HSK 7
连⋯⋯，更不用说⋯⋯
lián ⋯ ⋯ ， gèng bú yòng shuō ⋯ ⋯
连⋯⋯，更不用说⋯⋯ (Even⋯⋯, let alone⋯⋯)
Explanation
连……，更不用说…… (lián……, gèng bùyòng shuō……) is a pair of conjunctions (a pair of words linking clauses) expressing an escalating meaning, meaning 'even……, let alone/not to mention……'.
连 (lián 'even') + the emphasized element (the easy, minimal case) + 都/也 (dōu/yě) + (not) ..., 更不用说 (gèng bùyòng shuō 'even less need to mention') + the harder/bigger element + 了 (le).
when you want to say that even the easiest/most minimal thing cannot be achieved, so the harder thing naturally cannot either; used in both speech and writing to emphasize and strengthen persuasiveness.
更不用说 (gèng bùyòng shuō) is close in meaning to 何况 (hékuàng) and 别说 (bié shuō); but 连……都/也 always accompanies the first clause to state the minimal benchmark, while 更不用说 sits in the latter clause to infer the more obvious point.
people often forget 都 or 也 after the element that goes with 连 (it must be 连他都不会, not '连他不会'); and the two clauses must follow the correct escalating direction—the latter clause states the harder/bigger thing than the former, and it must not be reversed.
Examples
Even he can't do it, let alone me.
I didn't even pass last time's exam, let alone this one.
He can't even write these few characters, let alone write a whole composition.
Practice
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Learn “连⋯⋯，更不用说⋯⋯” effectively
The grammar point “连⋯⋯，更不用说⋯⋯” (连⋯⋯，更不用说⋯⋯ (Even⋯⋯, let alone⋯⋯)) is one of the key structures at HSK 7. To use it fluently, you need to understand the contexts where it's used and practice regularly.
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