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Why does 麻烦 mean both "trouble" and "please"?

Languagepolitenessrequestsnuance

Chinese

麻烦

Pinyin

máfan

Explanation

麻烦 describes something bothersome on its own. But 麻烦你 (trouble you) is a polite way to ask for a favor — like saying "Could I trouble you to…?"

At a glance

Category
Language
Chinese
麻烦
Pinyin
máfan
Tags
politeness, requests, nuance

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