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Advanced uses of 还 ("hái")
还 hái
AdverbStructure
Translations
- adds a note of reproach or surprise
Definition
还（hái）除了表示“仍然、仍然”等基本含义外，在高级用法中可表示出乎意料、转折、反问、比较中的“甚至”，以及“还算”等意义。
Besides basic meanings like 'still, yet', advanced uses of 还 (hái) include indicating unexpectedness, contradiction, rhetorical questions, 'even' in comparisons, and 'fairly' or 'passably'.
Usage
高级用法中，还常用于以下情形：1) 表示出乎意料，如“你还真来了”；2) 用于反问，如“这还不容易？”；3) 表示程度加深，如“他比我还高”；4) 表示“还算”，如“还好，没迟到”；5) 用于“还是”表示选择或依然。
In advanced usage, 还 is used in: 1) expressing surprise or unexpectedness, e.g., 'You actually came'; 2) rhetorical questions, e.g., 'Isn't this easy?'; 3) indicating a higher degree, e.g., 'He is even taller than me'; 4) meaning 'fairly' or 'passably', e.g., 'Fortunately, not late'; 5) in '还是' to indicate 'or' or 'still'.
Examples
- 1 没想到你还会做饭。 (I didn't expect you could cook.)
- 2 这还叫难？那什么是简单？ (You call this difficult? Then what is easy?)
- 3 他跑得比我还要快。 (He runs even faster than me.)
- 4 今天的天气还不错。 (The weather today is not bad.)
- 5 你还是先休息一下吧。 (You'd better rest for a while.)
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