Would rather… than… (宁可…也不)

Structure 宁可/宁愿 + what is accepted，也(不) + what is rejected

宁可…也(不)…/宁愿…也(不)… (nìngkě… yě(bù)…) expresses a resigned preference: faced with two evils, one is accepted in order to avoid the other. The first clause states what is preferred and the closing 也不 introduces what is rejected at all costs: 我宁可饿着，也不吃这种东西 = "I'd rather go hungry than eat that". It can stand on its own, without 与其 before it. The 也 is obligatory in the closing; with 不 something is rejected, without 不 one simply accepts the cost ("I'd rather do X even though…").

Examples

我wǒ宁nìng可kě饿è着zhe，也yě不bù吃chī这zhè种zhǒng东dōng西xī。
I'd rather go hungry than eat something like that.
他tā宁nìng愿yuàn站zhàn着zhe，也yě不bù愿yuàn坐zuò在zài那nà个gè人rén旁páng边biān。
He'd rather stand than sit next to that man.
她tā宁nìng可kě自zì己jǐ受shòu累lèi，也yě要yào把bǎ事shì情qíng做zuò好hǎo。
She'd rather take on the burden herself, as long as the job gets done right.
宁nìng愿yuàn玉yù碎suì，也yě不bù瓦wǎ全quán。
Better a shattered jade than an intact tile: better to fall with honor than survive without dignity.

Levels are indicative: they follow the standard Chinese Grammar Wiki (AllSet Learning) progression, not an official HSK 3.0 mapping. We never assign levels by eye.

This point and the other 370, with audio on every example, inside Wanyu.