The English although or even though is used to combine two phrases which form a contrast e.g. Although he is tall, he does not play basketball.
This same sentence structure is used in Mandarin Chinese, with a slightly different construction.
The Mandarin translation of although and even though is:
suī rán
雖然 (trad)
虽然] (simp)
Mandarin phrases which use suī rán are followed by a contrasting phrase which begins with dàn shì or kě shì, both of which translate as but.
dàn shì
但是
kě shì
可是
Therefore, the construction of the Mandarin “although” sentence is:
Suī rán (phrase one), dàn shì (phrase two).
The suī rán phrase must come before the dàn shì phrase, even though in English the two phrases may sometimes be reversed.
Examples of Sui Ran … Dan Shi
Please note that in each of these examples, kě shì can be used in place of dàn shì.
Suīrán tā chàng dé bùhǎo, dànshì guānzhòng hěn xǐhuan.
Even though her singing was bad, the audience liked her.
雖然她唱得不好但是觀眾很喜歡｡ (trad)
虽然她唱得不好但是观众很喜欢｡ (simp)
Suīrán wǒ búshì hěn fùyǒu, dànshì wǒ hěn kuài lè.
Although I’m not rich, I’m happy.
雖然我不是很富有但是我很快樂｡ (trad)
虽然我不是很富有但是我很快乐｡ (simp)
Tā suīrán hěn jiāo xiǎo, dànshì lìqi hěn dà
Although she is very small, she is strong.
她雖然很嬌小但是力氣很大｡ (trad)
她虽然很娇小但是力气很大｡ (simp)
