越…越…
HSK 3- Comparison
Structure (结构 jiégòu)
Meaning (意思 yìsi)
The structure 越…越… is used to express a proportional change, carrying the meaning "the more… the more…".
Explanation (解释 jiěshì)
The structure 越...越... (yuè...yuè...) means the more... the more.... It is used to express two events or two qualities that change simultaneously in direct proportion — when the first clause changes, the second clause changes correspondingly.
If the subject of both clauses is the same, the subject in the second clause may be omitted. A common variant is 越来越 (yuèláiyuè), meaning "more and more" / "increasingly."
Examples (例句 lìjù)(5)
- 天气越来越冷了。繁: 天氣越來越冷了。Tiānqì yuè lái yuè lěng le.
The weather is getting colder and colder.
- 汉语越学越难。繁: 漢語越學越難。Hànyǔ yuè xué yuè nán.
The more you study Chinese, the more difficult it becomes.
- 这个菜越吃越好吃。繁: 這個菜越吃越好吃。Zhè ge cài yuè chī yuè hǎochī.
The more you eat this dish, the better it tastes.
- 我越想越觉得他不对。繁: 我越想越覺得他不對。Wǒ yuè xiǎng yuè juéde tā bú duì.
The more I think about it, the more I feel that something is wrong with him.
- 他跑得越来越快。繁: 他跑得越來越快。Tā pǎo de yuè lái yuè kuài.
He ran faster and faster.
Common mistakes
- Wrong:他帅越看越。Correct:他越看越帅。
越 must stand immediately before the verb or adjective it modifies; the word order cannot be reversed.
- Wrong:雨下得很大越。Correct:雨下得越来越大。
越 already contains the meaning of increase or progression, so additional adverbs indicating degree like 很 are unnecessary.