B2 grammar patterns

看来 (kànlái) leads a clause with your read of a situation: “it seems / apparently.” 看来他不来了 (“seems he’s not coming”). Attribute the view to a person with 在 + person + 看来 = “the way X sees it / in X’s opinion” (在我看来, “in my opinion”). Don’t confuse it with 看起来 (kànqilai), which describes how something LOOKS.

当中 (dāngzhōng) means “among / of,” and it comes after its noun (Group + 当中), usually leading to a superlative or a pick: 我所有朋友当中，你最聪明 (“of all my friends, you're the smartest”). It also marks being in the middle of a formal, ongoing process: 项目还在讨论当中 (“still under discussion”). Keep it apart from 其中 (“among the aforementioned,” no processes) and 中间 (the physical centre).

彼此 (bǐcǐ) means “each other / one another,” but unlike 互相 it's a pronoun, so it fills noun slots: the object of a verb (信任彼此), the object of a preposition (对彼此), or an attributive with 的 (彼此的感受, “each other's feelings”). Before a verb, 彼此 and 互相 are interchangeable (我们互相信任 = 我们信任彼此); everywhere else, only 彼此 works. Reduplicated, 彼此彼此 is a set reply meaning “likewise / same here.”

The particle 嘛 (ma) can stake out a topic at the front of a sentence: Topic + 嘛，Comment. You name the topic, pause, then comment on it, with a casual, knowing “well, it's X, so naturally…” tone (猫嘛，就是喜欢睡觉, “cats, they just love to sleep”). This is not the sentence-final 嘛 that means “obviously”; same character, different slot. And it's 嘛, not the question particle 吗.

V 都 V 了 (V dōu V le) repeats a verb around 都 to mean “now that you’ve already [verb]-ed…”: 来都来了 (“now that you’re here”), 买都买了 (“you’ve already bought it”), 说都说了 (“it’s already been said”). It frames the action as a done deal and usually leads into a 就…吧 clause of resignation or advice. Close to 既然…就 (“since…, then…”). The 都 isn’t “all,” and the 了 is required.

曾经 (céngjīng) is the adverb for “once (upon a time) / formerly / used to.” It comes before the verb and marks that something was the case in the past, usually with the sense that it isn't now. With action verbs it pairs with 过 (我曾经去过西藏), and with 是 / 在 / 有 it takes no 过 (他曾经是我老板). Its negative is simply 没……过, never 没曾经.

再三 (zàisān) is the formal “repeatedly / time and again / over and over.” Literally 再 (“again”) plus 三 (“three”), it comes before the verb, usually a two-syllable one, and marks earnest, deliberate repetition, most often stressing, reminding, or deliberating: 老师再三强调 (“the teacher stressed over and over”), 经过再三考虑 (“after much consideration”). It usually skips 了 and 过.

一向 (yīxiàng) is the “always / all along” of a settled habit, attitude, or trait that has held true right up to the present, the feeling of “it's always been this way”: Subject + 一向 + a stative predicate (他一向很谦虚, “he's always been modest”; 我一向不喝咖啡, “I've never been a coffee drinker”). It can't mark an action in progress or a change (那用 一直), and it can't reach into the future.

V了又V is how you say you did something over and over: take a single-syllable verb, put 了 after the first, 又 in the middle, and repeat the same verb, Subject + Verb + 了 + 又 + Verb (我看了又看, “I looked again and again”). It marks insistent past repetition, usually leading to 还是 / 就是 (“and still nothing changed”) or 终于 (“and finally it worked”). It's not 又 A 又 B (“both A and B”).

当……的时候 (dāng … de shíhou) means “when,” framing a time clause at the front of the sentence: 当 opens the bracket, 时候 (spoken) or 时 (formal) closes it: 当我年轻的时候，学费很便宜 (“when I was young, tuition was cheap”). The “when” itself is really 的时候; 当 is an optional, slightly formal opener you can always drop (我年轻的时候 means the same). But 当 needs a full event-clause after it, the time clause comes first, and 当 can never ask “when?” (that's 什么时候).

Completion 了 (了1) can sit after the verb (我买了车) OR after the object (我买车了) for the same meaning, and object length decides which sounds natural: a short bare object takes 了 at the end (我上课了, not the dangling 我上了课), a long object keeps 了 after the verb (我读了老师推荐的那本书). 了 also stays after the verb when the object is quantified (买了一辆车) or a time/place is present (昨天看了电影). A second 了 at the end means “already, and counting” (喝了三杯了) or strong confirmation.

得不得了 (de bùdéliǎo) is a degree complement that pushes an adjective or a feeling verb to the extreme: Adjective + 得不得了 = “extremely / terribly / incredibly.” 甜得不得了 (“incredibly sweet”), 忙得不得了 (“crazy busy”), 高兴得不得了 (“over the moon”). On its own 不得了 means “terrible,” but as a complement it simply maxes the degree, and it works for good things as happily as bad ones. It’s colloquial and emphatic, stronger than 很 or 非常.

