要是……就好了
if only; it would be great if
Structure
要是 希望的情况 ， 就好了
What it means
Voices a wish about something that is not (yet) true, either regret about the past or hope for the future: “if only …”.
How it is built
要是 + wished-for situation + 就好了, often with 能, 早点儿 or 多: 要是我当时多陪陪他就好了 (If only I had spent more time with him).
When to use it
Spoken. Any consequence goes in a new clause: 明天要是不下雨就好了，我们还能去爬山. In more formal writing use 如果……该多好, or 但愿 for a hope about the future.
Watch out
Don’t confuse it with 只要……就好了, “as long as …, that’s all that matters”: 只要你平安就好了 expresses relief, not a wish.
Examples
要是能早点儿等到一个合适的肾就好了。
If only a suitable kidney would come along soon.
要是我当时多陪陪他就好了。
If only I had spent more time with him back then.
明天要是不下雨就好了，我们还能去爬山。
It would be great if it didn’t rain tomorrow; then we could still go hiking.
Learn this in Lesson 157 · HSK 7–9: 器官捐献 (Organ donation)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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