不如: Not as...as in Chinese
A 不如 B……
不如 compares two people, things, or activities and judges A to be inferior to B in a stated or contextually clear respect. B follows 不如 directly, and an adjective may follow B to name the dimension. The pattern is less common than the comparable 没有 structure but remains standard.
Published July 23, 2026
Reviewed July 23, 2026
01 / PATTERN
See the Structure
MODEL
A + 不如 + B (+ Adjective / Evaluation)
Read the structure
不如 compares two people, things, or activities and judges A to be inferior to B in a stated or contextually clear respect. B follows 不如 directly, and an adjective may follow B to name the dimension. The pattern is less common than the comparable 没有 structure but remains standard. Keep the model A + 不如 + B (+ Adjective / Evaluation) visible while you compare each sentence.
火车不如飞机快。
A train is not as fast as an airplane.
Choose the right context
Compare speed or another quality: 火车不如飞机快。 Name a comparison dimension: 我的中文不如她的流利。 Leave the dimension implicit when context makes it clear: 这家店的服务不如那家店。
我的中文不如她的流利。
My Chinese is not as fluent as hers.
Respect the boundary
Do not split the fixed comparison marker 不如 by placing B between its two characters. Do not put a degree adverb before B inside the 不如 phrase. Use 跟...一样... when A and B are equal rather than when A is inferior.
火车不飞机如快。
(A train not airplane as fast.)
Repair the pattern
The comparison marker 不如 is split by the reference noun: 不如 is an inseparable comparison marker here. The reference 飞机 must follow the complete marker, before the quality 快. A degree adverb is inserted before the reference term inside the comparison: B must follow 不如 directly. 很 cannot modify the reference noun phrase 她的 or interrupt the comparison structure.
火车不如飞机快。
Use the repaired structure without changing the intended meaning.
02 / MAP
Read the Sentence
Read from left to right and notice the job performed by each part. The labels describe this example; they are not a rule that every Chinese sentence must copy.
火车不如飞机快。
A train is not as fast as an airplane.
火车
A
This part occupies the A position in the model pattern.
不如
不如
This part occupies the 不如 position in the model pattern.
飞机
B (
This part occupies the B ( position in the model pattern.
快
Adjective / Evaluation)
This part occupies the Adjective / Evaluation) position in the model pattern.
03 / EXAMPLES
Examples You Can Reuse
Keep the structure stable while changing the people, objects, times, or conditions. Pinyin is shown as reading support; use the Chinese sentence and translation to confirm the grammar relationship.
火车不如飞机快。
A train is not as fast as an airplane.
我的中文不如她的流利。
My Chinese is not as fluent as hers.
这家店不如那家店。
This shop is not as good as that one.
04 / LIMITS
When to Use It — and When Not To
Use it when
- Compare speed or another quality: 火车不如飞机快。
- Name a comparison dimension: 我的中文不如她的流利。
- Leave the dimension implicit when context makes it clear: 这家店的服务不如那家店。
Do not use it when
- Do not split the fixed comparison marker 不如 by placing B between its two characters.
- Do not put a degree adverb before B inside the 不如 phrase.
- Use 跟...一样... when A and B are equal rather than when A is inferior.
05 / REPAIR
Compare Right and Wrong
Compare the smallest meaningful change. Each explanation identifies a placement, scope, form, or clause relationship instead of treating the whole sentence as one undifferentiated mistake.
火车不飞机如快。
火车不如飞机快。
The comparison marker 不如 is split by the reference noun
不如 is an inseparable comparison marker here. The reference 飞机 must follow the complete marker, before the quality 快.
我的中文不如很她的流利。
我的中文不如她的流利。
A degree adverb is inserted before the reference term inside the comparison
B must follow 不如 directly. 很 cannot modify the reference noun phrase 她的 or interrupt the comparison structure.
火车不飞机如快。
不如 is an inseparable comparison marker here. The reference 飞机 must follow the complete marker, before the quality 快.
我的中文不如很她的流利。
B must follow 不如 directly. 很 cannot modify the reference noun phrase 她的 or interrupt the comparison structure.
06 / PRACTICE
Practice the Grammar Point
Complete three short tasks in order: judge the pattern, repair a common error, and build the sentence. Feedback is fixed and reviewed, so these activities do not use a checker allowance.
1. Judge the sentence
2. Choose the correction
3. Build the sentence
Build a complete sentence with A 不如 B…….
07 / APPLY
Apply It in Your Sentence
Write one original sentence with A 不如 B……. Your draft moves to the checker through this browser session, selects this grammar point as the first review focus, and waits for you to submit.
08 / QUESTIONS
不如: Not as...as Questions
Can 不如 be followed by an adjective?
Yes. Put the reference B first and then the quality: A 不如 B 快. The quality can be omitted if context supplies it.
How is 不如 different from 没有 in comparisons?
Both can express that A is less than B. 不如 is standard but less common than the corresponding 没有 comparison.
09 / SOURCES
Sources and Review Notes
These references support different parts of the lesson. GF0025-2021 supports level placement only; professional grammar works support the explanation, limits, examples, and cross-checks. Their inclusion does not imply endorsement.
Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language Education (GF0025-2021)
Ministry of Education and State Language Commission · Ministry of Education of the PRC · 2021
Locator: Appendix A, Level 2 grammar inventory, item 58(3) (A.2.5.1): A 不如 B (+ adjective)
Supports placement in HSK 2; it does not independently establish the usage explanation.
Official sourceModern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide, 3rd ed.
Ross, Ma, Chen, He and Yeh · Routledge · 2024
Locator: Chapter 33, section 33.2.2, pages 232-236
Presents 不如 as NP1 + 不如 + NP2 for saying NP1 is not equal to NP2, optionally followed by the quality, and notes its relation to 没有 comparisons.
Official source10 / CONTINUE
Continue with a Connected Rule
Compare
没有没有 for 'Not as…as'
Compare this lesson with 没有 marking that one item does not reach another's degree; both belong to comparison standards and relative difference, but they organize a different sentence role or discourse job.
Compare
比起……来比起…来: Compared With
Compare this lesson with 比起……来 establishing a comparison topic before the evaluation; both belong to comparison standards and relative difference, but they organize a different sentence role or discourse job.
Compare
跟……相比跟...相比: Setting a Comparison Frame
Compare this lesson with 跟……相比 establishing an explicit comparison frame; both belong to comparison standards and relative difference, but they organize a different sentence role or discourse job.
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比The 比 (bǐ) Comparison
Continue with the reviewed follow-up lesson to apply this pattern inside a broader, explicitly connected grammar construction.
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