.2
Examples](#Examples_2 "wikilink")
- [3 See
also](#See_also "wikilink")
- [4 Sources and
further reading](#Sources_and_further_reading "wikilink")
- [4.1
Books](#Books "wikilink")
Subj. + 不到 + Number + \[Measure Word\] + Noun
### Examples
- 我 女儿 *不到* 三 岁 。Wǒ nǚ'ér *bùdào* sān
suì.My daughter is less than three years
old.
- 我 昨天 睡 了 *不到* 五 个 小时 。Wǒ zuótiān
shuì le *bùdào* wǔ gè xiǎoshí. Yesterday
I slept for less than five hours.
- 这 件 衣服 花 了 *不到* 一 百 块 。Zhè jiàn
yīfu huā le *bùdào* yī bǎi kuài.This
piece of clothing costs less than 100 RMB.
- 我 家 到 公司 *不到* 五 百 米 。Wǒ jiā dào
gōngsī *bùdào* wǔ bǎi mǐ.My house is less
than 500 meters from the company.
- 在 美国 ，*不到* 21 岁 不 能 喝酒 。Zài Měiguó,
*bùdào* èrshí-yī suì, bù néng hējiǔ.In
America, people under 21 can't drink alcohol.
Advanced Pattern
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
### Structure
When 不到 is put before a time or a duration of time, it needs to be
followed with 就. This shows that something (usually referring to the
past) has happened earlier than usual.
Subj. + 不到 + Time + 就 + Predicate + 了
### Examples
- 她 的 病 *不到* 一个 星期 **就** 好 **了** 。Tā
de bìng *bùdào* yī gè xīngqī **jiù** hǎo
**le**.It took less than one week for her
to recover from her sickness.
- 他们 认识 *不到* 两 个 月 **就** 结婚 **了**
。Tāmen rènshi *bùdào* liǎng gè yuè **jiù**
jiéhūn **le**.They've known each other
for less than two months and are already married.
- 李 医生 *不到* 55 岁 **就** 退休 **了** 。Lǐ
yīshēng *bùdào* wǔshí-wǔ suì **jiù** tuìxiū
**le**.Dr. Li is less than 55 years old
and he already retired.
- 爷爷 *不到* 60 岁 **就** 去世 **了** 。Yéye
*bùdào* liùshí suì **jiù** qùshì
**le**.My grandpa was less than 60 years
old when he died.
- 老板 *不到* 30 岁 **就** 有 白 头发 **了**
。Lǎobǎn *bùdào* sānshí suì **jiù** yǒu bái
tóufa **le**.My boss is less than 30
years old and already has white hair showing on his head.
See also
-------------------------------------------------------
- [Emphasizing quantity with
"dou"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Emphasizing_quantity_with_%22dou%22)
- [Referring to "all" using
"suoyou"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Referring_to_%22all%22_using_%22suoyou%22)
- [Indicating a number in
excess](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Indicating_a_number_in_excess)
- [Indicating the whole with
"quan"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Indicating_the_whole_with_%22quan%22)
Sources and further reading
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
### Books
[Categories](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Special:Categories):
- [Comparing](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/gramwiki/?title=Category:Comparing&action=edit&redlink=1)
- [B1 grammar
points](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Category:B1_grammar_points)
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