HSK 3

语气副词:白、并、当然、到底、反正、根本、果然、简直、绝对、难道、其实、千万、确实、只好、终于

yǔ qì fù cí : bái 、 bìng 、 dāng rán 、 dào dǐ 、 fǎn zhèng 、 gēn běn 、 guǒ rán 、 jiǎn zhí 、 jué duì 、 nán dào 、 qí shí 、 qiān wàn 、 què shí 、 zhǐ hǎo 、 zhōng yú

Adverbs expressing mood/tone (mood, nuance)

Explanation

This is a group of mood particles in adverb form — that is, adverbs (adverb → a word that modifies a verb or an adjective) that express the speaker's attitude or emotion (语气副词 yǔqì fùcí – mood adverbs). They do not change the core meaning of the sentence but add a nuance.

Structure

place this adverb before the verb or adjective, usually after the subject (subject → the person or thing performing the action, at the start of the sentence). For example: 我白去了 (白 bái – in vain); 并没有 (并 bìng – emphasizing negation: not at all, by no means); 当然 (dāngrán – of course); 到底 (dàodǐ – after all); 反正 (fǎnzhèng – anyway); 根本 (gēnběn – at all, usually with negation); 果然 (guǒrán – sure enough, just as predicted); 简直 (jiǎnzhí – simply, just like); 绝对 (juéduì – absolutely); 难道 (nándào – can it be that, in a rhetorical question); 其实 (qíshí – actually); 千万 (qiānwàn – be sure to, by all means); 确实 (quèshí – indeed); 只好 (zhǐhǎo – have no choice but to); 终于 (zhōngyú – finally).

When to use

when you want to emphasize an attitude — complaining that something was in vain (白), rebutting (并/根本), affirming with certainty (当然/绝对/确实), pressing/questioning (到底/难道), reluctance (只好), reaching a result after waiting (终于).

Common mistakes

难道 must go with a rhetorical question ending in 吗; 千万 is only used in sentences of advice/reminder (千万要...), not for something that has already happened; 终于 is used only for a positive, awaited result, unlike 最后 (zuìhòu), which merely indicates last in order.

Examples

老师不在办公室,我白去了。
lǎoshīzàibàngōngshìbáile

The teacher is not in the office; I went in vain.

这次考试并没有他们说的那么简单。
zhèkǎoshìbìngméiyǒumenshuōdemejiǎndān

This exam was actually not as easy as they said.

学生当然应该做作业。
xuéshēngdāngrányīnggāizuòzuò

Students of course should do their homework.

他到底是老师还是学生?
dàoshìlǎoshīháishìxuéshēng

After all, is he a teacher or a student?

我不知道是谁做的,反正不是我做的。
zhīdaoshìshuízuòdefǎnzhèngshìzuòde

I don't know who did it, but anyway it wasn't me.

她根本不相信我。
gēnběnxiāngxìn

She doesn't believe me at all.

天气预报说要下雨,你看果然下了。
tiānbàoshuōyàoxiàkànguǒránxiàle

The weather forecast said it would rain, and sure enough, look, it really did.

这朵纸花太漂亮了,简直跟真花一样。
zhèduǒzhǐhuātàipiàolianglejiǎnzhígēnzhēnhuāyàng

This paper flower is so beautiful, it's simply just like a real flower.

他绝对不会干这种事,我相信他。
juéduìhuìgānzhèzhǒngshìxiāngxìn

He would absolutely never do such a thing; I trust him.

别人都能学会,难道我就学不会吗?
biéréndōunéngxuéhuìnándàojiùxuéhuìma

Everyone else can learn it, so can it be that I alone cannot?

大家以为他回国了,其实他去南方旅行了。
jiāwéihuíguóleshínánfāngxíngle

Everyone thought he had gone back to his home country, but actually he went traveling in the south.

你明天千万要早点儿回来。
míngtiānqiānwànyàozǎodiǎnrhuílái

Tomorrow you must be sure to come back a bit early.

这次情况确实非常紧急。
zhèqíngkuàngquèshífēichángjǐn

The situation this time is indeed extremely urgent.

我生病了,只好跟老师请假。
shēngbìnglezhǐhǎogēnlǎoshīqǐngjià

I got sick, so I had no choice but to ask the teacher for leave.

他努力复习了一个月,终于顺利地通过了所有的考试。
leyuèzhōngshùndetōngguòlesuǒyǒudekǎoshì

He studied hard for a whole month and finally passed all the exams smoothly.

Practice

Test your understanding with a quick quiz

Learn “语气副词:白、并、当然、到底、反正、根本、果然、简直、绝对、难道、其实、千万、确实、只好、终于” effectively

The grammar point “语气副词:白、并、当然、到底、反正、根本、果然、简直、绝对、难道、其实、千万、确实、只好、终于” (Adverbs expressing mood/tone (mood, nuance)) is one of the key structures at HSK 3. To use it fluently, you need to understand the contexts where it's used and practice regularly.

Study tip: read the examples aloud many times to build a natural reflex. Then try making your own sentences for your own situations. Use the audio button to hear and practice accurate pronunciation.

You can also view the full “” lesson to understand the related grammar and vocabulary more deeply.

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