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难道…吗？

Rhetorical question: surely not…? / do you mean to say…?

HSK 4HSK 3.0 · 4

(S) + 难道 + (S) + (不/没) + V… + 吗？

难道…吗 is a rhetorical question expressing surprise, disbelief or reproach; no answer is expected. The real meaning is the opposite of its form: 难道你不知道吗？ = surely you know; 难道这是我的错吗？ = this isn't my fault. 难道 can precede or follow the subject, and the sentence usually ends in 吗. In HSK 4–5 reading you are often asked for an equivalent statement, so flip the polarity to get the meaning.

HSK 4–5 reading (choose the equivalent sentence) and listening (speaker's attitude).

Examples

  • 难道你忘了明天有考试吗？

    Don't tell me you forgot there's an exam tomorrow?

  • 这么简单的事，你难道不会做吗？

    You can't even do something this simple?

  • 难道他已经走了吗？

    Could he have left already?

  • 你难道不想回家看看父母吗？

    Surely you want to go home and see your parents?

Exercises

  1. 1. 你连这个字都不认识吗？

  2. 2.难道你不知道明天放假 ？

  3. 3.“难道你不累吗？”的意思是：

  4. 4.Choose the correct sentence:

More grammar points