大不了 dàbuliǎo

大不了（dàbuliǎo）means “大不了: at worst; the most that can happen is …”. 大不了 downplays the worst possible outcome: 'at most it'll just be…, no big deal'. Formation: 大不了 + 小句（顶多；最坏也就…）

大不了: at worst; the most that can happen is …

HSK6

Formation

大不了 + 小句（顶多；最坏也就…）

Explanation

大不了 downplays the worst possible outcome: 'at most it'll just be…, no big deal'. The speaker faces a difficulty calmly, saying that even the worst case is bearable, so there's nothing to fear. It usually leads a clause stating that mild worst case. (A different use, 没什么大不了, means 'nothing serious'.)

Examples

别担心，大不了 重新做一次。
bié dānxīn, dàbuliǎo chóngxīn zuò yí cì.
Don't worry — at worst we'll just do it over.
失败了也没关系，大不了 从头再来。
shībài le yě méi guānxi, dàbuliǎo cóngtóu zài lái.
It's fine if we fail — at worst we start over from scratch.

Note

了 read liǎo (dàbuliǎo), not le. Also 没什么大不了 = 'no big deal'.

FAQ

大不了 — what does it mean and how is it used?

大不了: at worst; the most that can happen is …. 大不了 downplays the worst possible outcome: 'at most it'll just be…, no big deal'. The speaker faces a difficulty calmly, saying that even the worst case is bearable, so there's nothing to fear. It usually leads a clause stating that mild worst case. (A different use, 没什么大不了, means 'nothing serious'.)

大不了 — how do you form it?

大不了 + 小句（顶多；最坏也就…）

大不了 — any usage notes?

了 read liǎo (dàbuliǎo), not le. Also 没什么大不了 = 'no big deal'.

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