<p>Let me start with Q2:</p>
<ol start="2">
<li>What is the difference between 你不知道吗？ and 你难道不知道吗？</li>
</ol>
<ul>
<li><p>&quot;你不知道吗 ?&quot; - Don't you know it already?</p>
</li>
<li><p>&quot;你难道不知道吗？&quot; - How come/could you don't know it?</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>From the example, it is clear that 难道 is used when questioning (質問/質疑) a person with doubts or suspicions in the questioner's mind about the answer/attitude of the person. It is usually expressed in a disbelieving or ridicule manner. The occasion to use the words is when you think there is a possibility that the person didn't answer your question truthfully, or straightforward, but you are unsure if he's been honest or not. On many occasions, the answer may disappoint you - &quot;沒聽過, 我真的不知道&quot;.</p>
<p>Examples:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>你难道不認識他嗎？ How come you don't know him?</p>
</li>
<li><p>你难道不會游泳嗎? How come you don't know about swimming?</p>
</li>
<li><p>你难道不去嗎? How come you are not going?</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>There is another use of 难道 - 难道是...? Similar to the above, it is questioning something with uncertainties - 假如不是他殺的, 难道是她? = If he didn't kill the person, would it be her? (In the mind of the questioner, this assumption is highly doubtful.)</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-10-31T00:04:11.820Z
2021-10-31T00:04:11.820Z
r13
<p>难道 is used to express “can it be possible that…” or “maybe” with the subtext that “it should be” or “someone should”.</p>

<p>Sometime with an exaggerated tone.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-10-31T15:14:29.590Z
The main difference is that 难道  in the OP's question has the strong implication that the other party "should have (known/done, etc.)", i.e., "你难道不知道吗？" strongly implies that the other party should have known (知道).
ALife
CC BY-SA 3.0
2018-01-30T02:40:32.717Z
2018-01-30T02:40:32.717Z
Hao FU
<p><strong>Answering Question 1):</strong></p>
<p>If you break down <strong>难道</strong> into it's parts, the meanings of each character (in this context) is:</p>
<pre><code>难 : difficult
道 : suppose/think
</code></pre>
<p>And if you replace  &quot;difficult to think&quot; or &quot;difficult to believe&quot; in sentences where <strong>难道</strong> exists, it gives an accurate representation of it's meaning, AKA expression ones disbelief, sometimes used in rhetorical questions. If we look at the following sentence:</p>
<pre><code>你难道不明白吗
</code></pre>
<p>it translates to either of these two:</p>
<pre><code>&quot;Do you really not understand?&quot;
&quot;I find it difficult to believe that you don't understand, is this actually the case?&quot;
</code></pre>
<p>The second translation would be more explicitly accurate, though the first one is easier to say while conveying almost the same meaning.</p>
<p><strong>Answering Question 2):</strong></p>
<p><strong>你不知道吗？</strong> means:</p>
<pre><code>&quot;Do you not understand?&quot;
&quot;You don't understand, is that correct?&quot; (more literal translation)
</code></pre>
<p><strong>你难道不知道吗？</strong> means:</p>
<pre><code>&quot;Do you really not understand?&quot;
&quot;I find it difficult to believe you don't understand, is this really the case?&quot; (more literal translation)
</code></pre>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-10-30T22:12:52.683Z
2021-10-30T22:12:52.683Z
你的老师
<p>Not a comprehensive answer, but: </p>

<p>难道 gives special emphasis to the question, like "Could it be that...?" and can be used to contrast with what was previously said, especially to expose some presumption or surprise (that could serve as an explanation for what has been said previously. </p>

<p>E.g.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>你今晚不要和我们去游泳吗？ 难道你不会游泳吗?</p>
</blockquote>

<p><em>[usually, there would be some pause between the two sentences because the speaker needs some time to draw the concluding second sentence from the reaction or response of the other speaker]</em></p>

<p>"Aren't you joining us to go swimming tonight? Or perhaps could it be that you can't swim?" </p>

