How common it is
要不是 appears often in everyday Chinese, so it is worth practicing early and reviewing often.
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Pronunciation focus
Say yào bù shì slowly first, then repeat it in a short phrase. Listen for the tone shape.
Usage note
“要不是”表示如果没有某个条件，事情就不会发生。
“Yào bù shì” biǎoshì rúguǒ méiyǒu mǒu gè tiáojiàn, shìqíng jiù bù huì fāshēng.
"If it weren't for" indicates that without a certain condition, something wouldn't happen.
Context note
要不是老师帮忙，我可能找不到铅笔。
Yào bù shì lǎoshī bāngmáng, wǒ kěnéng zhǎo bù dào qiānbǐ.
If it weren't for the teacher's help, I might not find the pencil.
5 examples
要不是你提醒，我就忘了带书。
yào bú shì nǐ tí xǐng， wǒ jiù wàng le dài shū。
If it weren't for your reminder, I would have forgotten to bring the book.
要不是下雨，我们就去公园玩。
yào bú shì xià yǔ， wǒ men jiù qù gōng yuán wán。
If it weren't for the rain, we would go to the park to play.
要不是妈妈叫我，我还在睡觉。
yào bú shì mā ma jiào wǒ， wǒ hái zài shuì jiào。
If it weren't for mom calling me, I would still be sleeping.
要不是同学借我橡皮，我就没法擦掉。
yào bú shì tóng xué jiè wǒ xiàng pí， wǒ jiù méi fǎ cā diào。
If it weren't for my classmate lending me an eraser, I couldn't erase it.
要不是小狗叫，我们不知道有人来了。
yào bú shì xiǎo gǒu jiào， wǒ men bù zhī dào yǒu rén lái le。
If it weren't for the dog barking, we wouldn't know someone came.
5 mini stories
要不是小刚帮忙，我搬不动桌子。我们一起抬起来。
yào bú shì xiǎo gāng bāng máng， wǒ bān bú dòng zhuō zi。 wǒ men yì qǐ tái qǐ lái。
If it weren't for Xiao Gang's help, I couldn't move the table. We lifted it together.
要不是闹钟响了，我会迟到。我赶紧起床。
yào bú shì nào zhōng xiǎng le， wǒ huì chí dào。 wǒ gǎn jǐn qǐ chuáng。
If it weren't for the alarm clock ringing, I would be late. I got up quickly.
要不是有地图，我们会迷路。我们顺利到达。
yào bú shì yǒu dì tú， wǒ men huì mí lù。 wǒ men shùn lì dào dá。
If it weren't for the map, we would get lost. We arrived smoothly.
要不是太阳出来，雪不会融化。现在地上湿湿的。
yào bú shì tài yáng chū lái， xuě bú huì róng huà。 xiàn zài dì shàng shī shī de。
If it weren't for the sun coming out, the snow wouldn't melt. Now the ground is wet.
要不是你教我，我不会折纸飞机。现在我会了。
yào bú shì nǐ jiào wǒ， wǒ bú huì zhé zhǐ fēi jī。 xiàn zài wǒ huì le。
If it weren't for you teaching me, I wouldn't know how to fold a paper airplane. Now I can.