尚且…何况…: if even…, how much more…
复句 / complex sentences
Tone colorsā tone 1á tone 2ǎ tone 3à tone 4a neutral
The formal a fortiori argument. 尚且 ("even") sets up the easy case; 何况 draws the conclusion for the harder case: "If even A…, how much more (or less) B?"
尚且 goes after the subject A. The second part may end in 呢 or leave the conclusion implied. In speech: 连 A 都…，更别说 B 了.
Examples
大城市的年轻人尚且买不起房，何况刚毕业的学生呢？
Dà chéngshì de niánqīngrén shàngqiě mǎi bu qǐ fáng, hékuàng gāng bìyè de xuésheng ne?If even young city workers can't afford a home, how could fresh graduates?
专家尚且说不清楚，更何况我们普通人。
Zhuānjiā shàngqiě shuō bu qīngchu, gèng hékuàng wǒmen pǔtōngrén.Even experts can't explain it clearly, let alone us ordinary people.
这么简单的道理，孩子尚且明白，你怎么会不懂？
Zhème jiǎndān de dàolǐ, háizi shàngqiě míngbai, nǐ zěnme huì bù dǒng?Even a child gets such a simple point: how can you not?
Common mistakes
✗ 尚且 before the subject: ✗ 尚且专家… → ✓ 专家尚且….
✗ Swapping the cases: the 尚且 item must be the most favourable case.
✗ Confusing 尚且 with 尚未 ("not yet").