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B1 · Grammar reference · ASGII66E

Using "always" as a complaint with "laoshi"

We have a few ways to say "always" in Chinese, and one of them is to use the word 老是 (lǎoshì). 老是 is usually used in the context of a complaint, like how your sister is "always" hogging the bathroom.

Structure

老 (是) + Predicate

Keywords
老是 · 老 · 是 · always
Used for
Expressing frequency · Expressing attitude
Classification
Adverbs · HSK3

Examples (11)

你怎么老是加班?

那个孩子老说脏话。

你怎么老是不高兴?

你儿子上课的时候老是说话。

这个老师老是这么严肃。

别老是抱怨。

这个机器老是出问题。

他经常迟到,还老是找借口。

奶奶老是忘带钥匙。

你老是这么凶干吗?

他真讨厌,老是跟朋友借钱。

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Full explanation at AllSet Learning

Summary, structure, classification, and adapted sentence examples draw from the AllSet Learning Chinese Grammar Wiki under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0; changes were made. This noncommercial reference is based on an October 2023 snapshot.

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