HSK 8
巴不得 (bābude): Eager Wish in Chinese
巴不得 expresses an eager wish for a situation to happen, often implying that the speaker would welcome it immediately. It comes before the desired clause and is stronger and more emotionally invested than neutral 希望. The desired situation may benefit the speaker or simply be something the subject strongly wants to see happen.
STRUCTURE
Subject + 巴不得 + Desired Situation
When to use 巴不得 — and when not
Use it when
- For an eager personal wish: 我巴不得明天就放假。
- To describe someone else's obvious eagerness: 他巴不得马上开始。
- When welcoming an offered outcome: 你愿意帮忙？我巴不得呢。
Don't use it when
- For a neutral, polite hope with little emotional force; 希望 is usually more suitable.
- Do not reverse the fixed form to 不得巴.
- Do not put aspect particle 了 between 巴不得 and the desired clause.
Right vs. wrong
我不得巴明天就放假。
我巴不得明天就放假。
The fixed expression is reversed
巴不得 is one fixed modal expression. Its internal order cannot be reversed.
他巴不得了马上开始。
他巴不得马上开始。
了 is inserted between 巴不得 and the desired clause
巴不得 directly introduces the desired situation 马上开始; 了 cannot be inserted between them.
Examples
我巴不得明天就放假。
Wǒ bābude míngtiān jiù fàngjià.
I wish the holiday would start tomorrow.
他巴不得马上开始。
Tā bābude mǎshàng kāishǐ.
He is eager to start immediately.
你愿意帮忙？我巴不得呢。
Nǐ yuànyì bāngmáng? Wǒ bābude ne.
You are willing to help? I would love that.
Common mistakes
我不得巴明天就放假。
Wǒ bùde bā míngtiān jiù fàngjià.
Use the fixed order 巴不得: 我巴不得明天就放假。
他巴不得了马上开始。
Tā bābude le mǎshàng kāishǐ.
Do not insert 了 after 巴不得: 他巴不得马上开始。
Think you've got it?
Write your own 巴不得 sentence and check that grammar point first.
巴不得 (bābude): Eager Wish FAQ
What is the difference between 巴不得 and 希望?
希望 expresses a general hope. 巴不得 conveys strong eagerness and often suggests that the desired situation cannot happen soon enough.
Can 巴不得 be used as a short answer?
Yes. When the desired action is clear from context, 我巴不得呢 can mean 'I would love that.' The omitted content must be recoverable.