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Use Chinese “的话” to express “if”

if in chinese, chinese words, learning chinese

 

In Chinese grammar 的话 (de huà) is a very common and important word. It is used either alone or in combination with other words to express “if”. 的话 (de huà) is probably the most common way to express “if” in Chinese, in fact.

“的话 (de huà) “在中文语法当中是常见并且比较重要的词。它可以单独使用,或者搭配一些其他的词以表达”if”的意思。事实上,”的话”或许是中文里表达”if”最常见的方式了。

 

The simplest way to use 的话 is to place it right after a phrase, which will make it into a “if” statement. The structure is:

使用”的话”最简单的方式是将它放于短语之后,这样可以将它变成”if”语句。结构是:

 

[phrase] 的话

 

Some examples of these “if” statements:

一些此类型的”if”语句:

 

你去北京的话……

nǐ qù Běijīng dehuà……

if you go to Beijing…

 

他喜欢的话……

tā xǐhuan dehuà……

if he likes it…

 

我们弄丢了的话……

wǒmen nòng diūle dehuà……

if we’ve lost it…

 

Adding 的话 to the end of a phrase in Chinese works the same as adding “if” in front of a phrase in English. Now lets have a look at a few full example sentences for 的话:

在短语结束之后加上”的话”和英文里在短语之前加”if”的效果是一样的。现在我们看下一些使用”的话”的完整例句:

 

你喜欢的话就多吃点。

Nǐ xǐhuan dehuà jiù duō chī diǎn.

If you like it, eat a bit more.

 

我们弄丢了的话,怎么办?

Wǒmen nòng diūle dehuà, zěnme bàn?

If we’ve lost it, what’ll we do?

 

不是他们的话,那么又会是谁?

Bùshì tāmen dehuà, nàme yòu huì shì shuí ne?

If it wasn’t them, then who else could it be?

 

This structure is the simplest way to use 的话 (de huà), but this word can also be combined with others in slightly more complex structures. Each of these words is placed before the statement, and 的话 is placed after it as usual.

这样的结构是使用”的话”最简单的方法,不过这个词还可以搭配其他词形成比较复杂的结构。这些词放于语句的前面,而”的话”照常放在之后。

 

要是……的话 (yàoshi……dehuà)

 

The least formal of the words is probably 要是……的话. The structure is:

最不正式的词或许就是”要是…的话”。结构是:

 

要是 [statement] 的话

 

要是 goes before the statement and 的话 is placed after it. Here’s a example sentence:

句子的开头是”要是”,”的话”则放于句子之后。看下这个例句:

 

要是去北京的话,一定要看一下天安门广场。

Yàoshi qù Běijīng dehuà, yīdìng yào kàn yīxià tiān’ānmén guǎngchǎng.

If you go to Beijing, definitely have a look at Tiananmen Square.

 

Note that in all these examples, 的话 is optional and can be left out.

注意所有的例子里,”的话”是可有可无的,是可以被省略的。

 

如果……的话 (rúguǒ……dehuà)

 

The next structure is 如果……的话, and it’s just a little bit more formal than 要是……的话. It’s still not particularly formal though, and you can use it day to day in normal speech. An example:

下一个结构是”如果…的话”,比”要是…的话”更加正式一点。这个表达也不算特别正式,你可以在日常对话中使用。例子:

 

如果不努力学习的话,就考不上大学。

Rúguǒ bù nǔlì xuéxí dehuà, jiù kǎo bù shàng dàxué.

If you don’t study hard, you won’t be able to get into university.

 

万一……的话 (wànyī……dehuà)

 

This structure is slightly different to the others in this article. It’s more like “in the unlikely event that”. Here’s an example:

这个结构和本文里的其他类型有点不同。这个结构更像”in the unlikely event that”的意思。例子:

 

万一我来晚的话,请不要等我。

Wàn yī wǒ lái wǎn dehuà, qǐng bùyào děng wǒ.

If by any chance I arrive late, please don’t wait for me.

 

假如……的话 (jiǎrú……dehuà)

 

Moving up the formality scale, we get to 假如……的话. 假如 is used only to express totally hypothetical situations that currently aren’t true. An example:

遇到正式场合的时候,我们会使用到”假如…的话”。”假如”仅适用于表达完全假设的场景且当下不是真实的情况。例子:

 

假如我有一双翅膀的话,我会在蓝天飞翔。

Jiǎrú wǒ yǒu yīshuāng chìbǎng dehuà, wǒ huì zài lántiān fēixiáng.

If I had wings, I would fly in the blue sky.

 

若是……的话 (ruòshì……dehuà)

 

These last two are more formal than the rest. The first is 若是. Here’s an example:

接下来的这两个表达比其他的都正式。第一个是”若是”。例子:

 

若是一切可以重来的话,我不会再那样对他了。

Ruòshì yīqiè kěyǐ chóng lái dehuà, wǒ bù huì zài nàyàng duì tāle.

If I could do everything again, I wouldn’t treat him like that.

 

倘若……的话 (tǎngruò……dehuà)

 

This last one is very formal and not for casual use. The writer Lu Xun was particularly fond of this expression in his writing. It’s just a very formal way to say “if”. Here’s an example:

最后一个比较正式,不适合平常随意的用法。作家鲁迅尤其喜欢在他的创作中使用这个表达。这是表达”if”的非常正式的用法。例子:

 

倘若分裂的话,我们则无所作为。

Tǎngruò fēnliè dehuà, wǒmen zé wúsuǒzuòwéi.

If we are divided, we will achieve nothing.

 


Extend reading:

Chinese Wordshop: Differences between 三年前 & 前三年

Comparison of “又” and “再” in Chinese| 辨析 “又” 和 “再”

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