说得过去／说不过去 shuō de guò qù／shuō bu guò qù

说得过去／说不过去（shuō de guò qù／shuō bu guò qù）means “to be justifiable / passable, or unjustifiable (of a reason or conduct)”. '说得过去' means a reason, explanation or behavior is acceptable or can be justified, while '说不过去' means it is unreasonable or indefensible. Formation: 说得过去／说不过去（固定短语）

to be justifiable / passable, or unjustifiable (of a reason or conduct)

HSK6

Formation

说得过去／说不过去（固定短语）

Explanation

'说得过去' means a reason, explanation or behavior is acceptable or can be justified, while '说不过去' means it is unreasonable or indefensible. It judges whether something holds up once explained. '说不过去' often carries a note of moral or logical criticism.

Examples

这样做太说不过去了。
zhè yàng zuò tài shuō bu guòqu le
Doing it this way is really indefensible.
他的解释还说得过去。
tā de jiě shì hái shuō de guòqu
His explanation is more or less acceptable.

Note

Judges reasonableness / justifiability, not literal speaking ability.

FAQ

说得过去／说不过去 — what does it mean and how is it used?

to be justifiable / passable, or unjustifiable (of a reason or conduct). '说得过去' means a reason, explanation or behavior is acceptable or can be justified, while '说不过去' means it is unreasonable or indefensible. It judges whether something holds up once explained. '说不过去' often carries a note of moral or logical criticism.

说得过去／说不过去 — how do you form it?

说得过去／说不过去（固定短语）

说得过去／说不过去 — any usage notes?

Judges reasonableness / justifiability, not literal speaking ability.

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