biết thế
- Phrase:
- If (I/you/one) had known that; Had (I/you/one) known: An exclamatory phrase expressing regret or hindsight about a past situation. It implies that if the speaker had possessed certain knowledge beforehand, they would have acted differently.
- Knowing that...: Can also introduce a conditional statement based on assumed or given knowledge.
- Phrase: (Had I known, I would have bought a few more.) (Knowing that it rained yesterday, we postponed the trip.) ("If I had known, I wouldn't have said anything," he regretted.)
"Biết thế thì..." / "Biết thế đã...": These are common extended forms emphasizing the regretful consequence. The word "thì" (then) or "đã" (marking past contrary-to-fact action) often follows. Biết thế thì tôi ở nhà cho rồi. (If I'd known, I would have just stayed home.) Biết thế đã không đồng ý. (Had I known, I wouldn't have agreed.)
Used in isolation: The phrase can stand alone as an exclamation of regret. Biết thế! (If only I'd known! / I should have known!)
Giá biết thế / Phải chi biết thế: These are stronger, more literary variants meaning "If only I had known that." Giá biết thế tôi đã cẩn thận hơn. (If only I had known, I would have been more careful.)
Biết trước (thì): A related phrase meaning "to know in advance (then)...". It focuses more on foreknowledge than regret. Biết trước thì tôi đã chuẩn bị. (If I had known in advance, I would have prepared.)
- Nếu biết trước: If known beforehand.
- Giá mà: If only (used with a past conditional verb).
- Biết thế nào: This is a different phrase meaning "to know how" or "who knows?" expressing uncertainty about the future, not regret about the past. (I don't know what is right.) (Who knows about tomorrow.)
- Biết vậy: A very close synonym, often interchangeable with "biết thế." It means "Knowing that was the case..." (Had I known that was the case, I would have helped him.)
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If you know it
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Biết thế tôi chẳng đến cho xongIf you know it, I would not come
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