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Qingwen on how to use 怎么也不

Lesson Suggestion
#1

Suggested Difficulty (Elementary etc): Intermediate
Video or Audio: Both
Lesson Idea: Hi @Constance_Fang and Team,
I am still struggling with the meaning of 怎么也不 and how and when it is used. Would love to hear more about it, particularly in a Qingwen episode!

Thanks

Kind regards,
Ahmed

#2

”怎么也不“ means someone has a very strong feeling for not to do something, for example: 他怎么也不走。他怎么也不答应。他怎么也不教我学汉语。

#3

Hi Ahmed,

Thanks for suggestion. We’ll consider it. As for 怎么也不, let me explain it a bit here:
【怎么】
We use WH words to indicate “every”. For example,
我谁都喜欢 [Wǒ shéi dōu xǐhuān.] I like all of them (people).
我什么都喜欢 [Wǒ shénme dōu xǐhuān.] I like all of them (things).
我什么时候都有空 [Wǒ shénme shíhòu dōu yǒu kòng.] I am available all the time.
【也】
We use 也 or 都 to strengthen the intonation. While 都 is used in both negative and positive statements, 也 is only used in negative statement. For example,
我谁也不喜欢 [Wǒ shéi yě bù xǐhuān.] I don’t like anyone.
我什么也不要 [Wǒ shénme yě bùyào.] I don’t want anything.
我怎么也回答不出来 [Wǒ zěnme yě huí dā bù chūlái.] No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t answer it.
我怎么也做不完 [Wǒ zěnme yě zuò bù wán.] No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t finish it.

Betty

#4

Hi Ahmed,

怎么也不 means “not doing sth regardless” You may look at the examples below to understand how it is normally used:

  1. 这个设备怎么也不工作 The device is not working regardless
  2. 无论我怎么尝试，它怎么也不起作用 No matter how I try, it doesn’t work
  3. 我冥思苦想，怎么也想不起来了 I think hard but still cannot remember

Hope this makes sense to you.