Common Fixed Expressions: 不怎么, 好不容易, 那倒是, 算了
不怎么 = 'not really / not particularly' — a mild negative degree marker before an adjective or verb: 不怎么好吃 = 'not really tasty'.
好不容易 = 'with great difficulty, finally...' — a classic trap: 好不 here is an intensifier prefix (好 = 'very'), NOT a negation! 好不容易 = 很不容易 = 'very difficult', not 'not difficult'. Always paired with 才 in the result clause.
那倒是 = 'that's true / fair point' — concedes the other speaker's point in conversation, usually followed by 不过/可是 to pivot back.
算了 = 'forget it / never mind' — drops an idea, argument, or search; signals giving up gracefully.
Worked examples
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| 这家餐厅的菜不怎么好吃，我们换一家吧。 | Zhè jiā cān tīng de cài bù zěn me hǎo chī, wǒ men huàn yì jiā ba. | The food at this restaurant isn't really that good — let's go somewhere else. | Minimal 不怎么 frame: mild negative degree before an adjective (好吃) |
| 他好不容易才找到一份满意的工作。 | Tā hǎo bù róng yì cái zhǎo dào yí fèn mǎn yì de gōng zuò. | It was only with great difficulty that he finally found a satisfying job. | 好不容易 (= very difficult, NOT a negation) paired with 才 in the result clause |
| “你说得对。”“那倒是，不过我们还是得再商量一下。” | Nǐ shuō de duì. Nà dào shì, bú guò wǒ men hái shì děi zài shāng liang yí xià. | 'You're right.' 'That's true, but we still need to discuss it a bit more.' | 那倒是 concedes the point, then 不过 pivots to a reservation — a two-part conversational move |
| 算了，别再提这件事了。 | Suàn le, bié zài tí zhè jiàn shì le. | Forget it — let's not bring this up again. | 算了 opens the sentence to drop a topic entirely, signaling resignation/letting go |
What this opens up
These patterns list Common Fixed Expressions among their own prerequisites, so they become readable once this one holds.
Common Fixed Expressions is one topic of 829. GraphChinese teaches them in prerequisite order, so this pattern reaches you on the day everything it rests on is proven. The whole course, HSK 0 through HSK 6, is $49 once for lifetime access.
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