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How to Say 'Probably' in Chinese

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IN THIS LESSON
ID: 7417 Intermediate
In today's Qing Wen video lesson, we teach the Mandarin Chinese for the different ways to say "probably." Much like in English, using slightly different terms can change the likelihood of something happening, and in this lesson, we show you the three most common ways of expressing this. 大概 (dàgài) has the highest likelihood of something happening, 可能 (kěnéng) is about a 50% or higher chance, and 恐怕 (kǒngpà) is also likely to happen, but the important thing is not the percentage, but rather that the outcome is an undesirable event. A top tip is that the final word in 恐怕 (kǒngpà) has the character for "scared" in it, so you don't want this thing to happen. With 大概 (dàgài), dà means big, and gài means approximation, so a "big likelihood." After today's lesson you should "probably" be a lot more confident when speaking Chinese, and you'll definitely know which one is most suitable for the situation. If you have any questions, particularly about the rather tricky 恐怕 (kǒngpà), just leave a comment and we will try and get back to you.
Constance Fang,Fiona Tian
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Detailed Vocabulary
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SIMPLIFIED PINYIN ENGLISH  
很晚了我还在外面玩有人给我打电话
hěn 很wǎn 晚le 了wǒ 我hái 还zài wàimian 在外面wán 玩yǒurén 有人gěi 给wǒ 我dǎ diànhuà 打电话
(It's very late, I'm still out, someone calls me...)
是我妈大概是叫我快一点儿回家
shì 是wǒ 我mā 妈dàgài 大概shì 是jiào 叫wǒ 我kuài 快yīdiǎnr 一点儿huíjiā 回家
It's my mom, most probably telling me to get home sooner.
是我妈可能我妈要睡觉了她不等我了
shì 是wǒ 我mā 妈kěnéng 可能wǒ 我mā 妈yào 要shuìjiào le 睡觉了tā 她bù 不děng 等wǒ 我le 了
(it's my mom!) Maybe my mom is heading to bed and she is not waiting up.
糟糕很晚了恐怕我妈生气了
zāogāo 糟糕hěn 很wǎn 晚le 了kǒngpà 恐怕wǒ 我mā 妈shēngqì le 生气了
Oops! It's so late! My mom is probably really angry with me.
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