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。。。的起/不起


Zephie

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Okay so I'm doing a little grammar revision and there's something I think I've got down but could be wrong.

 

In class we've studied verb + 的起 and verb + 不起 as commonly referring to whether or not one can afford something i.e. 我钱都花了,这张光盘我买不起。

 

More recently I've come across it's use as a way of stating whether or not there is time to do something (I think) and was wondering if it would be correct to use it in the following way?

 

A:汉语课快开始了,早饭吃不起

 

B:欸?现在只是七点半,还有时间,肯定吃的起!

 

A:啊,时间已经不够了,如果咱们现在吃饭,走路走不起。。。

 

Is my understanding correct?

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Should be 得起 but not 的起 

 

得起/不起 + noun (please remember this!)

 

Verb + 得.......................................................................................................Verb+得+verb/preposition : Be able to do sth.  For example:

 

买得起 :can afford/ be able to buy/have enough money or resources to purchase

 

打得过 :Have enough ability to defeat sb./be able to defeat sb.

 

翻得过去 :Have enough ability to climb sth. over

 

走得出来:Have enough ability to go through sth.

 

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我买得起这辆汽车 I can afford this car/ I am able to but this car.

 

我们打得过敌人 We are able to defeat enemies. 

 

我翻得过去这座悬崖 I can climb over this cliff./I am able to climb over this cliff.

 

这个迷宫我走得出去 I can go through this labyrinth.

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XX不起:opposite meaning of 得起, also Verb + 不起+ object

 

我买不起这本书 I can't afford this book/I have no money to buy this book 

 

我叫不起救护车 I have no money to call ambulance

 

我付不起这个责任 I am not able to take responsibility for this

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Adjective + 的 + noun:漂亮的女孩 pretty girl /勇敢的战士 Brave soldier /伟大的领袖 Great leader/ 前进的战舰 A Marching battleship/

 

Adverb + 地 + verb:温柔地抚摸Gentlely touch/ 飞快地奔跑 Rapidly run/ 悲痛地哭泣 saddly cry

 

Verb + 得 + preposition:买的起can afford/ 打得过 can defeat

 

any way ,

 

Practicing speaking Chinese with local Chinese people is the best way to learn Chinese vocabulary and grammar!

 

Hope you can improve and make a great progress!

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我付不起这个责任 I am not able to take responsibility for this

What does the 得起/不起 imply in this case? Is it still whether one can "afford" to take the responsibility? For example, if something goes wrong, whether one can afford to cover the costs. Or does 得起 have a different meaning here?

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A:汉语课快开始了,早饭吃不起来不及吃。


 


B:欸?现在只是七点半,还有时间,肯定吃的起来得及


 


A:啊,时间已经不够了,如果咱们现在吃饭,走路走不起来不及。。。


 


Your understanding is right,but you used it in a wrong way.If you want to express the meaning you have time or you don't have time to do something.You should use the phrase 来得及/来不及。


来得及 have time to do something/ 来不及 do not have time to do something.


The verbs that match  得起/不起 are like "买 经 付 输 拿 看 举" these words that mean pay or afford.The subject/nouns before the verb can indicate specific cost and abstract responsibility,difficulty and examination etc.

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Hello anonymoose!

 

It should be 我负不起这个责任(I typed a wrong character in the previous sentence)

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The maening of 得起/不起 could be changed in different situation.But in general, 得起 indicates a positive behavior but 不起 indicates to a negative behavior.

 

If you want to determine the meaning of a combination"verb + 得起/不起", you should consider the meanning of the sentence.

 

我买不起这本书 

 

In this case, 买不起 means can't afford, so that the 买不起 here, implies a shortage of money for me.

 

actually, almost all of the XX不起, implies a shortage of something

 

我负不起这个责任 I am not able to take resiponsibility for this

 

负不起责任 = 负责任 mix 不起, this combination implies that I get a shortage of something which makes me unable to take resiponsibility.

 

you could just read this example, and feel the meaning of it:

 

现在,我只是一个小业务员,我不敢和供应商签这样金额庞大的合同,因为一旦出了问题,我负不起这个责任!

但如果以后我成为手握百万现金的公司老板,我就敢毫不犹豫地签这样的合同了,为什么?因为那时候老子就有钱了,负的起这个责任了!

 

At this moment, I am just a poor tiny salesman, I dare not to enter into such a huge-amount contract with the supplier.Becasue if there is any problem, I am unable to take resiponsibility for it.

 

But if I become a big boss who has million dollars of cash, I can sign this kind of contract without any hesitate! Why?cuz I am superwealthy and I could pay for any cost resulted from this contract.

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