好歹

• 拼音: hǎo dǎi
• 汉字拆解: 好 = 女 + 子 (woman + child — good/fine); 歹 = 歹 (corpse bone radical — bad/evil)

含义

Good and bad; whether good or bad; regardless; at any rate. As a noun, refers to outcomes both good and bad; as an adverb, means 'at least' or 'no matter what happens'.

A versatile word covering two related senses: (1) the range of possible outcomes including the worst case (不知好歹 — unable to tell good from bad); (2) an adverbial sense meaning 'at least' or 'anyway' implying a minimal concession (好歹吃点东西 — at least eat something). Common in colloquial speech.

例句

1. 你好歹把这碗饭吃了，空着肚子怎么去上班？
2. 他不知好歹，好心相劝反而被他骂了一顿。
3. 无论结果好歹，我们都已经尽力而为，无悔于心。

用法指南

语境: colloquial, persuasion, daily life

语气: colloquial

正确说法

• 你好歹跟我说一声再走，让我们知道你在哪里，省得担心。(At the very least, say something to me before you leave so we know where you are and don't worry.)
• 事情不管好歹都要面对，逃避只会让问题越来越严重。(Whatever the outcome, you have to face it; avoidance only makes things worse.)

错误说法

• 好歹这件事很重要 — in this position 好歹 sounds awkward; use 无论如何 or 不管怎样 for 'no matter what' in a formal sentence opening

起源与历史

好 (good) + 歹 (bad/evil) — a binome covering the full spectrum from good to bad

文化背景

世代: All ages

社会背景: Universal