1

The full sentence is 如果你要是查出是谁的话, 一定告诉我. It means If you find out who it is, make sure to tell me.

I do know 如果, 如果...的话, 要是 and 你要是...的话 they all mean if.

I more would like to understand how Chinese speaking goes. Because in many Asian languages extra words are added to make the sentence sound complete. By "How Chinese speaking goes", I mean for example:

给我看看 means let me see. But literally translation in English is Give me look look which sounds so weird but it is a way of speaking in Chinese language.

The same as 你说出来 means that you can speak it out. But literally translation in English is You speak out come and again it sounds so weird but it is a way of speaking in Chinese language.

so 如果你要是查出是谁的话 is literally more like if you, if find out is who, a way of speaking in Chinese language which sounds normal and not weird at all when saying that?

3
  • This sounds more like a translation from an English sentence. 如果你要是查出是谁的话 would be "If you could discover who it was.....", i.e "If" = 如果, and "could" = 要是 Sep 25, 2020 at 16:40
  • 1
    Also, 如果 and 要是 do not necessarily both to have the same meaning of "If" In the context of the sentence, 要是 could mean "happened" The sentence could then be translated as "If you happened to discover who it was..." Sep 25, 2020 at 17:01
  • 「你要查出是誰,一定要告訴我」this is more natural
    – Lucius Hu
    Sep 25, 2020 at 23:56

6 Answers 6

1

This sentence is an awful mistake, in rhetoric, logic and grammar sense:

如果 and 要是 mean exactly same thing: if. You use one, not both in a sentence. Your suspicion is justified. Majority Chinese speakers won't do this, if any, children maybe, as they like to exaggerate. BTW, 要是 does not necessarily require 的话 as connector. 要是明天下雨(的话),我就不去了。

1
  • 如果 also not require 的话 as a connector. e.g. 如果明天下雨,我就不去了。
    – Tang Ho
    Sep 25, 2020 at 17:22
1

如果要是 is pretty common in daily conversation.

e.g.

如果要是明天下雨的話,我就不去了。

如果要是你查出來是誰話,記得跟我說。

你如果要是準時吃藥的話,感冒早就好了。

如果你要是查出(來)是誰的話...It's OK.

1
  • 如果要是 mean the same, just like 立即馬上 mean the same. One of them is redundant but using two similar adjectives also emphasizes them both. But 如果你要是 is wrong
    – Tang Ho
    Sep 25, 2020 at 17:15
0

I interpret the sentence 如果你要是查出是谁的话 as "if you find out who is the person".

I have a feeling that you cannot translate character by character. Sometimes you need to treat two or more character as a unit.

I think 如果你查出是谁的话 or 你要是查出是谁的话 is sufficient. Although I can still understand 如果你要是查出是谁的话, 一定告诉我.

0

Ending with 的話 behind 如果... and/or 要是... will result in the statement less formal/strict, more friendly/casual. It is like having more If will have slightly different feelings of seriousness.

  1. 如果你查出是誰

  2. 要是你查出是誰

  3. 如果你查出是誰的話

  4. 要是你查出是誰的話

  5. 如果要是你查出是誰的話

Applying the same word twice also did the trick:

  1. 給我看看

  2. 給我看

#1 is more casual because it has the apply twice, simply because one sounds too formal/strict which the speaker doesn't want to offend the audience.

讓我瞧瞧,説給我聽聽,試試看,我試試

adding between those doubles also valid, to not sounds formal/strict

讓我瞧一瞧,説給我聽一聽,試一試看,我試一試

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如果你要是查出是谁的话

如果 and 要是 mean almost the same, one of them in this sentence is redundant and should be removed, e.g. "如果你查出是谁的话" or "要是你查出是谁的话"

Although in this context 如果要是 mean almost the same, one of them can be removed and the meaning of the sentence would not change, in a different context, using two similar adjectives can emphasize them both. e.g. 我要吃东西,立即馬上! (I need to eat! Now! immediately!); 如果要是你查出是谁的话 (if, supposedly you find out whom) but 如果(你)要是 is wrong because, with the subject inserted between the two similar terms, it lost the function of emphasizing and make it truly redundant and wordy

0

如果你要是查出是谁的话,

The sentence is idiomatic. It puts a bit of emphasis on 要是, implying the sense of happen to be true.

Compare to 如果要是你查出是谁的话. It emphasizes , not others.

With both 如果 and 要是,it puts more conditional effect.

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