# HSK 7-9 Verbs Guide: 巴不得, 并非, 除外, 予以, 有所 and More | HSKReady

Canonical: https://hskready.app/en/grammar/hsk-7-9-verbs-f9a60c8676
Language: en
Content ID: web-grammar-hsk-7-9-verbs-f9a60c8676
HSK levels: 7-9
Updated: 2026-10-23T04:57:55.175Z
Scope: published website educational content; full vocabulary, question bank and mock exams remain in the app.

Master 12 advanced verbs from the HSK 7-9 outline: 巴不得, 恨不得, 犯不着, 犯得着, 免不了, 并非, 可谓, 所谓, 可否, 有所, 予以, and 除外.

Grammar

[HSK 7-9 · Word classes › Verbs](https://hskready.app/en/grammar/hsk-7-9#hsk-7-9-g003)

# Advanced HSK 7-9 Verbs: Expressing Stance, Register, and Formal Action

Explore twelve expressions listed under verbs in the supplied HSK 7-9 outline. Learn how they express desire, necessity, evaluation, unspecified extent, formal action, and exclusion. Their common frames differ, so work from the whole expression and context.

Subject 巴不得 / 恨不得 Desired clause

Example sentence

听说周末不用加班，大家巴不得马上回家休息。

Tīngshuō zhōumò bùyòng jiābān, dàjiā bābude mǎshàng huíjiā xiūxi.

Hearing that they didn't have to work overtime on the weekend, everyone couldn't wait to go home and rest immediately.

巴不得 expresses how eagerly they want to go home. 恨不得 could also express a strong wish in a suitable context; physical possibility is not a selection rule.

A common mistake

× 所有场馆周一闭馆，除外法定节假日。

Suǒyǒu chǎngguǎn zhōuyī bìguǎn, chúwài fǎdìng jiéjiàrì.

Incorrect: All venues are closed on Mondays, except statutory holidays.

In the intended notice, place the exception first: 法定节假日除外. 除外法定节假日 is not the ordinary exception phrase.

Corrected example: 所有场馆周一闭馆，法定节假日除外。

**Read the full explanation and examples**

## Twelve Expressions and Their Common Functions

The supplied outline lists these twelve items under verbs. This lesson groups them by useful communicative functions rather than treating them as one grammatical pattern. Some express wishes, some assess necessity or make judgments, and others introduce a formal action or exception. The outline’s category does not mean they all take the same kind of object.

Register matters: 巴不得, 恨不得, 犯不着, 犯得着, and 免不了 are lively and common in spoken or narrative Chinese. By contrast, 并非, 可否, 可谓, 所谓, 有所, 予以, and 除外 belong primarily to formal, academic, or administrative prose.

## Intense Desire and Hyperbole: 巴不得 vs. 恨不得

巴不得 and 恨不得 both express a strong wish and can be followed by an action or a fuller clause. Their uses overlap. 恨不得 readily supports hyperbole such as growing wings, but it can also concern an ordinary possible action: 我恨不得马上回家. Possibility alone does not decide which word to use.

Subject 巴不得 / 恨不得 Desired clause

- 巴不得 (bābude) expresses eagerness for a welcome outcome. Relief, impatience, or self-interest may be supplied by context, but none is required by the word alone.

- 恨不得 (hènbude) often conveys intense eagerness or an impatient wish. The imagined action may be possible or hyperbolic. In the wings example, the exaggeration makes the urgency vivid.

听说周末不用加班，大家巴不得马上回家休息。

Tīngshuō zhōumò bùyòng jiābān, dàjiā bābude mǎshàng huíjiā xiūxi.

Hearing that they didn't have to work overtime on the weekend, everyone couldn't wait to go home and rest immediately.

巴不得 expresses how eagerly they want to go home. 恨不得 could also express a strong wish in a suitable context; physical possibility is not a selection rule.

他急得恨不得长出翅膀飞过去。

Tā jí de hènbude zhǎngchū chìbǎng fēi guòqù.

He was so anxious that he wished he could grow wings and fly over there.

