HSK 5 grammar · conjunction
更别说／更不用说
更别说 / 更不用说 — let alone / not to mention
Pattern
+ + + +
+
( ) can be left out · other words may come before, between and after
How it works
Adds a second item that is even more obviously true given the first, meaning 'let alone / not to mention.' It usually follows a clause stating an extreme case (often with 连…都) so the added item is clearly beyond reach or beyond question.
Examples
他连简单的字都不认识，更别说写文章了。
Tā lián jiǎndān de zì dōu bú rènshi, gèng bié shuō xiě wénzhāng le.
He doesn't even know simple characters, let alone write essays.
我连他的名字都没听过，更不用说见过面了。
Wǒ lián tā de míngzi dōu méi tīngguo, gèng búyòng shuō jiànguo miàn le.
I haven't even heard his name, not to mention met him.
Related
See it in a story
In the app, 更别说／更不用说 is underlined wherever it appears in the stories you read, and practised with sentences from them. Free.