得很 (de hěn) is a degree complement that adds real emphasis AFTER an adjective: Adjective + 得很 = “very / really / genuinely.” 好得很 (“really good”), 忙得很 (“swamped”), 聪明得很 (“plenty smart”). It’s informal and spoken, and it’s noticeably stronger than the plain 很 you put BEFORE an adjective, where 很好 is often just “good.” Same 很, opposite weight.

了一点 (le yìdiǎn) goes AFTER an adjective to mean “a touch too / a little too”: Adjective + 了一点. 短了一点 (“a touch too short”), 咸了一点 (“a bit too salty”), 贵了一点 (“a little pricey”). It’s a soft, tactful way to point out a flaw, gentler than a blunt 太, and the 了 marks it as how something has turned out. In fast speech the 一 often drops to 了点.

可 (kě) is the emphatic adverb that measures reality against what you expected and marks the gap. It does three jobs, all the same 可: it intensifies an adjective (可 + Adj + 了: 今天可冷了, “it's SO cold today”), it drives home a warning (可别 / 可不能: 你可别迟到, “don't you dare be late”), and it means “finally” (可…了: 你可回来了, “you're finally back”). It's informal, spoken, Northern-flavoured, and almost always leans on 了.

几乎 (jīhū) is the neutral “nearly / almost”: it stresses that something is very close to a point, a degree, or a total. It sits before the subject for “almost all/none” (几乎每个人都…, 几乎没有人…), and before the predicate for “almost [done]” or “hardly ever” (几乎看完了, 几乎不喝酒). Unlike 差点, it's about proportion and degree, not a single near-miss.

简直 (jiǎnzhí) is the emphatic “simply / completely / downright,” piling on the speaker's amazement (“it's SO much it's practically…”). Use 1 puts it before an already-extreme predicate: 这里简直太美了 (“this place is simply gorgeous”). Use 2 adds 是 for “basically / practically”: 他简直是骗人 (“he's basically lying”). It never takes a bare adjective or 很.

差很多 (chà hěn duō) is the opposite of 差不多. If 差不多 is “the difference is not much” (more or less the same), then 差很多 is “the difference is great”: very different, not the same at all. It's a predicate, Subject + 差很多 or A + 跟/和 + B + 差很多 (我跟我父母差很多). The 很 sits between 差 and 多. Unlike 差不多, it only ever means “differ greatly,” never “almost.”

到底 (dàodǐ) literally means “to the bottom,” and that image runs through its three uses. The flagship one is the emphatic question: 到底 turns a plain question into an exasperated “what on earth?!” (你到底怎么了？). It also works as an adverb meaning “after all / in the end,” fronting a decisive reason (到底是老师), and as “finally,” on a long-awaited result with 了 (公交车到底来了).

究竟 (jiūjìng) is the more formal way to sharpen a question into “what exactly / on earth?!” It comes in two question shapes, 究竟 + question word (这究竟是怎么回事？) and 究竟 + V不V (你究竟去不去？), and it also emphasizes a fact “after all” with 是 (孩子究竟是孩子). It's the written, careful-speech twin of the spoken 到底.

难道 (nándào) marks a rhetorical question, one that makes a point rather than asking for an answer: 难道 + [yes/no question] + 吗？ (难道你不知道吗？, “don't tell me you don't know?!”). It voices disbelief or challenge and flips the polarity: 难道 + a negative question asserts the positive. English doesn't mark rhetorical questions with a word, so this takes practice. It's for yes/no rhetoricals, not real information questions.

Tack 呢 (ne) onto the end of a question and it softens the tone: the question turns indirect, tentative, more like musing aloud or “I wonder…” than a demand. It rides on the question types that don't use 吗: choice questions (先吃饭呢，还是先看电影呢？), interrogative-pronoun questions (他去哪里了呢？, “where's he gone, I wonder?”), and V不V questions (你去不去呢？, gentler than the blunt 你去不去？). It can't stack with 吗, and it doesn't create a question by itself; it only softens one that's already there.

再也不 / 再也没 (zài yě bù / méi) is how Chinese says “never again,” with real feeling and finality. 再也 (“ever again”) must attach to a negator, and the choice sets the tense: 再也不 + verb + 了 for a decision about the future (我再也不喝酒了, “I'll never drink again”), and 再也没 + verb + 过 for a record of the past (分手以后，再也没见过, “since we broke up, we've never met again”).