<p>(Not very elegant translation, but points out the meaning of 难道)</p>

<p>The difference between the two sentences you provide, should now be clear, the second one expresses the surprise over the reaction or response of the other person in a form of presumption/speculation (It's not necessary that the other person does not know [whatever it is], but we just make a guess). The first sentence is just a plain question with no speculative character.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-06-29T18:39:10.413Z
I would say the tone is much stronger and more negative than "could it be that..."
NS.X.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-06-29T10:31:41.443Z
2016-06-29T10:40:05.377Z
2016-06-29T10:40:05.377Z
imrek
<ol>
<li>Grammatically, "难道" is an indication of 反问句(a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhetorical_question" rel="noreferrer">rhetorical</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interrogative#Question_types" rel="noreferrer">negative</a> question). The exact correspondence in English may differ depending on the context, but I will give some examples here:

<blockquote>
  <p>(难道)你不知道吗？ <br>
  > Don't you know it? <em>(I thought that you knew it.)</em> <br>
  你(难道)不知道……吗？ <br>
  > Don't you know that ...... <br>
  (难道)你不明白吗？ <br>
  > Don't you understand? <br><br>
  这难道不是真理吗？ <br>
  > Ain't that the truth? <br><br>
  (难道)你今天不用上班吗？ <br>
  > Don't you have to work today? <br><br>
  你不来吗？ <br>
  > Aren't you coming?</p>
</blockquote></li>
</ol>

<p>Personally, I believe it's sometimes better to put 难道 in the beginning, though most of the time, the order doesn't matter in spoken language.</p>

<ol start="2">
<li>Questioning with a negating particle 不(not) is a <strong><em>negative question</em></strong> itself. So basically they are the same in meaning.<br>
The possible difference is: in the second question with 难道, the speaker believes <strong>more firmly</strong> that the listener should have known (the object), to the extent that he is/would be very surprised if the listener doesn't know anything. <em>This may also be implied in the first sentence without 难道, again, depending on the context</em>.</li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-10-31T10:46:04.630Z
Yes, you are right. The order really doesn't matter when in spoken language. For a Chinese, it really doesn't matter if you say 难道 at the beginning or not.
AimerNeige
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-06-29T14:31:32.227Z
2016-06-29T16:01:53.503Z
2016-06-29T16:01:53.503Z
zypA13510
<p>My questions:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>How to use “ 难道 ” in Chinese sentences?</p></li>
<li><p>What is the difference between 你不知道吗？ and 你难道不知道吗？</p></li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-06-29T10:27:20.693Z
2. It means the asker feels surprised that you don't know what you should know.
John
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-06-29T10:41:24.283Z
The meaning of "难道” could also indicate that the asker is angry. I would say the accurate meaning depends on the context.
Kai
<grammar><word>
How to use “ 难道 ” in Chinese sentences?
# How to use “ 难道 ” in Chinese sentences?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-06-29)

My questions:

1. How to use “ 难道 ” in Chinese sentences?
2. What is the difference between 你不知道吗？ and 你难道不知道吗？

**Tags:** grammar, word

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: 2. It means the asker feels surprised that you don't know what you should know.  
> **username_2**: The meaning of "难道” could also indicate that the asker is angry. I would say the accurate meaning depends on the context.  

---

## 5 answers

### Answer by username_9 on 2016-06-29. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

1. Grammatically, "难道" is an indication of 反问句(a [rhetorical](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhetorical_question) [negative](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interrogative#Question_types) question). The exact correspondence in English may differ depending on the context, but I will give some examples here:
   > (难道)你不知道吗？   
   > > Don't you know it? *(I thought that you knew it.)*   
   > 你(难道)不知道……吗？   
   > > Don't you know that ......   
   > (难道)你不明白吗？   
   > > Don't you understand?   
   >   
   > 这难道不是真理吗？   
   > > Ain't that the truth?   
   >   
   > (难道)你今天不用上班吗？   
   > > Don't you have to work today?   
   >   
   > 你不来吗？   
   > > Aren't you coming?

Personally, I believe it's sometimes better to put 难道 in the beginning, though most of the time, the order doesn't matter in spoken language.

