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HSK 2.0 Level 6+ HSK 3.0 Level 7–9+ 6 min read

假若/假使……，…… for a Formal “If” or “Suppose”

Make a supposition in formal Chinese with 假若 or 假使, the written relatives of 如果: 假若明天下雨，运动会就改到下周举行.

Pattern

假若 / 假使 + condition，(subject +) 就 / 便 / 那么…… + result

假若 and 假使 mean “if” or “suppose”. They open the condition clause like 如果, but sound written and formal; the result clause often has 就, 便 or 那么.

假若明天下雨，运动会就改到下周举行。

When to use 假若/假使……，…… for a Formal “If” or “Suppose”

假若 and 假使 introduce a supposition: “if …” or “suppose …”. The condition comes first and the result second, just as with 如果: 假若明天下雨，运动会就改到下周举行 “If it rains tomorrow, the sports day will be moved to next week.” The result clause often contains 就 or 便 after its subject, or starts with 那么. Both words are formal and appear in notices, essays, speeches and stories; 假使 is especially common for imagined situations that are not true, as in “if there were no …”.

假使没有大家的帮助，这次活动不可能这么成功。

Without everyone’s help, this event could never have been such a success.

假若你是我，你会怎么做？

If you were me, what would you do?

假使时间允许，我们还可以去参观一下博物馆。

If time allows, we can also visit the museum.

假若当初多练习一会儿，今天的比赛也许就赢了。

If we had practised a bit more back then, we might have won today’s match.

Common traps

  • 假若 and 假使 are formal; in conversation say 如果 or 要是.
  • They mean “if”, not “even if”: for “even if … still”, use 即使……也.
  • 就 goes after the subject of the result clause: 运动会就改到下周, not 就运动会改到下周.

Targeted drill

Practice this exact pattern before moving on.

假使每个人都节约一点水，一年 能省下很多水

If everyone saved a little water, a great deal would be saved in a year
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