告别

Gàobié

Farewell

Pattern 1

yǎnkàn (jiù yào... le)

Adverb meaning 'soon / in a blink / witnessing that... is about to happen'. Can be placed before or after the subject.

Examples

眼看学期就要结束了。

Yǎnkàn xuéqī jiù yào jiéshù le.

In the blink of an eye, the semester is about to end.

眼看就要下雨了，小明怎么还不回来呀？

Yǎnkàn jiù yào xià yǔ le, Xiǎomíng zěnme hái bù huílái ya?

It looks like it's going to rain any second; why hasn't Xiaoming come back yet?

Pattern 2

shěbude...

Verb meaning 'hate to part with / loath to give up / reluctant to spend or leave'. Expresses deep affection and reluctance to separate.

Examples

我也舍不得回去。

Wǒ yě shěbude huíqù.

I also really hate to leave and go back.

在这里住了这么多年，现在要搬家了，真舍不得。

Zài zhèlǐ zhù le zhème duō nián, xiànzài yào bānjiā le, zhēn shěbude.

Having lived here for so many years, moving out now really fills me with reluctance.

Pattern 3

yíxiàzi

Adverbial modifier meaning 'all of a sudden / in a flash / in no time'. Highlights the swiftness of an action or suddenness of change.

Examples

我感觉好像才刚刚开始，一下子就结束了。

Wǒ gǎnjué hǎoxiàng cái gānggāng kāishǐ, yíxiàzi jiù jiéshù le.

I feel as if we had just started, and in a flash it has already ended.

Pattern 4

shǔ

Verb meaning 'to count as / to be reckoned as the foremost'. Used to single out the most outstanding or prominent one in a specified group.

Examples

咱们班就数你的经历最丰富。

Zánmen bān jiù shǔ nǐ de jīnglì zuì fēngfù.

In our class, your experience is counted as the richest of all.

世界上最可爱的动物要数大熊猫了。

Shìjiè shang zuì kě'ài de dòngwù yào shǔ dàxióngmāo le.

The most adorable animal in the world has to be the giant panda.