不至于 (bù zhì yú) — unlikely to go so far as to (do something); would not stoop to; not as bad as; not to the point of
Definition
不至于 (bù zhì yú) is the discourse marker 'it's not that bad / I wouldn't go that far,' used to soften or deny an extreme outcome. It echoes the structure of 至于 but carries a negative, reassuring tone.
verb
unlikely to go so far as to (do something)would not stoop tonot as bad asnot to the point of
Examples
- 不至于，。Shì qing bù zhì yú nà me zāo gāo, nǐ bié tài dān xīn.Things aren't that bad — don't worry too much.
- 不至于。Tā bù zhì yú yīn wèi yì diǎn xiǎo shì jiù cí zhí.He wouldn't go so far as to quit over a small matter.
- 不至于？Nǐ bù zhì yú lián zhè ge dào lǐ yě bù dǒng ba?Surely you understand this principle, don't you?
Appears in
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