Modal verbs with the meaning "to deserve"
Modal verbs (情态动词) can be used to express possibility, desire, ability, and necessity. Modal verbs cannot appear without a predicate and can only appear in predicate phrases.
The verb 配
has the meaning "to be worth", "to meet the requirements".
Pay attention
It is commonly used in written language.
Examples
你不得到我的爱
You don't deserve my love
nǐ bú pèi dédào wǒ de ài
不牢记过去的人,不拥有未来
People who don’t remember the past don't deserve to have a future
bù láojì guòqù de rén, bú pèi yǒngyǒu wèilái
Interrogative sentences with 配 have a rhetorical meaning. They emphasize that an object is not worthy of something or doesn't meet some set of requirements. These sentences have a high emotional coloring.
Examples
你认为自己做皇帝吗?
Do you think you are worthy of being an emperor?
nǐ rènwéi zìjǐ pèi zuò huángdì ma
The verb 值得
The modal verb is used to describe whether an action is worth doing.
Pay attention
值得 can also be pronounced as zhíde.
值得 can be preceded by adverbs of degree. For example: , .
Examples
这本书值得
This book is worth reading
zhè běn shū hěn zhídé kàn
这是一个值得考虑的问题
This matter deserves attention
zhè shì yí ge zhídé kǎolǜ de wèntí
You can make negative sentences by using 不值得 or 不值. However, a sentence must be continued after when using a shortened form.
Examples
自己做酸奶很麻烦,不值得
It is too much hassle to make yogurt yourself. It's not worth it
zìjǐ zuò suānnǎi hěn máfan, bù zhídé
这次比赛不值一看
This competition is not worth watching
zhè cì bǐsài bù zhí yí kàn
Pay attention
The negative form of modal verbs is formed by adding the negative adverb . The negative adverb cannot be used here.
Open in app