很难说

很難說

hěnnánshuō

phrase HSK 6 #6,304

Meanings

明天会不会下雨？很难说。

Míngtiān huì búhuì xiàyǔ? Hěnnánshuō.

Will it rain tomorrow? Hard to say.

这件事的结果很难说。

Zhè jiàn shì de jiéguǒ hěnnánshuō.

The outcome of this matter is hard to tell.

他到底是好人还是坏人，很难说。

Tā dàodǐ shì hǎorén háishì huàirén, hěnnánshuō.

Whether he's a good person or bad person is hard to say.

谁会赢？这很难说。

Shéi huì yíng? Zhè hěnnánshuō.

Who will win? That's hard to say.

未来的事情很难说。

Wèilái de shìqing hěnnánshuō.

Things in the future are hard to predict.

grammar

很难说 follows the pattern 很难 + verb, meaning 'hard to [verb].' Other examples: 很难做 (hard to do), 很难懂 (hard to understand), 很难找 (hard to find).

usage

很难说 is a polite way to express uncertainty or to avoid giving a direct opinion. It's commonly used as a standalone reply to dodge a question.

Very natural in both spoken and written Chinese. In more formal contexts, you might hear 难以断言 (nán yǐ duànyán) instead.

很 hěn

难 nán

说 shuō