There are some words which are so powerful in mandarin, simply using them properly will cause any native speaker in hearing distance to cough up blood in shock and awe. So understand why we refer to this as the most dangerous lesson we've ever produced. It contains not one but three fatal phrases you won't find in any other textbook: 爱理不理, 爱去不去 and 爱谁谁.If you've been tricked into thinking Chinese is a tremendously logical language, you may be surprised to learn that none of these expressions have anything to do with love. Join us in this podcast and we'll make it clear what they mean though. Just remember that with great power comes great responsibility and we completely disavow responsibility for the consequences if you detonate this stuff on live national television.
gradientblue
said on November 8, 2009
你可以说： 你爱爱不爱...? 或者“你爱爱我不爱我 Can you say ni ai ai bu ai; or ni ai wo bu ai wo?
Echo
said on November 8, 2009
@alangarr,
Yes you can :) Just one tip though, when you use this 爱...不... structure, we would like to keep it short, since it is colloquial.
--Echo
echo@popupchinese.com
cm
said on April 11, 2010
Haha, this lesson was dangerous for me, because I am studying in Hubei, and it seems that only Northerners like to use 爱谁谁, also looks like the 爱...不... structure is used a bit differently in the south too.
etbaccata
said on August 17, 2013
àihàobùhǎo is in transcript. Should be ai4hao3bu4hao3
Intermediate
said on August 17, 2013
@etbaccata,Fixed, thank you!--Echoecho@popupchinese.com
睹善
said on October 12, 2013
I assume this pattern works well only with single syllable words. How about V-O compounds?thanks
Grace Qi
said on October 13, 2013
Hi 睹善,This is a set phrase. It's usage is context-dependent. There are a lot of V-O compounds in Chinese. For example, 做作业( to do homework)，So if you want to use"爱...不..." , it would be "爱做不做", but it implies" I don't care if you do your homework or not".However, you can use this pattern with two-word verbs or adjectives. For instance, "爱喜欢不喜欢"，“爱休息不休息”，“爱漂亮不漂亮”.This pattern doesn't work well with V-O compounds. You can simply write the verb and, based on context, imply the specific V-O compound (to do homework).Hope it helps.- Grace
睹善
said on October 13, 2013
Thanks Grace.How would the whole sentence look like:你的作業你愛做不做。 ？What is the meaning of "愛漂亮不漂亮" : "You may be lovely or not, I do not care." ?Is this pattern used with stative verbs?
Grace Qi
said on October 14, 2013
@睹善,Sure, in the context:A: I don't want to do my homework tonight.B: It's your homework, I don't care if you do it or not.you can totally say"那是你的作业，(你)爱做不做"In this context, for example:A:Do you think I'm pretty? (你觉得我漂亮吗？)B:I don't care if you are pretty or not. (爱漂亮不漂亮）This pattern can be used with stative verbs. For example, 爱像不像(to resemble/to look alike), 爱信不信(to believe), 爱在不在(to be) i.e. "Is she at home" - "爱在不在"Again, it's a harsh response to give...:(
睹善
said on October 14, 2013
What would be at the other end of the spectrum - how to express in caring, empathic way we do not mind something is one way or another?
yyanban
said on October 14, 2013
Hi 睹善，We don't have a particular spectrum for this, especially in a caring, empathic way. I guess you are looking for the translation of "It's up to you." In this case, you can just say 随你便( sui2 ni3 bian4) ,你选吧/ 你定吧 （ni3 xuan3 ba/ ni3 ding4 ba) or 你自己看吧（ni3 zi4 ji3 kan4 ba) That means it's up to you. I don't really care. It's your choice. For example your friend asks your opinion about if he should buy something, you can just answer 你自己看吧 or 你自己决定吧 （ni3 zi4 ji3 jue2 ding4 ba). These are most common ways to express you don't really mind something.
睹善
said on October 14, 2013
Thanks again Grace,When I consider my question more carefully, I see the contradiction. There is probably no language that developed methods to express in a caring way that you do not care :)
