Conjunction 越来越

Imagine a sliding scale or a volume knob. At the start of the movie, the music is quiet. By the end, it is loud. 越来越 is the grammar that describes that knob turning up. It shows a steady increase in a quality or a state. It is not about a sudden jump. It is about a gradual process. This pattern usually sits right before an adjective or a certain type of verb. It tells the listener that the situation is not the same as it was five minutes ago. It also implies that the change will likely continue. It is like watching a plant grow in a time-lapse video. You are focusing on the transition, not just the final result.

1. 1Building a sentence with 越来越 is like building a simple sandwich. You only need three main parts.
2. 2Start with your Subject. This is the person or thing that is changing.
3. 3Add the phrase 越来越. This is your engine.
4. 4Finish with an Adjective or a Mental Verb.
5. 5The basic formula looks like this: Subject + 越来越 + Adj/Verb.
6. 6For example: 我 (Subject) + 越来越 + 忙 (Adjective). This means "I am getting busier and busier."
7. 7If you want to use a verb, it must be a "feeling" verb (like 喜欢 or 想).
8. 8For example: 她 + 越来越 + 喜欢 + 喝茶. This means "She likes drinking tea more and more."

Use this whenever you notice a trend in your life.

• Weather changes: If it was 20 degrees yesterday and 25 today, the weather is 越来越热 (getting hotter).
• Skill levels: If you practiced your characters all night, your Chinese is 越来越好 (getting better).
• Physical states: If you are at the gym, you might feel 越来越累 (getting more and more tired).
• Emotions: If a movie is dragging on, you might become 越来越觉得无聊 (feeling more and more bored).
• Prices: We all know the feeling when our favorite bubble tea becomes 越来越贵 (more and more expensive).

This pattern is perfect for small talk. It shows you are observant. It makes you sound more natural than just using basic "Subject + is + Adjective" sentences. It is the difference between saying "It's cold" and "It's getting colder."

Don't use 越来越 for things that happen instantly. It needs time to develop.

Also, avoid using it with nouns alone. You cannot say "more and more apples" using this specific pattern. For that, you would use a different structure like 越来越多.

Crucially, do not use 越来越 with static facts. If something is always the same, this pattern will sound very strange. You wouldn't say "The sun is getting more and more yellow" unless you were in a sci-fi movie where the sun was actually changing color.

Finally, don't use it for comparisons between two different things. If you want to say "Apple is better than Orange," use the 比 (bǐ) pattern. 越来越 is for one thing changing over its own timeline.

This is the part where even smart people trip up. The biggest mistake is the "Double Intensifier" trap. In basic Chinese, you often say 很 (hěn) before an adjective, like 很大. However, 越来越 is already very strong. It has the "very" built inside it!

Never say 越来越很忙. That is like saying "more and more very busy." It’s redundant and sounds like grammar nails on a chalkboard. Just say 越来越忙.

Another mistake is using it with action verbs. You cannot say 我越来越跑. That sounds like you are physically turning into the act of running. If you want to say you run more often, you need to add a feeling like 我越来越喜欢跑步.

Yes, even native speakers might slip up on complex sentences, but for you, keeping it simple is the key to success. Think of it like a grammar traffic light: if you see an extra 很, the light is red. Stop and delete it!

You might eventually see a similar-looking pattern: 越 A 越 B. They are cousins, but not twins.

越来越 is the "Auto-Pilot" version. You don't need to specify what is causing the change. It just happens as time goes by.

越 A 越 B (The more A, the more B) is the "Manual" version. It links two different actions. For example: 越看越喜欢 (The more I look at it, the more I like it).

In 越来越, the "A" part is always implicitly "time." It literally translates to "more come more," implying as more time comes, the quality increases.

Use 越来越 when you just want to talk about a trend. Use 越...越... when you want to show a specific cause and effect.