恨不得 makes the urgent wish vivid. Growing wings is a deliberate exaggeration in this example, not a requirement of the word’s meaning.

## Worth and Inevitability: 犯不着, 犯得着, and 免不了

When speakers weigh whether an action is worth the trouble or whether a consequence can be avoided, they rely on potential verb compounds. 犯不着 and 犯得着 are a negative-affirmative pair used to judge whether an action is worth the cost or effort.

犯不着 / 犯得着 Target / cause phrase (optional) Action verb phrase

- 犯不着 (fànbuzháo) means there is no need or it is not worth the trouble. It commonly advises against an unnecessary or excessive action; context supplies what the cost or trouble is.

- 犯得着 (fàndezháo) asks or assesses whether an action is necessary or worth the trouble. It is common in rhetorical questions such as 犯得着吗, where the speaker expects a negative answer. Interpret that rhetorical force from the whole question, not from the word in isolation.

- 免不了 (miǎnbuliǎo) means cannot avoid or is bound to occur, according to the speaker’s assessment. It can precede an action, situation, or noun phrase, as in 免不了一场争论. The result need not always be unwelcome: 聚会时免不了说说笑笑 describes normal social activity.

为了一点小事，你犯不着跟老朋友翻脸，不然以后见面免不了尴尬。

Wèile yīdiǎn xiǎoshì, nǐ fànbuzháo gēn lǎo péngyou fānliǎn, bùrán yǐhòu jiànmiàn miǎnbuliǎo gāngà.

It isn’t worth falling out with an old friend over a small matter; otherwise, meeting again later is bound to be awkward.

Combines 犯不着 (not worth the cost) with 免不了 (inevitable outcome).

就差几块钱，犯得着跑这么远去买吗？

Jiù chà jǐ kuài qián, fàndezháo pǎo zhème yuǎn qù mǎi ma?

For a difference of just a few yuan, is it really worth running this far to buy it?

Uses 犯得着 in its natural environment: a rhetorical question implying 'it is not worth it'.

## Formal Evaluation and Inquiry: 并非, 可谓, 所谓, and 可否

These expressions are useful for presenting a judgment, defining a term, or asking about possibility. Many are frequent in written Chinese, but familiar forms also occur in speech. A more formal word does not automatically make a sentence clearer.

- 并非 (bìngfēi): A formal contraction of 并不是 ('is by no means' / 'is not actually'). It refutes an assumption and can precede nouns, adjectives, or verb phrases.

- 可谓 (kěwèi): Literally 'can be called' or 'may be described as'. It introduces a summary judgment or high-level characterization.

- 所谓 introduces what is called something, or can distance the speaker from a label. It can concern a term or a quoted proposition. In 所谓沟通, the explanation defines communication; skeptical or sarcastic readings depend on context.

- 可否 (kěfǒu) asks whether something is possible or permitted. It often suits formal inquiries. In one direct yes-or-no question, normally use 可否…？ without adding 吗. The reason is that 可否 already presents the yes-or-no alternatives, not simply that the character 否 is negative.

这项技术并非完美无缺，但能解决核心难题，已可谓重大突破。

Zhè xiàng jìshù bìngfēi wánměiwúquē, dàn néng jiějué héxīn nántí, yǐ kěwèi zhòngdà tūpò.

This technology is by no means flawless, but it solves the core problem and can already be considered a major breakthrough.

Demonstrates formal evaluation with 并非 (emphatic negation) and 可谓 (summary characterization).

所谓沟通，并非单方面妥协；请问双方可否进一步协商？

Suǒwèi gōutōng, bìngfēi dānfāngmiàn tuǒxié; qǐngwèn shuāngfāng kěfǒu jìnyībù xiéshāng?

What is called communication is by no means unilateral compromise; may I ask whether both sides can negotiate further?

Uses 所谓 for a neutral definition and 可否 for a formal question without a final 吗.

