做得好 vs 做不好: degree complement vs potential negation
做得好 (zuò de hǎo) as a degree complement means 'did it well'; its negation is 做得不好 (zuò de bù hǎo). 做不好 (zuò bu hǎo) is the negative potential complement, meaning 'cannot do it well'. Learners often confuse these because both involve 做 and 好, but they belong to different grammatical structures: degree complements describe the result of an action, while potential complements express ability.
做得好 and 做不好 look similar but represent two distinct complement structures. 做得好 can be a degree complement (describing the achieved result: 'did it well') or a potential complement (expressing ability: 'can do it well'), with the same written form but distinct tones in speech. The key difference appears in negation: the degree complement negates as 做得不好, while the potential complement negates by replacing 得 with 不 to form 做不好. 做不好 only exists as the potential negative and never means 'did poorly'.
When to use each
Use '做得好' as a degree complement to comment on the quality of a completed action, meaning 'did it well'. It can also serve as the potential complement positive form, meaning 'can do it well'; context and intonation distinguish the two. When negating as a degree complement, use '做得不好'.
In speech, the degree complement reading has a slightly heavier intonation on '得' and '好', while the potential complement reading has neutral tone on '得' and a lighter '好'.
Use '做不好' as the negative form of the potential complement, expressing inability or impossibility: 'cannot do it well'. It is not a negation of a completed action; for that, use '做得不好'. It often appears with a subject and is followed by a noun phrase describing the task.
The '不' in '做不好' is always neutral-tone (bu) because it is a grammatical particle in the potential complement structure.
At a glance
| 做得好 | 做不好 | |
|---|---|---|
| Grammatical structure | Verb + 得 + result (degree complement) | Verb + 不 + result (potential complement negative) |
| Primary meaning | Completed action result (did well) | Inability (cannot do well) |
| Negation form | 做得不好 (zuò de bù hǎo) | 做不好 (inherently negative; no further negation needed) |
| Tone of 得/不 | 得 is neutral tone | 不 is neutral tone |
| Sentence example | 他这次考试考得好。(He did well on this exam.) | 他做不好这道菜。(He can't cook this dish well.) |
| Common verb collocations | 考 (test), 画 (paint), 写 (write), 做 (do) | Same verbs but with inability nuance |
Examples
- 做得好他这次考试考得好。Tā zhè cì kǎoshì kǎo de hǎo.He did well on this exam.Degree complement – 考得好 with 得; natural collocation uses 考, not 做.
- 做得不好 (negation of 做得好)这幅画画得不好。Zhè fú huà huà de bù hǎo.This painting was not painted well.Degree complement negation: 得 + 不 (bù). Note measure word 幅 and verb 画.
- 做不好他做不好这道菜。Tā zuò bu hǎo zhè dào cài.He can't make this dish well.Potential complement negative – inability.
- 做不好作文写不好就别交了。Zuòwén xiě bu hǎo jiù bié jiāo le.If you can't write the essay well, don't hand it in.Verb 写 is used with 作文, not 做.
- 做得不好 / 做得好他这次工作做得不好，但下次一定能做好。Tā zhè cì gōngzuò zuò de bù hǎo, dàn xià cì yīdìng néng zuò hǎo.He didn't do this job well this time, but next time he can definitely do it well.Degree complement negation (做得不好) contrasted with positive potential (能做得好).
Common mistakes
- Using '做不好' to mean 'did poorly' after a completed action – use '做得不好' instead.
- Using '做得不好' to express inability (e.g., 'I can't do it well') – use '做不好'.
- Mistaking the positive form: '做得好' can be ambiguous; learners sometimes assume it only means 'did well' and miss the potential reading.
- Using the wrong verb: '考试做得好' should be '考得好'; '作文做不好' should be '作文写不好' or '写不好作文'.
- Toning error: pronouncing '做不好' with full third tone on '不' (bù) – it should be neutral (bu).
FAQ
- When do I use 做得好 vs 做不好?
- Use 做得好 (degree) to describe a completed action (e.g., 他考试考得好). Use 做不好 (potential negative) to express inability (e.g., 他做不好这件事). For negating a completed action, use 做得不好.
- Can 做得好 ever be negated as 做不好?
- No. If you mean 'did not do well' (degree complement), you must say 做得不好. 做不好 is a separate structure for inability. Mixing them is a common mistake.
- How do I distinguish 做得好 as degree vs potential?
- In speech, degree complement has a full neutral tone on 得 and a clear 好, while potential complement also has neutral tone on 得 but with a lighter intonation. Context usually clarifies: if the action is completed, it's degree; if it's about general ability, it's potential.
- Is 做得好 always written the same?
- Yes, the written form is identical for degree and potential complements. Only tone and context differentiate them. The negative forms, however, are distinct: 做得不好 (degree) vs 做不好 (potential).