无论...都/还是...
Reach for 无论...都/还是... when you want to say 'no matter what / how / who, the result stays the same.' It rules out every variation of the condition and locks in one outcome. The first clause names a variable (using a question word like 谁, 什么, 多少, or alternatives like A 还是 B); the second clause uses 都 or 还是 to deliver the unchanging result. Common in policy statements, promises, and stubborn declarations ('no matter how busy I am, I'll come'). Slightly formal but widely used in writing and serious speech.
Structure
无论 + Clause with Question Word / Alternatives, (Subject) + 都 / 还是 + Result Clause
wú lùn... dōu / hái shi...
How to Think About It
无论 opens a wildcard — 'no matter ___.' The blank must contain a question word (谁, 什么, 哪儿, 怎么, 多少) or a set of alternatives (A 还是 B, 是 X 是 Y). Then 都 in the second clause says 'in all those cases, the result is the same.' Without a question word or alternatives in the first clause, 无论 has nothing to range over and the sentence fails. 都 is the sweep — it covers every option you just listed.
Examples
无论遇到什么困难，我都不会放弃。
Wú lùn yù dào shén me kùn nán, wǒ dōu bú huì fàng qì.
No matter what difficulties I run into, I won't give up.
无论你去不去，我都要去。
Wú lùn nǐ qù bu qù, wǒ dōu yào qù.
Whether you go or not, I'm going.
无论多忙，他每天都会陪孩子读书。
Wú lùn duō máng, tā měi tiān dōu huì péi hái zi dú shū.
No matter how busy he is, he reads with his child every day.
无论是男生还是女生，都欢迎参加。
Wú lùn shì nán shēng hái shì nǚ shēng, dōu huān yíng cān jiā.
Whether boys or girls, everyone is welcome to join.
Common Mistake
Learners use 无论 with a single fixed condition instead of a variable, copying English 'no matter that...' But 无论 needs an open-ended condition — a question word or A-or-not-A form. Otherwise there's nothing for 都 to range over.
无论今天下雨，我都要去跑步。
无论今天下不下雨，我都要去跑步。
Don't Confuse With
不管... 都/也...
不管 is the casual, spoken twin of 无论. Same structure, same logic, just less formal. Use 不管 in conversation, 无论 in writing or formal speech.
即使... 也...
'Even if X, still Y.' Concedes one specific extreme condition rather than sweeping over all possibilities. 即使下大雨我也去 = even if it pours, I'll go. 无论 covers all weather; 即使 picks the worst case.
如果... 就...
Plain conditional 'if.' Picks one condition and states one result. 无论 specifically denies that the condition matters at all — the result is fixed regardless.
Practice
Fill in: ____你说什么，他____不听。
Show answer
无论；都
Translate to Chinese: No matter how cold it is, she goes running every morning.
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无论多冷，她每天早上都去跑步。
Arrange: 无论 / 都 / 我 / 支持你 / 你做什么决定
Show answer
无论你做什么决定，我都支持你。
Use 无论...都... to make a promise or commitment.
Show answer
无论将来发生什么，我们都是朋友。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 1 Fluentide episode:
Related Grammar Patterns
Acquire by listening
Hear 无论...都/还是... in real Chinese, not in a textbook.
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