难怪
nánguài
The English phrase "no wonder" is expressed in Chinese as 难怪 (nánguài).
难怪 is typically used after the speaker has learned a piece of information that explains a previously mysterious situation.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 难怪 is composed of 难 (hard/difficult) and 怪 (to blame/to find strange), literally meaning "hard to blame" or "hard to find strange".
Which one should you use?
怪不得 is an informal way to express no wonder, implying a reasonable explanation or cause. Adding the particle 呢 to 难怪 makes the expression 难怪呢 more casual and informal.
How does it change in a sentence?
难怪 can be used as a conjunction at the beginning of a clause to mean "no wonder [clause]" or as an adverb to mean "it is no wonder that…"
How do you pronounce it?
nánguài
Did you know?
- The word 怪 can be combined with other characters to create 'monster' (怪物), showing the semantic link between 'strange' and 'monstrous'.
- Depending on the tone of voice, 难怪 can be used sarcastically to imply that the speaker is actually very surprised or disappointed by the reason provided.
- Using 难怪 can sometimes imply a sense of relief. It is often used in a moment of 'eureka' when a missing piece of a puzzle finally clicks into place.
Examples in context
- 难怪连他自己都害怕这个字眼儿了。No wonder that even he feared this word himself.This sentence shows how to use 难怪 to express why someone might fear a certain word.Tatoeba #2367477 by GlossaMatik, translation #2367479 by eastasiastudent
- 难怪我们没有办法说话。No wonder we could not speak.This sentence demonstrates the use of 难怪 to explain a lack of ability to speak.Tatoeba #6867630 by adamtrousers, translation #9408491 by BobbyLee
- 她得了肝炎，难怪越來越瘦了。She got hepatitis no wonder she is losing so much weight.This sentence uses 难怪 to explain how a medical condition relates to weight loss.Tatoeba #4632996 by LeeSooHa, translation #4632995 by LeeSooHa
- 难怪他通过那么多考试，他一直很努力。No wonder he passed so many exams, he has been working hard all along.
- 他们的疏漏导致了这次失败，这并不足为奇。Their negligence led to this failure, so it's not surprising.
- 他好凶暴，难怪呢，他从小就受了很多委屈。He is so aggressive, no wonder, he has suffered a lot since childhood.
- 他一直在偷懒，怪不得他考试不及格。He has been lazy all along, so it's no wonder he failed the exam.
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Wei and Xiaowen are talking about why a restaurant is so busy.
- 伟 Wei这家店每天都很受欢迎。Zhè jiā diàn měitiān dōu hěn shòu huānyíng.This shop is very popular every day.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen难怪人们一直在排队。Nánguài rénmen yìzhí zài páiduì.No wonder people are always queuing up.
- 伟 Wei他们家的菜非常好吃。Tāmen jiā de cài fēicháng hào chī.Their food is delicious.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen对了，我也想去试试。Duìle, wǒ yě xiǎng qù shìshì.Right, I want to go try it too.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
