Dictionary › 不得了

不得了

bù dé liǎo

Old HSK 5 HSK 3.0 level 5 3-character word

不得了 (bù dé liǎo) means "extremely (serious); terrible". It is an HSK 3.0 level 5 word, and was HSK 5 in the old six-level list.

What 不得了 means

1. desperately serious
2. disastrous
3. extremely
4. exceedingly

How 不得了 is used in grammar

不得了 is a grammar word. Each link goes to its own section: what it does in that pattern, the structure, three example sentences with pinyin, and the mistake to avoid.

• Degree & State Complements: 不得了、坏了、得+phrase (HSK 5)
• Fixed Phrases: 不得了、用不着、得了 (HSK 5)

The official HSK 3.0 grammar outline lists it at level 5, set phrases (其他).

The characters in 不得了

• 不bùno; not so; (bound form) not; un-
• 得destructural particle: used after a verb (or adjective as main verb), linking it to…
• 了le(completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now)…

Where 不得了 is taught

In the GraphChinese course it is part of Results, Progress & Development (HSK 5), each one a topic in the dependency graph of HSK 1–6 that opens only once its prerequisites are solid.

Go deeper

• Every HSK 5 word, with the rest of its level.
• The four tones and the neutral tone, to read bù dé liǎo correctly.
• Look up another word in the free dictionary.