不如

might as well; it would be better to, be inferior to, rather; it would be better to

p u ⁵ ¹ ʐ u ³ ⁵
adverb Common #2,599
might as well; it would be better to Suggests that the following action is the preferable choice, often as a gentle suggestion.
CH: 不如休息一下吧?
EN: Why don’t we take a break?

是了,飞鸟,你不如留下帮我?

Well then, Fei Niao, why don't you stay and help me?

— 幽灵公主 (1997)

不如我来请客

Why don't I treat you?

— 喜剧之王 (1999)

不如做正当生意

Why not do an honest business instead?

— 黑社会 (2005)

爱上他不如先习惯他

Better get used to him before falling in love with him.

— 红猪 (1992)

不如现在就叫醒他吧?

Why not wake him up now?

— 无爱可诉 (2017)

斯里坎特不如存银行吧

Srikant, why not put it in the bank instead?

— 印度有嘻哈 (2019)

不如去打扫澡堂吧?

How about cleaning the bathhouse instead?

— 铃芽之旅 (2022)

不如这样刘先生

How about this, Mr. Liu?

— 美人鱼 (2016)

不如休息一下吧?

How about taking a break?

对了,不如去电视台吧

Oh, right—why don't we go to the TV station?

— 一个都不能少 (1999)

不如我送你们一程

How about I give you a ride?

— 真爱至上 (2003)

不如先不要开箱子

Maybe don't open the box just yet.

— 甜蜜蜜 (1996)

但安娜没回来,不如弄个清楚

But Anna didn’t come back, so we might as well get to the bottom of it.

— 中央车站 (1998)

不如生一个小孩吧

Why don't we have a baby?

— 甜蜜蜜 (1996)

不如叫我做贼更恰当些

You might as well call me a thief; it would be more fitting.

— 英国病人 (1996)

不如这样吧今天晚上我请你去吃饭,好不好啊?

How about this: I'll take you out to dinner tonight, okay?

— 甜蜜蜜 (1996)

我们不如继续走吧?

Why don't we keep going?

— 潜行者 (1979)

不如上床吧

Why don't we go to bed?

— 警察故事 (1985)

不如你们先谈谈吧

Why don't you talk it over first?

— 喜剧之王 (1999)

不如把箱子开了

Why don't we open the box?

— 甜蜜蜜 (1996)

不如先在港口附近问人

Why don't we ask someone near the port first?

— 铃芽之旅 (2022)

走路,走路远的去了,我也不知道,你不如出去问吧

He went on foot—it was a long walk. I don’t know either; why don’t you go out and ask?

— 一个都不能少 (1999)

不如签卡吧

How about signing cards instead?

— 喜剧之王 (1999)

不如各做各的

We might as well each do our own thing.

— 黑社会 (2005)

不如陪我唱歌吧?

How about singing with me?

— 铃芽之旅 (2022)

不如不要小号吧

Maybe we should skip the secondary account.

— 蓝白红三部曲之蓝 (1993)

我不如当木匠

I might as well become a carpenter.

— 安德烈·卢布廖夫 (1966)

不如我再试试看晚一点的班机

Maybe I should try for a later flight.

— 一一 (2000)

与其说她是我的朋友,不如说她只是一个我认识的人。

She's more someone I know than a friend.

不如拒绝工作也许真的拒绝工作

Maybe I should just turn down the job—really turn it down.

— 安德烈·卢布廖夫 (1966)

留不住了,不如用上一回!

We can’t keep it any longer, so we might as well use it one more time!

— 霸王别姬 (1993)

不如再来一次好吗?

How about we do it one more time?

— 喜剧之王 (1999)

不如让下官先去

How about letting me go first?

— 满江红 (2023)

不如坐下

Why don't you sit down?

— 双重赔偿 (1944)

不如交给金子吧

Why not leave it to Jinzi?

— 亲切的金子 (2005)

不如我改邪归正算了

Maybe I should just turn over a new leaf.

— 色‧戒 (2007)

真可怜,他不如死了会更好

Poor thing. He’d be better off dead.

— 西西里的美丽传说 (2000)

不如你来告诉我要怎么说

Why don’t you tell me how to say it?

— 看不见的客人 (2017)

不如杀了汤姆?

How about killing Tom?

你不如去死吧

Why don’t you just die?

— 喜剧之王 (1999)

不如去其他地方算了

Maybe we should just go somewhere else.

— 大逃杀 (2000)

不如趁这机会…我们来切磋一下

Why don't we take this opportunity to have a little sparring match?

— 功夫 (2004)

不如快点过来啊

Why don't you come over quickly?

— 分手的决心 (2022)

不如今天什么都不干只是坐着

Maybe we should do nothing today and just sit around.

— Suzhou River (2000)

verb Uncommon #8,454
be inferior to Used to say that someone or something is not as good as another in ability, quality, or degree.
CH: 但他能力不如弟弟。
EN: But his abilities are inferior to his younger brother’s.

上海有什么不如北京的方面吗?

Are there any ways in which Shanghai falls short of Beijing?

人算不如天算。

Man proposes, but God disposes.

新不如老能不能用老办法?

The new way isn’t as good as the old one. Can we use the old method?

— 朱诺 (2007)

连灰尘都不如

Not even worth the dust.

— 莫斯科不相信眼泪 (1980)

你这个败类,连狗都不如

You scoundrel, you're worse than a dog.

— 少林足球 (2001)

唯一不如你的就是没有跟我一起洗澡了

The only thing that could be better is if you were here taking a shower with me.

— SoulMate (2016)

你觉得我们不如记者吗?

Do you think we're inferior to reporters?

— 怒火青春 (1995)

但他能力不如弟弟

But he isn't as capable as his younger brother.

— 巴霍巴利王:开端 (2015)

父母都很无能每天生不如死

My parents are both completely incapable, and every day feels worse than death.

— 空之境界 第五章 矛盾螺旋 (2008)

小丑不如

Clowns don't measure up.

— 关于我母亲的一切 (1999)

她在数学上不如他。

She’s not as good at math as he is.

另一个人,他不如你但你真是惹人嫌啊

The other guy may not be as good as you, but you’re really annoying.

— 爱乐之城 (2016)

你是说我连臭婊子都不如吗

Are you saying I'm not even as good as a fucking slut?

— 美人鱼 (2016)

那些认为女孩不如男的人就会闭嘴

Those who think girls are inferior to boys will shut up.

— 摔跤吧!爸爸 (2016)

conjunction Rare #26,076
rather; it would be better to Used to suggest a preferable alternative, often in the pattern “与其……不如……”, meaning “rather than …, it would be better to …”.
CH: 与其在这里等,不如主动去找解决办法。
EN: Rather than wait here, it would be better to actively look for a solution.

所以我们与其怀疑不如就让他说下去?

So rather than doubt him, should we just let him continue?

— 这个男人来自地球 (2007)

与其说汤姆诚实,不如说他聪明。

Tom is more clever than honest.

不过与其在等死不如主动去找解决的方法

But rather than sit around waiting to die, it’s better to take the initiative and look for a solution.

— 幽灵公主 (1997)

Sounds similar to