HSK 4 · VERSION 2.0#24
Rhetorical Questions with “nándào”
难道
How it works
难道 (nándào) is used to introduce a rhetorical question. It often shows:
surprise
doubt
disbelief
strong emotion
In English, it is often close to:
could it be that...
is it really possible that...
don’t tell me...
Very often, the speaker already feels that the answer should be obvious.
The pattern
难道 (nándào) + Clause + 吗 (ma)
Example sentences
难道你不知道吗？
Don’t you know?
难道这还不够清楚吗？
Isn’t this clear enough?
难道他真的不来了？
Could it be that he really is not coming?
Key point
A sentence with 难道 (nándào) is often not asking for simple information. It usually expresses the speaker’s strong feeling.
For example:
他不来了？ Tā bù lái le? He is not coming?
难道他不来了？ Nándào tā bù lái le? Could it really be that he is not coming?
The second sentence is much stronger in emotion.