4 · Expressions (level 4)
However much: zěnme yě, zěnme dōu, zài … yě
effort that changes nothing
Zěnme yě or zěnme dōu before a negative says that no way works; zài … yě says that even more would not help.
怎么 + 也 or 都 + a negative verb says that every way has been tried and none works: 我怎么也想不起来他的名字, “I just cannot remember his name, however hard I try”. The question word “how” turns into “in whatever way”, and 也 or 都 makes the statement total.
The verb after it is almost always negative, and very often a potential complement: 打不开, cannot get it open; 睡不着, cannot fall asleep; 记不住, cannot remember. For something that did not happen, 没 takes its place: 怎么也没找到.
再 + adjective or verb + 也 means “however …, still”: 再忙也要吃早饭, “however busy you are, you must eat breakfast”. Here 再 does not mean “again” but “even more”: however much busier you got, it would still hold.
English speakers reach for 无论我怎么努力, which is correct but formal. The everyday way is the short 怎么也. With 都 and a positive verb, the same shape says that any way will do: 怎么都行, “any way is fine”.
The form
| however I try, not | 怎么也不… |
| the same with dōu | 怎么都睡不着。 |
| in the past: méi | 怎么也没找到 |
| however much more … still | 再贵也要买 |
| any way is fine | 怎么都行。 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
Zěnme yě or zěnme dōu goes before a negative verb: no way works.
这个瓶子我怎么也打不开。I cannot get this bottle open, whatever I do.
For something that did not happen, use méi.
我找了一上午，钥匙怎么也没找到。I searched all morning and just could not find the keys.
Zài + adjective + yě: however … it gets, it still holds.
再忙也要注意身体。However busy you are, you have to look after your health.
With dōu and a positive verb, zěnme says that any way will do.
你想怎么安排都行。Arrange it however you like — it is all fine.
A closer look
Why a question word can mean “any”
Chinese question words have a second life. Followed by 也 or 都, they stop asking and start covering every case: 谁都知道, everybody knows; 什么都吃, eats anything; 哪儿也不去, is not going anywhere.
怎么也 is the same pattern built on “how”: in whatever way — and since every way has failed, it ends in a negative. Learning the pattern once covers all the question words.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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再 and 也 stand together before a negative
the meaning is “never again”.
我再也不去那家店了。I am never going to that shop again.
Here 再 is the ordinary “again”, and 也 makes the negative total: not even once more.
How to spot it
- 怎么也
- 怎么都
- 再…也
Example sentences
这道数学题我怎么也做不出来。I just cannot solve this maths problem, however I try.
昨晚太热了，我怎么都睡不着。It was so hot last night that I could not get to sleep at all.
他的电话我怎么打也打不通。However many times I call him, I cannot get through.
再难的事也总有办法解决。However hard a thing is, there is always a way to solve it.
这双鞋再便宜我也不买，太难看了。However cheap these shoes are, I am not buying them — they are too ugly.
她的名字我怎么也想不起来了。I just cannot remember her name.
8 more example sentences
这个字我写了很多遍，怎么也记不住。I have written this character many times and still cannot remember it.
孩子哭个不停，妈妈怎么哄都没用。The child would not stop crying, and nothing the mother tried could soothe it.
再晚我也等你。However late it gets, I will wait for you.
你再说一百遍，他也不会听的。You could say it a hundred more times and he still would not listen.
门我怎么推都推不开。I could not push the door open, however I tried.
再累也得把作业写完。However tired you are, you have to finish your homework.
周末怎么过我都行，你决定吧。I am happy to spend the weekend however you like — you decide.
他的病怎么治也治不好。Whatever treatment he had, his illness could not be cured.
Worth knowing (1)
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The verb said twice
Speech often puts the verb in twice: once after 怎么, and once more with its complement after 也. The first names the effort, the second its failure — “however I untie it, it won’t untie”.
这个结我怎么解也解不开。However I try, I cannot undo this knot.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
In English, “however hard I looked” can lead to a happy ending (“… I found it in the end”). 怎么也 cannot: it promises failure and needs a negative after it — 不 for cannot, 没 for did not.
Zěnme yě almost always leads to a no; zài … yě says even more would change nothing.
Your turn
8 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.