Grammar-wiki-B1-113.txt.html 4.7 KB

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  1. <p>Although there are a number of ways to express &quot;it depends&quot; in Chinese, the most common ones in spoken Chinese involve the verb 看 (kàn). Some common expressions include:</p>
  2. <ul>
  3. <li>要看 (yào kàn)</li>
  4. <li>得看 (děi kàn)</li>
  5. </ul>
  6. <p>Both 得看 (děi kàn) and 要看 (yào kàn) mean &quot;depends on.&quot; Literally, they both mean &quot;have to look at,&quot; so the logic is not hard to understand. Both of them are informal spoken patterns. If you're looking for more formal language, consider 取决于 (qǔjué yú), &quot;to be dependent on.&quot;</p>
  7. <h2 id="used-to-answer-a-question">Used to Answer a Question</h2>
  8. <p>If you're answering a question with &quot;it depends on...&quot; then this is the pattern you want. It's a bit simpler than 取决于 (qǔjué yú).</p>
  9. <h3 id="structure">Structure</h3>
  10. <div class="jiegou">
  11. <p>这 / 那 + 要看 / 得看 + [Unclear Situation]</p>
  12. </div>
  13. <h3 id="examples">Examples</h3>
  14. <p>Keep in mind that the &quot;answers&quot; below are meant to be an answer to some imaginary question that we don't include.</p>
  15. <div class="liju">
  16. <ul>
  17. <li>这 <em>得看</em> 你 的 时间 。<span class="pinyin">Zhè <em>děi kàn</em> nǐ de shíjiān.</span><span class="trans">This depends on when you are available.</span></li>
  18. <li>这 <em>得看</em> 天气 怎么样 。<span class="pinyin">Zhè <em>děi kàn</em> tiānqì zěnmeyàng.</span><span class="trans">It depends on how the weather is.</span></li>
  19. <li>那 <em>得看</em> 考试 结果 。<span class="pinyin">Nà <em>děi kàn</em> kǎoshì jiéguō.</span><span class="trans">That depends on whether the result of the test.</span></li>
  20. <li>那 <em>要看</em> 他 愿 不 愿意 。<span class="pinyin">Nà <em>yào kàn</em> tā yuàn bu yuànyì.</span><span class="trans">That depends on whether he feels like it or not.</span></li>
  21. <li>那 <em>要看</em> 孩子 怎么 想 。<span class="pinyin">Nà <em>yào kàn</em> háizi zěnme xiǎng.</span><span class="trans">It depends on what the child thinks.</span></li>
  22. </ul>
  23. </div>
  24. <h2 id="used-in-a-full-sentence">Used in a Full Sentence</h2>
  25. <h3 id="structure-1">Structure</h3>
  26. <p>If you're going to write a full sentence explaining what &quot;it&quot; depends on, then you're going to need to lead off with some kind of explanation of the &quot;unknown outcome&quot; of what &quot;it depends&quot; on. So you'll start with the &quot;unknown outcome&quot; in the first part of the sentence (<em>before</em> 要看 / 得看), and then end up with what &quot;it depends on&quot; (<em>after</em> 要看 / 得看).</p>
  27. <div class="jiegou">
  28. <p>[Unknown Outcome] + 要看 / 得看 + [Unclear Situation]</p>
  29. </div>
  30. <p>The &quot;unknown outcome&quot; normally includes some kind of <a href="question_word" title="wikilink">question word</a>, meaning something like &quot;<em>whether or not</em> x happens&quot; or &quot;<em>what</em> x does,&quot; etc.</p>
  31. <h3 id="examples-1">Examples</h3>
  32. <div class="liju">
  33. <ul>
  34. <li>去 不 去 <em>要看</em> 他 的 心情 。 <span class="pinyin">Qù bu qù <em>yào kàn</em> tā de xīnqíng.</span><span class="trans">Whether he comes or not depends on his mood.</span></li>
  35. <li>让 谁 去 <em>得看</em> 老板 的 态度 。<span class="pinyin">Ràng shéi qù <em>děi kàn</em> lǎobǎn de tàidu.</span><span class="trans">Who to send there depends on the boss' attitude.</span></li>
  36. <li>能 不 能 留在 中国 <em>要看</em> 我 能 不 能 拿到 签证 。<span class="pinyin">Néng bu néng liú zài Zhōngguó <em>yào kàn</em> wǒ néng bu néng nádào Qiānzhèng.</span><span class="trans">Whether I can stay in China depends on whether or not I can get the visa.</span></li>
  37. <li>产品 开发 <em>要看</em> 客户 的 需求 。<span class="pinyin">Chǎnpǐn kāifā <em>yào kàn</em> kèhù de xūqiú.</span><span class="trans">Product development depends on the needs of the clients.</span></li>
  38. <li>什么 时候 给 你 升职 <em>得看</em> 你 的 业绩 。<span class="pinyin">Shénme shíhou gěi nǐ shēngzhí <em>děi kàn</em> nǐ de yèjì.</span><span class="trans">When to give you the promotion depends on your performance.</span></li>
  39. </ul>
  40. </div>
  41. <h2 id="sources-and-further-reading">Sources and further reading</h2>
  42. <h3 id="books">Books</h3>
  43. <ul>
  44. <li><a href="Common_Chinese_Patterns_330_(汉语常用格式330例)" title="wikilink">Common Chinese Patterns 330 (汉语常用格式330例)</a> (p. 168)<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7802006473/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=allset-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399373&amp;creativeASIN=7802006473">→buy</a></li>
  45. </ul>
  46. <p> </p>
  47. <p><a href="Category:B1_grammar_points" title="wikilink">Category:B1 grammar points</a></p>