How to Express Adversative Relationships in Chinese

Conjunction Part II

In this new article of the conjunction series, we'll be introducing a number of ways to express adversative relationships in Chinese sentences. At the same time, we'll also introduce some useful vocabulary and phrases in the sample sentences below. Let's begin!

虽然... 但是...(suī rán... dàn shì... although... but...)

This is the most common conjunction to convey adversative relationships in Chinese, both formal and casual. Although it is wrong to have both "although" and "but" appear in the same sentence, in Chinese, they can go together. Let's look at the following three sentences that use this conjunction:

• 虽然王老师身体不舒服，但是她还是来给学生们上课了。

  suī rán wáng lǎo shī shēn tǐ bù shū fu, dàn shì tā hái shì lái gěi xué shēng men shàng kè le.

  Although Teacher Wang was unwell, she still came to teach the students.

• 虽然我们是朋友，但是在这件事情上，我不能帮你。

  suī rán wǒ men shì péng yǒu, dàn shì zài zhè jiàn shì qing shàng, wǒ bù néng bāng nǐ.

  Although we are friends, I cannot help you in this matter.

尽管... 还是/但是/可是...(jǐn guǎn... hái shì/dàn shì/kě shì… although... but...)

This is the second way to convey adversative relationships, but it is more often used when you are expressing your personal opinion. Also, it is stronger than "虽然", more like “despite” or “even though” in English. Let's look at the following three sentences that use this conjunction:

• 尽管天气很热，我还是想出门。

  jǐn guǎn tiān qì hěn rè, kě shì wǒ hái shì xiǎng chū mén.

  Although the weather is very hot, I still want to go out.

• 尽管我和小月认识多年，但是我们并不是朋友。

  jǐn guǎn wǒ hé xiǎo yuè rèn shi duō nián, dàn shì wǒ men bìng bú shì péng you.

  Although Xiaoyue and I have known each other for many years, we are not friends.

• 尽管小明很想去参加比赛，可是他腿上的伤还没有痊愈。

  jǐn guǎn xiǎo míng hěn xiǎng qù cān jiā bǐ sài, kě shì tā tuǐ shàng de shāng hái méi yǒu quán yù.

  Although Xiao Ming really wants to participate in the competition, the injury on his leg has not healed.

不是... 而是...(bú shì... ér shì… it's not X but Y)

The third way to convey adversative relationships is using "不是... 而是...". This expression is common in spoken Chinese when you want to explain to the other person that the reason is not X but Y. Let's look at the following three sentences that use this conjunction:

• 不是这件衣服不好看，而是它不适合我。

  bù shì zhè jiàn yī fu bù hǎo kàn, ér shì tā bù shì hé wǒ.

  It's not that this dress is not good-looking, but that it doesn't suit me.

• 我不是不喜欢去旅游，而是我工作太忙，没有时间。

  wǒ bú shì bù xǐ huān qù lǚ yóu, ér shì wǒ gōng zuò tài máng, méi yǒu shí jiān.

  It's not that I don't like to travel, but I am too busy at work and don't have time.

不但不... 反而...(bú dàn bù... fǎn ér… instead of X, Y happened)

The last way to express adversative relationships is using "不但不...反而...". The latter expression "反而(fǎn ér)" is used to convey contrast, explaining that something totally opposite of what one expected has happened. Let's look at the following three sentences that use this conjunction:

• 姐姐不但不帮我，反而还嘲笑我。

  jiě jie bú dàn bù bāng wǒ, fǎn'ér hái cháo xiào wǒ.

  Instead of helping me, my sister laughed at me.

• 小明不但不听妈妈的话，反而和妈妈顶嘴。

  xiǎo míng bù dàn bù tīng mā ma de huà, fǎn’ér hé mā ma dǐng zuǐ.

  Instead of listening to his mother, Xiao Ming talked back to her.

We've learned four useful ways to express adversative relationships in Chinese. To know how to use them, you can try to form simple sentences using the words that you already know. Stay tuned to this blog for more updates on the Chinese conjunctions series. If you want to learn and improve your Chinese at Hanhai Language Studio in Singapore, you can contact us anytime for a free consultation session. See you in the next article!