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HSK 5

不得了 (bù dé le) — oh no, an extreme situation

不得了 (bùdéliǎo)! (+ Situation)

HSK 53.0

Pattern diagram

不得了，Clause

Rule structure

不得了 (bùdéliǎo) can be a standalone expressive evaluation: “incredible” or “this is serious.” Depending on context, it conveys admiration or alarm. In the example, the speaker reacts with alarm; this is not a degree complement after an adjective.

Examples

不得了，孩子不见了！

Bùdéliǎo, háizi bú jiàn le!

Oh no! The child has disappeared!

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Words from this rule

不得了

bù dé liǎo

Extremely, terribly

孩子

háizi

Child

不见

bú jiàn

Not see; disappear

了

le

Particle (completed action or change of state)

我

wǒ

I, me

的

de

Possessive particle; modifier particle

护照

hùzhào

Passport

Frequently asked questions

How do you say “oh no, an extreme situation” in Chinese with 不得了?

Use the structure: 不得了 (bùdéliǎo)! (+ Situation). For example: 不得了，孩子不见了！ — “Oh no! The child has disappeared!”.

What is an example sentence with this grammar rule?

不得了，孩子不见了！ — “Oh no! The child has disappeared!”.

Which HSK level includes this grammar rule?

This grammar rule is part of HSK 3.0 Level 5.

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More HSK 3.0 Level 5 grammar rules

着 — while doing, something happened

Verb (A) + 着 (zhe) + Verb (A) + 着 (zhe), ...

没 — paired absence with 没A没B

没 (méi) + A + 没 (méi) + B

说 — doing it at once: 说A就A

说 (shuō) + Verb (A) + 就 (jiù) + Verb (A)

用不着 — no need to

Subject + 用不着 (yòngbuzháo) + Verb/Noun

的 — different people doing different things

A + 的 (de) + A，B + 的 (de) + B

不 — might as well, no reason not to

不 (bù) + Verb + 白 (bái) + 不 (bù) + Verb

是它 — whether it's good or bad

X + 是 (shì) + 它 (tā)，Y + 也 (yě) + 是 (shì) + 它 (tā)

着 — since we are doing it anyway

X + 着 (zhe) + 也是 (yě shì) + X + 着 (zhe)