2. Questioning with a negating particle 不(not) is a ***negative question*** itself. So basically they are the same in meaning.  
   The possible difference is: in the second question with 难道, the speaker believes **more firmly** that the listener should have known (the object), to the extent that he is/would be very surprised if the listener doesn't know anything. *This may also be implied in the first sentence without 难道, again, depending on the context*.

> **Comments:**
> **username_10**: Yes, you are right. The order really doesn't matter when in spoken language. For a Chinese, it really doesn't matter if you say 难道 at the beginning or not.  

---

### Answer by username_3 on 2021-10-31. Score: 1

Let me start with Q2:

2. What is the difference between 你不知道吗？ and 你难道不知道吗？

* "你不知道吗 ?" - Don't you know it already?
* "你难道不知道吗？" - How come/could you don't know it?

From the example, it is clear that 难道 is used when questioning (質問/質疑) a person with doubts or suspicions in the questioner's mind about the answer/attitude of the person. It is usually expressed in a disbelieving or ridicule manner. The occasion to use the words is when you think there is a possibility that the person didn't answer your question truthfully, or straightforward, but you are unsure if he's been honest or not. On many occasions, the answer may disappoint you - "沒聽過, 我真的不知道".

Examples:

* 你难道不認識他嗎？ How come you don't know him?
* 你难道不會游泳嗎? How come you don't know about swimming?
* 你难道不去嗎? How come you are not going?

There is another use of 难道 - 难道是...? Similar to the above, it is questioning something with uncertainties - 假如不是他殺的, 难道是她? = If he didn't kill the person, would it be her? (In the mind of the questioner, this assumption is highly doubtful.)


---

### Answer by username_4 on 2018-01-30. Score: 1

难道 is used to express “can it be possible that…” or “maybe” with the subtext that “it should be” or “someone should”.

Sometime with an exaggerated tone.

> **Comments:**
> **username_5**: The main difference is that 难道  in the OP's question has the strong implication that the other party "should have (known/done, etc.)", i.e., "你难道不知道吗？" strongly implies that the other party should have known (知道).  

---

### Answer by username_6 on 2021-10-30. Score: 0

Answering Question 1):
If you break down 难道 into it's parts, the meanings of each character (in this context) is:
难 : difficult
道 : suppose/think

And if you replace  "difficult to think" or "difficult to believe" in sentences where 难道 exists, it gives an accurate representation of it's meaning, AKA expression ones disbelief, sometimes used in rhetorical questions. If we look at the following sentence:
你难道不明白吗

it translates to either of these two:
"Do you really not understand?"
"I find it difficult to believe that you don't understand, is this actually the case?"

The second translation would be more explicitly accurate, though the first one is easier to say while conveying almost the same meaning.
Answering Question 2):
你不知道吗？ means:
"Do you not understand?"
"You don't understand, is that correct?" (more literal translation)

你难道不知道吗？ means:
"Do you really not understand?"
"I find it difficult to believe you don't understand, is this really the case?" (more literal translation)


---

### Answer by username_7 on 2016-06-29. Score: 0

Not a comprehensive answer, but:

难道 gives special emphasis to the question, like "Could it be that...?" and can be used to contrast with what was previously said, especially to expose some presumption or surprise (that could serve as an explanation for what has been said previously.

E.g.

> 你今晚不要和我们去游泳吗？ 难道你不会游泳吗?

*[usually, there would be some pause between the two sentences because the speaker needs some time to draw the concluding second sentence from the reaction or response of the other speaker]*

"Aren't you joining us to go swimming tonight? Or perhaps could it be that you can't swim?"

(Not very elegant translation, but points out the meaning of 难道)

The difference between the two sentences you provide, should now be clear, the second one expresses the surprise over the reaction or response of the other person in a form of presumption/speculation (It's not necessary that the other person does not know [whatever it is], but we just make a guess). The first sentence is just a plain question with no speculative character.

> **Comments:**
> **username_8**: I would say the tone is much stronger and more negative than "could it be that..."  

---

