Level 5 · Lesson 11

早一点儿，晚一点儿
A bit earlier, a bit later

他跑得不快。你来得早不早？请你说慢一点儿。

Say a 得-complement in the negative, ask it as a question, and use 一点儿 for small adjustments.

听 · Listen

来得早，来得晚
 王老师 —  李明，你今天来得很准时。 
Li Ming, you're right on time today.  
 李明 —  我今天起得早一点儿。 
I got up a bit earlier today.  
 王老师 —  好极了！安娜，你来得早不早？ 
Excellent! Anna, did you get here early?  
 安娜 —  我来得不早，也来得不晚。 
Not early — but not late either.  
 王老师 —  你们学得认真不认真？ 
Are the two of you studying carefully?  
 李明 —  我学得很认真，学得不快。 
I study carefully — I just don't study fast.  
 安娜 —  我学得不认真。我明天早一点儿来。 
I don't study carefully. I'll come a bit earlier tomorrow.  
 王老师 —  慢一点儿没关系，认真就好。 
A little slower is fine — careful is what counts.  

讲解 · Explanation

他跑得不快。我来得不晚。他学得不认真。

To say the opposite of 跑得很快, put 不 after 得, on the adjective — never in front of the verb. 他不跑得快 is not Chinese. And notice the swap: the positive needs 很 (跑得很快), the negative does not (跑得不快), because 不 has taken over that slot. Watch the tone of 不: bú kuài before a falling tone, but bù wǎn and bù zǎo before a dipping one.

你跑得快不快？他来得早吗？你写得认真不认真？

Two ways to turn it into a question. Add 吗 at the end and change nothing else, or say the adjective twice with 不 between — 快不快, 认真不认真. The doubling happens to the adjective only; the verb is said once. In this A-not-A shape the 不 goes light and toneless: kuài bu kuài.

早一点儿来。请你说慢一点儿。这个菜好极了！

一点儿 after an adjective means 'a bit more so', and it is the polite way to ask for a small change: 早一点儿, 慢一点儿, 快一点儿. Keep the order adjective + 一点儿, and put the verb after it (早一点儿来) or before it (说慢一点儿). At the other end of the scale sits 好极了 — 极了 after an adjective means 'extremely', and it is always said as one warm burst.

生词 · Vocabulary

词	Meaning	注 · Note
早	early	起得早, 早一点儿来
晚	late	来得晚, 晚一点儿走
认真	careful, conscientious	学得很认真; negative 不认真 bú rènzhēn
好极了	excellent, wonderful	adjective + 极了 = extremely
准时	on time, punctual	他来得很准时

练习 · Practice

他 ______，我跑得很快。 He doesn't run fast; I run fast.

你昨天 ______？ Did you get here early yesterday? (ask it without 吗)

老师，请您 ______ 说。 Teacher, please speak a bit more slowly.

他来得很晚，他来得 ______ 准时。 Fill in the negator: he was very late, he was not on time.

排一排。 Arrange the words: 'She studies very carefully.'

早、晚、认真、好极了、准时 Match each word to its meaning.

用一用 · Use it

我今天起得很早，来得很准时。我学得认真，学得不快。请你说慢一点儿，好吗？

Say four things aloud. Report how early you got up today with 我起得… . Then say one thing you do not do fast, using 得不 and checking that the 不 landed after 得. Then ask a friend the question both ways: 你来得早吗？ and 你来得早不早？ Finally, ask someone to slow down: 请你说慢一点儿，好吗？ If they manage it, say 好极了！