Complement of degree 2: 得很

In Chinese, the complement of degree 得很 (de hěn) is placed after an adjective to indicate an extremely high degree. It is primarily used in informal, spoken Chinese. In English, it usually translates to “extremely”, “terribly”, “awfully”, or “very”.

Grammar Rules

1. Expressing High Degree: It intensifies the adjective to express a very strong condition or feeling. Unlike the adverb 很 (hěn), which is placed before the adjective, 得很 is placed directly after it.

2. Colloquial Tone: It is common in informal spoken conversation, giving the sentence an expressive and emphatic tone.

3. Positive and Negative Contexts: Unlike 坏了 (huàile), which is mainly reserved for unpleasant situations, 得很 can be used with both positive (好得很) and negative (热得很, 累得很) adjectives.

Grammar Structure

Adjective + 得很

Examples

现(Xiàn)在(zài)天(tiān)气(qì)好(hǎo)得(de)很(hěn)。

The weather is great right now!

房(Fáng)间(jiān)里(lǐ)面(miàn)热(rè)得(de)很(hěn)。

It is terribly hot inside the room.

我(Wǒ)觉(jué)得(de)爬(pá)山(shān)累(lèi)得(de)很(hěn)。

I think mountain climbing is awfully tiring.

Important Note

Difference between 很 + Adjective and Adjective + 得很: 很好 (hěn hǎo) = Very good (a neutral statement of fact). 好得很 (hǎo de hěn) = Extremely good! / Great! (more expressive and emphatic). Pronunciation tip: In this phrase, 得 is pronounced with a light, neutral tone (de), followed by 很 (hěn).