罢了 (bà le) vs 而已 (éryǐ)

罢了 (bà le) vs 而已 (éryǐ)

 

罢了 (bà le)

As an auxiliary word, 罢了 is usually used at the end of a declarative sentence to indicate that’s just the way it is, that’s it all. It tends to decrease the seriousness of certain issues. It’s often used with the words like 不过,只是,无非, etc.

罢了 is more often used in spoken Chinese, while 而已 is more often used in written Chinese.

e.g.

别生气了,孩子只不过是偶尔犯错罢了。(Bié shēngqìle, háizi zhǐ bùguò shì ǒu’ěr fàncuò bàle.) Don’t be mad, kids just make mistakes every now and then.

只是开玩笑罢了,你别当真。(Wǒ zhǐshì kāiwánxiào bàle, nǐ bié dāngzhēn.) I’m just joking, don’t take it seriously.

他说这些话无非是想引起你的注意罢了。(Tā shuō zhèxiē huà wúfēi shì xiǎng yǐnqǐ nǐ de zhùyì bàle.) He said these things just to get your attention.

 

A:太感谢你了!(Tài gǎnxiè nǐle!) Thank you so much!

B:别客气,举手之劳罢了。(Bié kèqì, jǔshǒuzhīláo bàle.) You’re welcome, it’s just a little effort.

 

罢了 can be used independently to express the tone of tolerance, no need to dig further, let pass. In this case, it functions as a verb.

e.g.

罢了,这件事到此为止,大家都不要再说了。(Bàle, zhè jiàn shì dào cǐ wéizhǐ, dàjiā dōu bùyào zàishuōle.) That’s all, let’s stop talking about this.

你不喜欢他也就罢了,为什么要说难听的话伤害他?(Nǐ bù xǐhuān tā yě jiù bàle, wèishénme yào shuō nántīng de huà shānghài tā?) It’s fine if you don’t like him, why did you say bad things to hurt him?

孩子不想学钢琴也就罢了,不想学中文可不行。(Háizi bùxiǎng xué gāngqín yě jiù bàle, bùxiǎng xué Zhōngwén kě bùxíng.) It’s okay if the child doesn’t want to learn the piano, but it’s not acceptable if he doesn’t want to learn Chinese.

 

而已 (éryǐ)

As an auxiliary, 而已 is usually used at the end of a declarative sentence to decrease the seriousness of certain issues, which indicates the thing is just what it is and that’s all. It’s often used with the words like 不过,只,无非,仅仅, etc.

不过……而已

只……而已

无非……而已

仅仅……而已

 

The common phrase is “如此而已”, which can be used independently.

 

而已 is more often used in written Chinese, while 罢了 is more often used in spoken Chinese.

 

It can be added after a noun phrase or a sentence clause.

Noun phrase + 而已

Sentence clause + 而已

e.g.

只是举个例子而已,你别紧张。(Wǒ zhǐshì jǔ gè lìzi éryǐ, nǐ bié jǐnzhāng.) I’m just giving an example. Don’t be nervous.

你别太在意,他不过是说说而已,不会真的做这么做。(Nǐ bié tài zàiyì, tā bùguò shì shuō shuō éryǐ, bù huì zhēn de zuò zhème zuò.) Don’t worry too much. He’s just talking, and he won’t really do it.

我也无非是个陌生人而已,不能帮你做决定。(Wǒ yě wúfēi shìgè mòshēng rén éryǐ, bùnéng bāng nǐ zuò juédìng.) I’m also nothing more than a stranger and can’t help you decide.

 

1. 生活不只是吃喝 ___,还有诗和远方。
A.
B.
C.
2. 他 ___ 是开玩笑 ___,你别生气。
A.
B.
C.
D.
3. 孩子迟早会离开父母的,时间早晚 ___。
A.
B.
C.

 

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