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大不了 (dà bu liǎo) — (adverb) at worst, if worst comes to worst; (adjective, usu. in negative) serious, a big deal

Definition

Used to downplay a problem ('no big deal') or to frame a worst-case ('at worst'). Unlike 严重 or 不得了的 disaster sense, 大不了 reframes the outcome as small or survivable.

adverb
at worstif worst comes to worst
adjective
(adjective, usu. in negative) seriousa big deal

Examples

  • 大不了，。
    dà bu liǎo Wǒ míng tiān zài pǎo yí tàng, méi guān xi de.
    At worst, I'll make another trip tomorrow — no big deal.
  • 大不了。
    Zhè diǎn xiǎo cuò wù méi shén me dà bu liǎo de.
    This little mistake is no big deal.
  • 大不了，。
    dà bu liǎo Bǎ jiù shǒu jī huàn le, fǎn zhèng yě gāi huàn le.
    At worst, I'll replace the old phone — it's time to change it anyway.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

大dàbig
不了cannot
不bùnot了liǎoable
偏正Modifier + head

大 (big) and 不了 (cannot) together mean it cannot be big, so at worst it is not serious.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The form 大 is a picture of a person standing and facing forward, not of someone stretching their arms.

Open 大 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

了 was once drawn to show a baby with no arms; some old comments say it showed crossed or tangled legs.

Open 了 →
Appears in
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