尽管 (jǐnguǎn) here is the concessive “although / even though / despite”: 尽管 + [a real fact]，(还是 / 但 / 却 / 仍然) + [what happens anyway]. 尽管很累，他还是坚持跑完了 (“even though he was tired, he still finished the run”). It's close to 虽然, just a shade more emphatic and more common in writing. Unlike English, Chinese keeps both connectors (尽管…但…). The same 尽管 before a bare verb means “feel free,” not “although.”

再不……就…… (zàibù... jiù...) is the “act now or else” warning: (Subject +) 再不 + the action needed now, 就 + the bad thing about to happen, usually closed with 了 (你再不走，就迟到了, “if you don't leave now, you'll be late”). It carries built-in urgency. Don't confuse it with 再也不 (“never again”) or 不再 (“no longer”), which look similar but do completely different jobs.

啊 (a) can tag the end of each item in a casual list: A啊，B啊，C啊……, usually followed by a summary (often with 都), like 茶啊，咖啡啊，我们都有 (“tea, coffee, that kind of thing, we've got it all”). It gives a relaxed, “you know, that sort of thing” feel and marks the list as non-exhaustive. Round it off with 什么的, not the formal 等等. It's not the sentence-final exclamation 啊.

于是 (yúshì) is the narrative conjunction “and so then.” It goes between two clauses and marks the second as what happened next, closely following and prompted by the first: [event 1]，于是 [event 2]了 (下雨了，于是我们回家了, “it rained, so then we went home”). It recounts the past, so 了 is common, and it often becomes 于是就. It's not the logical “therefore” 所以/因此, nor the mere sequence 然后.

而 (ér) is the contrastive conjunction “but rather / whereas / yet.” Its signature move is the substitution frame 不是 A，而是 B (“not A, but rather B”: 我要的不是道歉，而是行动) and its mirror 是 A，而不是 B (“A, not B”). More broadly, [Sentence 1]，而 [Sentence 2] sets two facts side by side as an even contrast (姐姐外向，而妹妹内向). It's a touch formal, and joins clauses or adjectives, never two nouns (that's 和).

When a complement follows the verb, the safe default is V + complement + 了, and it works for every complement type (吃完了, 卖光了, 站起来了). The exception: with direction complements only (起来/过来/下去…), written Chinese may slip 了 inside, between verb and complement (站了起来, 跑了过来), though speech keeps it outside. Result complements (完/好/到/光) and potential complements (听得懂) are frozen: 了 never splits them.

有的是 (yǒudeshì) is an emphatic idiom for “have plenty of / no shortage of”: Subject + 有的是 + Noun. 他有的是钱 (“he’s got money to spare”), 我们有的是时间 (“we’ve got loads of time”). It often carries a boastful or reassuring, sometimes exaggerating tone. Two things to know: it’s a frozen unit (not 有的 “some” + 是), and it has no negative form, so for “not much” you switch to 没有很多.

其中 (qízhōng) means “among them / of which / of it,” and it points BACK to a group you've already named: [group]，其中 + subset (我买了五本书，其中三本是小说, “I bought five books; three of them are novels”). Pair it with a number or 之一 for “one of them” (其中一个 / 其中之一), add 的 for “the … of it” (其中的辛苦). Keep it apart from 当中, which attaches straight to a fresh group noun (朋友当中) and can mark a process; 其中 does neither.

只好 (zhǐhǎo) is the resigned “have no choice but to / no other option but to”: a situation closes off the better paths, so you fall back on the one that's left. The frame is (cause，) (Subject +) 只好 + Verb Phrase: 电梯坏了，我们只好走楼梯 (“the lift broke, so we had to take the stairs”). It carries reluctance, which is what sets it apart from a neutral 所以 (“so”), and from 只能 (“can only,” about ability).

尽量 (jǐnliàng) is the adverb “as much as possible / to the greatest extent / do your best to.” Placement is easy: it goes straight before a verb or adjective, 尽量 + Verb/Adj, often after a modal 会 / 要 / 应该 (我会尽量早点到, “I'll get there as early as I can”). Its negative wraps the verb, 尽量不 / 尽量不要 (尽量不打扰你). Watch the attitude: 尽量 is a soft “I'll try,” not a firm promise like 一定.

尽管 (jǐnguǎn) here is the encouraging “feel free to / go ahead and”: 尽管 + Verb, right before the verb, telling someone to act without holding back. 有问题尽管问 (“feel free to ask if you have questions”), 别客气，尽管坐 (“don't be shy, take a seat”). The doer sits before 尽管, and a verb follows it. Careful: the same 尽管 before a whole clause flips to “although,” and it's not 尽量 (“as much as possible”).

不得不 (bùdébù) is the double-negative “cannot but / have no choice but to / can't help but.” Literally 不得 (“may not”) + 不 (“not”), the two negatives cancel into a strong, reluctant “have to”: circumstances have shut off every alternative and forced this one action. The frame is Subject + 不得不 + Verb: 时间不早了，我不得不走了 (“it's late, I have to go”). It's heavier and more reluctant than the flat 必须 (“must”).

