有 Yǒu Sentence 2

Posted on by tiffany

OneDotDot Chinese
Grammar · HSK 2
Grammar Point · HSK 2

有 yǒu — Estimating & Comparing

Beyond possession and existence, 有 yǒu can also express reaching or attaining a certain degree. It’s used both to give a rough estimate of a number, and to build comparative sentences.

有 yǒu Estimation and Comparison in Chinese

The 有字句 yǒuzìjù continues here with two related uses: giving a rough guess at a number or measurement, and comparing two things to see if one “reaches” the same degree as the other.

1 S + 有 yǒu + Number — an approximation or estimate

When you’re guessing at a number or value rather than stating it for certain, 有 yǒu slots in right before the number.

他tā有yǒu一米八yìmǐbā高gāo
He’s about 180 cm. (I think.)
他tā有yǒu三十多sānshíduō岁suì
He’s over 30. (I think.)
你nǐ房间fángjiān有yǒu我wǒ5wǔ个ge房间fángjiān大dà吧ba
Your room is probably about five times bigger than mine.
With 有 yǒu vs. Without 有 yǒu

Adding 有 yǒu softens the number into a guess. Drop it, and the number becomes a stated fact.

他tā有yǒu一米八yìmǐbā高gāo — “He’s about 180cm” (I think) vs. 他tā一米八yìmǐbā高gāo — “He’s 180cm” (I know).

这zhè块kuài肉ròu有yǒu一公斤yìgōngjīn重zhòng — “This piece of meat weighs about 1Kg” (guessing) vs. 这zhè块kuài肉ròu一公斤yìgōngjīn重zhòng — “This piece of meat weighs 1Kg” (for sure).

2 A + 有 yǒu + B + (这么 zhème/那么 nàme) + Adj

有 yǒu can also be used to compare two things — asking or stating whether A reaches the same degree as B. 这么 zhème and 那么 nàme serve the same function here, so there’s no need to distinguish between them.

你nǐ的de手机shǒujī有yǒu我wǒ的de（手机shǒujī）那么nàme贵guì吗ma？
Is your phone as expensive as mine?
他家tājiā的de厕所cèsuǒ有yǒu我家wǒjiā的de房间fángjiān这么zhème大dà！
His washroom is as big as my bedroom!
学xué中文zhōngwén有yǒu学xué英文yīngwén那么nàme难nán吗ma？
Is learning Chinese as difficult as learning English?
他tā有yǒu我wǒ这么zhème爱ài你nǐ吗ma？
Does he love you as much as I do?

3 Negation

To say A does not reach the same degree as B, negate with 没有 méiyǒu in place of 有 yǒu.

我wǒ没有méiyǒu他tā这么zhème高gāo
I’m not as tall as him.
这里zhèlǐ没有méiyǒu那里nàlǐ那么nàme热闹rènao
It’s not as lively here as it is there.

4 Practice

Translate each sentence into Chinese, then tap the card to check your answer.

01She’s probably about 20 years old.
她tā有yǒu二十èrshí岁suì吧ba
👆 Tap to reveal
02This bag weighs about 2 kilograms.
这zhè个ge包包bāobāo有yǒu两liǎng公斤gōngjīn重zhòng
👆 Tap to reveal
03Is this building as tall as that one?
这zhè栋dòng大楼dàlóu有yǒu那nà栋dòng那么nàme高gāo吗ma？
👆 Tap to reveal
04My car isn’t as fast as his.
我wǒ的de车chē没有méiyǒu他tā的de那么nàme快kuài
👆 Tap to reveal
05Is your bag as heavy as mine?
你nǐ的de包包bāobāo有yǒu我wǒ的de这么zhème重zhòng吗ma？
👆 Tap to reveal
06This suitcase weighs about 20 kilograms.
这zhè个ge行李箱xínglixiāng有yǒu二十èrshí公斤gōngjīn重zhòng
👆 Tap to reveal
07This river is about 3 meters deep.
这zhè条tiáo河hé有yǒu三sān公尺gōngchǐ深shēn
👆 Tap to reveal
08Her Chinese isn’t as good as yours.
她tā的de中文zhōngwén没有méiyǒu你nǐ的de这么zhème好hǎo
👆 Tap to reveal
09Is this movie as boring as that one?
这zhè部bù电影diànyǐng有yǒu那nà部bù那么nàme无聊wúliáo吗ma？
👆 Tap to reveal
10This road is about 10 kilometers long.
这zhè条tiáo路lù有yǒu十shí公里gōnglǐ长cháng
👆 Tap to reveal

Related Grammar

→Using 有 yǒu to Express Possession & Existence(HSK 1) →Using 有 yǒu to Express Attachment(HSK 5)

Enjoyed this post? Buy me a coffee so I can keep writing more of these ☕

Support OneDotDot Chinese