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How to say “never” in Chinese with 从来 (cónglái)

从来 (cónglái) + 都 (dōu)/也 (yě) + 不 (bù)/没 (méi) + Verb / Adj.

从来 (cóng lái) — never in negative contexts

HSK 4Adverbs

Rule structure

从来 (cónglái) means "always" or "all along". It is most commonly used with negatives (从来不 (cónglái bù) / 从来没 (cónglái méi)). With positives it needs 都 (dōu) (从来都 (cónglái dōu)).

Examples

他从来不迟到。

Tā cónglái bù chídào.

He never comes late.

他从来也不迟到。

Tā cónglái yě bù chídào.

He never comes late.

我从来也不迟到。

Wǒ cónglái yě bù chídào.

I never come late.

Practice

Build the sentence

Drag the characters to put them in the correct order

Characters

Words from this rule

从来

cónglái

Always, never

都

dōu

All, both

也

yě

Also, too

不

bù

No, not

他

tā

He

迟到

chídào

To be late

我

wǒ

I, me

她

tā

She

Frequently asked questions

How do you say “never in negative contexts” in Chinese with 从来?

Use the structure: 从来 (cónglái) + 都 (dōu)/也 (yě) + 不 (bù)/没 (méi) + Verb / Adj.. For example: 他从来不迟到。 — “He never comes late”.

What is an example sentence with this grammar rule?

他从来不迟到。 — “He never comes late”.

Which HSK level includes this grammar rule?

This grammar rule is part of HSK 4.

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More HSK 4 grammar rules

原来 — it turns out, originally

Subj. + 原来 (yuánlái) + Predicate

千万 — don't, whatever you do

千万 (qiānwàn) + (别 (bié) / 不 (bù)) + Verb

正好 — just in time, coincidence

Subj. + 正好 (zhènghǎo) + Verb / Adj.

不得不 — have to, forced to

Subj. + 不得不 (bùdébù) + Verb Phrase

也 都 — also all

Subj. + 也 (yě) + 都 (dōu) + Verb

究竟 — in the end

究竟 (jiūjìng) + Question word / Question

恐怕 — I'm afraid that...

恐怕 (kǒngpà) + Clause

竟然 — unexpectedly

Subj. + 竟然 (jìngrán) + Verb / Adj.