10

In this dialogue:

A: 现在恢复得怎么样了？
B: 没问题了，又可以爬山了。

Why is 又 used there and not 再?

As far as I know (I might be wrong), both 再 and 又 are used for describing recurring actions, but 又 refers to actions that took place in the past and 再 refers to future actions. So in the example, 可以爬山 (I can climb mountains) seems a future event (needs to go to a mountain first).

|improve this question
  • have you seen how the answers disagree? did you simply choose the one with the most upvotes? – magnetar Jan 28 '12 at 14:57
  • @magnetar, point taken. My mistake was rushing to select it. – dusan Jan 28 '12 at 17:57
  • Good question. I make no mistake as to when to use which but I cannot explain. Makes me wonder how the brain works. – George Chen Sep 15 '14 at 0:04
5

Here, "又" means: "I am able to climb mountains again".

It is not a past or future event. "又可以" here is to show ability.

It implies, "I was able to climb mountains before the (illness), and I've now recovered, and I am able to climb mountains again".

|improve this answer
  • +1 if i understand you right, the nuance here is that 又 is adding emphasis, right? – magnetar Jan 28 '12 at 14:54
  • Now that you mentioned it, I think it can be treated as adding emphasis. – fefe Jan 29 '12 at 13:15
6

In my opinion,

  • 再 foresees the future, as in 再见.

  • 又 emphasis 'once more', as in "又可以爬山了"

|improve this answer
  • +1 that's the way it feels to me. i am not a native speaker though. but in classical it seems to have this meaning, as in 玄之又玄 – magnetar Jan 28 '12 at 14:52
2

This 又 "yòu" is more like "also" in this example. "I'm all right now, and I can climb mountains, too."

Probably most similar to the "yòu... yòu..." (both...and...) pattern.

|improve this answer
  • I don't think this has anything to do with "also". – fefe Jan 25 '12 at 0:50
  • -1 this answer seems to disagree with the consensus by the native speakers on here. – magnetar Jan 28 '12 at 14:55
  • Answers given to learners of Chinese are useful when they allow the learner to make the right word choice. I think that thinking of this structure in this way does that. – Terry Waltz Feb 4 '12 at 18:45
2

又 has the connotation of "there you go again." That is, of repeating a past action in the present.

再 is anticipatory: That is, planning to repeat a present action in the future. 再见, used for "good-bye," literally means "see you AGAIN," (soon). It is the equivalent of the French au revoir or the German auf Wiedersehen.

|improve this answer
1

Your question： Why is 又 used there and not 再 in the above sentence?

First, you need to know the difference of 再 and 又.

1) 再 means“again”，can be used to repeat the same action in the future which haven’t happened yet; 2) 又 means “again” too, but is used for the past to emphasize the event had already happened.

For example:

服务员，再来一杯啤酒。 When I finished a cup of beer, I want to order one more, I can say “Waiter, one more, please.” So here I should use “再”。

老师，可以再说一次吗？ The teacher had asked me a question, but she spoke very fast and I didn’t get it, here I can say “Teacher, could you please say it again?” The teacher haven’t said it again yet, So here is “再”。

你怎么又迟到了？ Yesterday I was late, my boss was a little bit angry, and today I was late again, he asked me “Why did you late again?” I was late, this event had happened this morning, so here we should use “又”。

我这次又没通过考试。 Last time I didn’t pass the exam, and this time I failed again. I got my report and I knew I didn’t pass the exam either. So here we use “又”。

So you need to use "又" in this dialogue.

A: 现在恢复得怎么样了？

B: 没问题了，又可以爬山了。

If you want to know more about how to use "再" and "又"？Please check the free video.

|improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.