I’m currently watching A Love So Beautiful with Chinese subtitle and there’s a line where the main character, Chen Xiaoxi, said:
“就是走路太快，我老跟不上。”
What does 老 mean here? Does it mean “我老了，我跟不上”?
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2 Answers
It means always, and can be replaced with “总是”.
Full sentence translation: Just that (he/she) walks too fast, I always can't keep up.
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I see! Thank you so much for the answer! I have another question though, is it common to replace 总是 with 老? When do you usually do it?– AgnesFeb 20, 2021 at 22:10
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1Great question @Agnes , yes and no, from my understanding, it really depends on the occasion / context. To me, 老 feels a bit casual and you can use it more often in daily conversations, e.g. 你老迟到, it almost has a sense of complaining, while 总是 feels a bit formal, and seen more on written format. Another aspect is that 总是 always means "always", whilst 老 can also mean old or senior. You can call someone by adding 老 before their family name, e.g. 老李, 老赵, if you're familiar with the person and he is a senior. Feb 21, 2021 at 0:51
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I see!!! Thank you so much!!! Your answer really helps clear my confusion!!!– AgnesFeb 21, 2021 at 3:53
The meaning of 老 serving as an adverb is 总是.
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Thank you so much for the answer! I have one more question about it. Is it common to replace 总是 with 老? When do you usually do it?– AgnesFeb 20, 2021 at 22:11
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@Agnes 老 is used more in Northern China, and is more casual in terms of register. Feb 21, 2021 at 12:50