千万 (qiānwàn) looks like a number (“thousand ten-thousand”) but it's an emphatic adverb for imperatives, meaning “be sure to / whatever you do / for heaven's sake.” It fronts a command and leans on a helper: 千万别 / 千万不要 / 千万不能 (whatever you do, DON'T) or 千万要 (be SURE to). It can't modify a statement of fact, so “he'll definitely come” is 一定, not 千万.

恐怕 (kǒngpà) is the apprehensive adverb “I'm afraid that / I'm concerned that / probably (unfortunately).” It marks the speaker's worried estimate about something likely but unwelcome, and softens bad news: 今天恐怕要下雨 (“I'm afraid it's going to rain today”), 恐怕我帮不了你 (“I'm afraid I can't help you”). It fronts the clause, best before the subject, and often pairs with 要 / 会 / 能 / 得. It's not the emotion verb 害怕 (“to fear”).

都 + 怪 / 是 / 怨 + somebody is the colloquial “it’s all your fault” frame: 都怪你 (“it’s all your fault”), 都是你 (“it’s all because of you”), 都怨你 (“I blame you”). The 都 supplies the “all,” and 怪 / 是 / 怨 take the culprit directly. You can blame others, yourself (都怪我), or circumstances (都怪天气). It’s a grumble, often more playful than furious.

毕竟 (bìjìng) is “after all”: you appeal to a fact everyone already grants, to justify or excuse a conclusion. 他毕竟是孩子 (“he's a child, after all”), 毕竟是冬天 (“it is winter, after all”). The basic form is just (Subject +) 毕竟 + the deciding reason; the fuller concessive form is 虽然……，但毕竟……，(所以) …… (“although X, after all Y, so Z”). Unlike 因为, it doesn't give fresh information; it leans on something taken for granted.

反正 (fǎnzhèng) is “anyway / regardless”: it marks a clause as holding no matter what, so you wave the other options aside. Two uses, one idea. As “no matter what,” it caps a disregarded situation, often after 不管 / 随便: 不管他来不来，反正我都去 (“whether he comes or not, I'm going anyway”). To emphasize a reason, it leans on a settled fact to justify a decision: 反正时间还早，我们慢慢走吧 (“it's still early anyway, so let's take our time”). The reason clause can come first or second.

甚至 (shènzhì) is “even,” used to take an idea one step further, appending the most extreme case to what you just said. Two shapes. To emphasise a noun, it caps a list: 大家都来了，甚至老板也来了 (“everyone came, even the boss”). In a complex sentence it heads a whole clause, often wrapping 连: 这个问题很简单，甚至连孩子都知道 (“so simple even a kid knows it”). The predicate usually echoes with 也 or 都.

干脆 (gāncuì) is the decisive “just / might as well.” Stuck in an annoying situation, you cut the dithering and propose one clean, straightforward move: the feeling is “stop overthinking it and just do this.” The frame is (situation，)(Subject +) 干脆 + Verb Phrase, often closing with 吧 (a suggestion) or 了 (a decision): 太累了，我们干脆打车吧 (“we're beat, let's just take a taxi”).

本来 (běnlái) is one adverb doing two jobs, both rooted in “from the start.” 本来是…的 sets up a plan that then changed: 我本来是要去的，可是… (“I was originally going to go, but…”). 本来就 emphasizes that something is inherently or obviously the case, “all along / of course”: 你本来就很聪明 (“you've always been smart”). Keep it apart from 原来 (“it turns out”).

顺便 (shùnbiàn) is the adverb for doing something “while you're at it / on the way / in passing.” It marks a second action as a convenient add-on to the first, main one: Subject + Verb Phrase 1, 顺便 + Verb Phrase 2 (我去超市，顺便买了瓶酱油, “I went to the supermarket and grabbed soy sauce while I was there”). Colloquially, 顺便说一下 / 顺便问一下 means “by the way, …”.

好不容易 (hǎo bù róngyì) means “with great difficulty / only just managed to,” the feeling of “finally, and it was really hard.” The famous quirk: 好容易 means exactly the same thing, the 不 doesn't negate. In the common pattern it takes 才: Subject + 好不容易 + 才 + result (我好不容易才买到票), often followed by a 结果 twist. It can also stand alone: 养大孩子好不容易 (“raising a child is hard”).

白 (bái) isn't only “white.” Before a verb it's an adverb: 白 + Verb + 了 means you did it “in vain,” with nothing to show for it (这些菜白做了, “all this food was made for nothing”). The emphatic form 白白 goes with two-syllable verbs (白白准备了一天). With consumption verbs (吃/喝/住/拿), 白 flips to “for free” (白吃 = eat for free). It's an adverb, never the verb “to waste,” which is 浪费.