HSKReadyGet the appHSK 7-9 · Sentence types › Single-level complex sentences › Condensed complex sentences
Using 任……也…… to Express an Unchanged Outcome
任……也…… is a compact pattern for saying that an outcome remains the same regardless of a person’s action, a choice, or a changing circumstance. Learn how to form it, what it emphasizes, and when to choose a different construction.
任他怎样解释，我也不相信。
Correct. The possible explanations are left open, while the speaker’s disbelief remains unchanged.
Read the full explanation and examples
Meaning: the outcome does not change
任……也…… treats the first situation as open or variable, while the second part maintains a result, conclusion or stance despite it. With 也不相信, disbelief remains; with 也要按时到达, the requirement remains. An unchanged commitment is not a guarantee of what will happen. Read the modal and the context instead of assuming every sentence predicts a realized outcome.
任他怎样解释，我也不相信。
Correct. The possible explanations are left open, while the speaker’s disbelief remains unchanged.
The pattern can express refusal, persistence or a requirement that survives an obstacle. 我也不相信 is a firm refusal to believe; 我们也要按时到达 maintains an obligation despite traffic. Neither use requires the first situation to be false.
Formation and common variable phrases
A useful frame is 任 + variable situation，（subject）也 + predicate. If stated, the main-clause subject goes before 也: 我也……, 问题也…… . Phrases such as 怎样、什么方法、多么 can indicate what varies; a question word here need not ask for an answer. Negatives or modals after 也 distinguish disbelief, past failure, ability and obligation. Do not force every use into one tense or one polarity.
任路上多么拥堵，我们也要按时到达。
The level of congestion varies, but the requirement remains. 也要 expresses determination or obligation; it does not prove that timely arrival will actually occur.
任她用什么方法，问题也没有解决。
Correct. The sentence reports that different methods have not changed the outcome.
任大家意见多么不同，这项决定也必须公开讨论。
Correct. The degree of disagreement does not cancel the stated requirement.
Choosing the right context
Use the pattern when the speaker wants to emphasize that several possible conditions lead to one stable result. It suits explanations, firm positions, and discussion of choices or methods. The first clause can refer to one person’s actions, different options, or the degree of a circumstance. The construction is declarative in the examples here: it presents a conclusion. A question word inside the first clause does not make the whole sentence an information question; 任 and the following clause together give it an unrestricted, concessive reading.
- To emphasize that another person’s explanation will not alter your view, put the explanation after 任 and the stance after 也.
- To maintain a requirement despite an obstacle, state the obstacle after 任 and the obligation with the main-clause subject before 也要.
- To show that varied methods or differing opinions do not remove a problem or obligation, name that variable in the first clause and state the result after 也.
A practical contrast
Compare 任路上多么拥堵，我们也要按时到达 with 路上有多堵？ (“How congested are the roads?”). The question asks for the congestion level. The 任……也…… sentence does not request that information; it says that the requirement remains across congestion levels. The variable phrase and the main clause together determine this reading.
Frequently asked questions
Does a question word after 任 make the sentence a question?
Not by itself. In a sentence such as 任他怎样解释，我也不相信, 怎样 means “how,” but the full pattern means that the outcome holds regardless of the answer. A direct information question instead asks the listener to supply that answer.
Does 也 always mean “also” here?
Here, 也 helps connect the variable situation to the unchanged outcome. Translating it mechanically as “also” can miss the concessive meaning; English often expresses the relationship with “still,” “whatever,” or “no matter how.”