## Common Frames: 有所, 予以, and 除外

有所, 予以, and 除外 have different jobs. 有所 can present an unspecified extent, 予以 introduces a formal action such as support or a reward, and 除外 marks an exception. The frame below shows common combinations with an action or state; it is not a rule that every following expression must contain exactly two syllables.

予以 / 有所 action or state expression

- 有所 (yǒusuǒ) appears in 有所改善, 有所了解, and 有所不同, often presenting some degree or extent. Other structures include 有所为 and 有所不为. A one-syllable verb or intervening negation is therefore not universally excluded. The strength of the claim still depends on context.

- 予以 (yǔyǐ) is common in formal action phrases such as 予以支持 and 予以奖励. Modifiers and coordination are possible: 予以充分肯定, 予以支持和鼓励. To name a recipient, 对优秀员工予以奖励 is a natural frame. The recipient may also be understood from context rather than repeated in the same sentence.

- In an exception statement such as 法定节假日除外, put the exception before 除外. For a phrase before the excluded noun, 除了 or 除…以外 offers a different structure. Learn these complete patterns rather than treating 除外 as the English preposition except.

只要员工的工作表现有所改善，公司就会予以奖励。

Zhǐyào yuángōng de gōngzuò biǎoxiàn yǒusuǒ gǎishàn, gōngsī jiù huì yǔyǐ jiǎnglì.

As long as employees' work performance improves to some extent, the company will grant rewards.

有所改善 describes improvement to some extent; 予以奖励 introduces the promised reward. These are two common combinations, not proof that both forms always require exactly two following syllables.

Excluded noun phrase 除外

The intended exception below is the holiday. The ordinary notice phrase is 法定节假日除外, not 除外法定节假日. Moving the noun phrase preserves the same rule about Monday closure.

× 所有场馆周一闭馆，除外法定节假日。

Suǒyǒu chǎngguǎn zhōuyī bìguǎn, chúwài fǎdìng jiéjiàrì.

Incorrect: All venues are closed on Mondays, except statutory holidays.

In the intended notice, place the exception first: 法定节假日除外. 除外法定节假日 is not the ordinary exception phrase.

Corrected example: 所有场馆周一闭馆，法定节假日除外。

所有场馆周一闭馆，法定节假日除外。

Suǒyǒu chǎngguǎn zhōuyī bìguǎn, fǎdìng jiéjiàrì chúwài.

All venues are closed on Mondays, except on statutory holidays.

Correct replacement for “所有场馆周一闭馆，除外法定节假日。”: places the excluded noun phrase 法定节假日 before the verb 除外.

## Frequently asked questions

**Can I put 吗 at the end of a sentence with 可否?**

In a single direct question, 可否参加？ is the usual form; adding 吗 is generally redundant in careful formal writing. Judge the clause being asked, rather than treating any sentence containing 可否 and 吗 in separate scopes as automatically wrong.

**Why can I not put a person or target noun right after 予以奖励?**

For the intended recipient, use 对优秀员工予以奖励 or 给优秀员工奖励. 予以奖励员工 is not the normal recipient pattern in careful formal prose. A recipient can also be omitted when already clear from context; it does not always have to be named earlier in the same sentence.

**Is 所谓 always negative or sarcastic?**

No. 所谓 can introduce a definition neutrally, as in 所谓沟通, or distance the speaker from a label, as in their so-called experts. A skeptical tone expresses the speaker’s attitude; it does not by itself prove that the label is false.

**Source**[hsk.cn-bj.ufileos.com · PDF page 403](https://hsk.cn-bj.ufileos.com/3.0/%E6%96%B0%E7%89%88HSK%E8%80%83%E8%AF%95%E5%A4%A7%E7%BA%B21219.pdf#page=403)

## Continue in the app

Full mock exams are available in HSKReady.

[![Download on the App Store](https://hskready.app/download-on-app-store-black.svg)Download on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id6791916440?l=en)[![Get it on Google Play](https://hskready.app/get-it-on-google-play.svg)Get it on Google Play](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.curiolab.hskready&hl=en)

[HSKReady App](https://hskready.app/en/app)