Skip to content
HSK 2.0 Level 6+ HSK 3.0 Level 7–9+ 5 min read

或A或B for “Some A, Some B” and “More or Less”

Use 或坐或站 to say different people or things are in different states, and 或多或少 for “more or less.”

Pattern

或 + A + 或 + B (A and B are opposite or paired words)

或A或B describes a group in which some are A and some are B, or a degree somewhere between A and B, as in 或多或少 “more or less.”

每个人或多或少都会遇到一些困难。

When to use 或A或B for “Some A, Some B” and “More or Less”

或A或B puts 或 in front of two opposite or paired words, usually one syllable each. When it describes a group, it means “some are A, some are B”: 人们或坐或站 “people were sitting or standing.” When it describes amount or degree, it means “whether more or less, at least some”: 或多或少 “more or less, to some extent.”

广场上的人们或坐或站，都在等着看烟花。

People in the square, some sitting and some standing, were all waiting to watch the fireworks.

这些石头或大或小，形状各不相同。

Some of these stones are big and some are small, and each has a different shape.

这次活动，大家或多或少都有收获。

Everyone got something out of this event, more or less.

同学们或站或坐，围着老师听故事。

Standing or sitting, the students gathered around the teacher to hear a story.

Common traps

  • Use the same 或 twice: 或坐或站, not 或坐还站.
  • 或A或B describes variety; to offer a choice between two options, use 或者.
  • It is a written pattern; in conversation, 有的…有的… sounds more natural (except 或多或少).

Targeted drill

Practice this exact pattern before moving on.

这些石头或大或 ，形状各不相同

Some of these stones are big and some are small, and each has a different shape
Fill in the missing piece, then press Enter

How we make our content