Chinese word

宁可

Pronunciation

Pinyinnìng kě

Meaning

  • adverbwould rather

Example

我宁可自己做，也不麻烦别人。wǒ nìng kě zì jǐ zuò yě bù má fán bié rén

I would rather do it myself than bother others.

Illustration for 宁可 (would rather)

More examples

他宁可牺牲休息时间，也要完成工作。tā nìng kě xī shēng xiū xī shí jiān yě yào wán chéng gōng zuò

He would rather sacrifice his rest time to finish the work.

Core concept

A firm choice that accepts one unwanted cost in order to block a worse outcome.

Common phrases

  • 宁可...也不...nìng kě yě bù

    would rather ___ than ___

  • 宁可牺牲nìng kě xī shēng

    would rather sacrifice

Similar words

宁愿nìng yuàn: Show a preference for one result, even when choosing it brings trouble or loss.
宁肯nìng kěn: Show strong determination to accept an unwanted result rather than face a worse one.
情愿qíng yuàn: Be willing to choose an option freely and from personal desire.

Definition in Chinese

用于表示在两项或多项对立选择中，更愿意接受可能较差或更费力的一方以避免另一种更不可接受的结果，常见结构为“宁可……也不/也要……”来构成对比。yòng yú biǎo shì zài liǎng xiàng huò duō xiàng duì lì xuǎn zé zhōng gèng yuàn yì jiē shòu kě néng jiào chà huò gèng fèi lì de yì fāng yǐ bì miǎn lìng yì zhǒng gèng bù kě jiē shòu de jié guǒ cháng jiàn jié gòu wèi nìng kě yě bù yě yào lái gòu chéng duì bǐ

Word origin

宁可 (nìngkě, "would rather") comes from the older combination 宁 (nìng, "rather") + 可 (kě, "acceptable"), presenting one choice as acceptable even when it is not ideal.

Usage tips

  • This word signals a firm trade-off rather than a casual preference, so it often appears when a speaker explains a boundary or accepts extra effort.

Other meanings

  • preferablyadverb
  • better toadverb

Word lists with this word