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本该 (běn gāi) — should have (done something), ought to have (with the nuance that it didn't happen)

Definition

Counterfactual 'should have / ought to have' — flags that the expected action didn't actually happen. Weaker in force than 必须, and unlike 应该 it always signals a missed or unrealized expectation.

adverb
should have (done something)ought to have (with the nuance that it didn't happen)

Examples

  • 本该。
    Nǐ běn gāi zǎo yì diǎn gào sù wǒ.
    You should have told me earlier.
  • 本该。
    Tā běn gāi lái cān jiā huì yì de.
    He should have come to the meeting.
  • 本该。
    Wǒ men běn gāi gèng xiǎo xīn yì diǎn de.
    We should have been more careful.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

本běnoriginally
该gāishould

本 ('originally') and 该 ('should') combine to mean originally should.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

本 adds a stroke at the bottom of a tree shape to mark the roots, giving the sense of foundation or original.

Open 本 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 該; 该 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
亥
亥hài該gāi
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 該 pairs 言 (speech) with 亥 as a sound part; the simplified 该 is a shorthand, so its parts are not the historical components.

Open 该 →
Appears in
Will & Intention

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