HSK 6
好（不）容易
hǎo （ bù ） róng yì
好（不）容易
Explanation
'好不容易' (hǎo bù róng yì) and '好容易' (hǎo róng yì) form a special structure: whether or not the character 不 (bù "not") is present, the meaning is the same — "only with great difficulty, only after much effort."
好（不）容易 + (才 cái) + verb/clause. The character 才 (cái "only then") often accompanies it for emphasis.
好不容易说服他 = only after great effort managed to persuade him.
Used when you want to emphasize that a great deal of effort and many difficulties were involved before achieving something, often with a nuance of regret or reproach if the achievement is wasted.
好不容易 is more common than 好容易; both mean "only with great difficulty." This is a special exception, because normally adding 不 reverses the meaning, but here 好不容易 = 好容易.
Vietnamese learners see the character 不 and mistakenly understand it in reverse as "easily / not difficult" — WRONG. 好不容易 still means "only with great difficulty, only with much effort." Do not confuse 好不容易 (achieved with difficulty) with 很容易 (hěn róng yì "very easy").
Examples
I fought so hard to win this opportunity for you — how can you not seize it?
You worked so hard to get to this point — how can you talk about giving up just like that?
I went to great lengths to persuade him to come and take part in the competition; you can't let him leave.
Practice
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Learn “好（不）容易” effectively
The grammar point “好（不）容易” (好（不）容易) is one of the key structures at HSK 6. To use it fluently, you need to understand the contexts where it's used and practice regularly.
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