Learn Hardcore Chinese: zhè jiàn shìqíng kànqǐlái hěn róngyì, dànshì zuò qǐlái bù róngyì. - This matter looks easy, but doing it isn’t easy.

件 is a common measure word for events, matters, or cases, so 这件事情/这件事 is very natural. You will also hear 这个事情, which is widely used in speech, but many consider 这件事 the most standard and concise. Other (less common or more formal) choices include 一桩事. So:

Most natural: 这件事
Also fine: 这件事情
Colloquial/regional but common: 这个事情

Why is 很 before 容易 in the first clause but not in the second?

In Chinese, adjectives used as predicates often need a degree adverb like 很 to sound natural. Here 看起来很容易 uses a neutral 很 (not necessarily “very”). In the negative, 不容易 already works smoothly without a degree adverb, so you don’t need 很. You could say 很不容易 to emphasize difficulty, but it’s stronger.

Does 很 really mean “very” here?

Not necessarily. This 很 is often a “linking” degree adverb making the adjective predicative. It can be neutral in strength. Context and intonation decide whether it means “very” or just functions as a smooth linker.

What exactly does 起来 mean, and why does it appear in both 看起来 and 做起来?

起来 (qǐlái) has several grammatical uses:

In 看起来, it forms a set pattern meaning “it seems/looks” from the speaker’s perspective.
In 做起来, it means “when you actually start doing it / in the doing of it,” focusing on the process and real experience. So the sentence contrasts appearance vs. reality: “It looks easy, but in doing it, it isn’t.”

Is 看起来 the same as “start to look”?

No. With 看起来, 起来 does not mean “start.” It’s an idiomatic pattern meaning “seems/looks.” The “start/inchoative” meaning of 起来 shows up in sentences like 天气冷起来了 (“It’s started to get cold”).

How is 看起来 different from 看上去 and 看来?

看起来 and 看上去 are near-synonyms for “looks/seems” (visual impression). 看上去 can feel a bit more colloquial in some regions, but both are fine.
看来 means “it seems/it appears” based on evidence or reasoning, not necessarily visual appearance. It often starts a clause: 看来，这件事不容易。

What does 做起来 add that plain 做 wouldn’t?

做起来 emphasizes the experience once you’re actually doing it—practical, hands-on difficulty. Plain 做 is more neutral. Compare:

做起来不容易: “Once you get into doing it, it’s not easy.”
做不容易: unnatural; you’d say 做起来不容易 or 做得不容易 (different structure/meaning).

Is 不容易 the same as 难?

Close, but with nuance:

不容易 often implies “not as easy as it looks” or “takes effort,” a bit softer/politer.
难 is more direct/absolute: 很难 = “hard/difficult.” So replacing with 但是做起来很难 makes the contrast sharper.

Can I say 很不容易 or 不很容易?

很不容易 = “very not easy,” i.e., “quite hard/it took a lot of effort.” This is fine and emphatic.
不很容易 is grammatically okay but uncommon; it sounds like “not very easy” (mild negation). Most of the time, people prefer 不容易 or 不太容易.

Is 容易 the same as 简单?

Not exactly:

容易 = easy in terms of effort/difficulty.
简单 = simple/uncomplicated in structure or concept. Something can be 简单 but not 容易 (simple idea, hard execution), which fits the sentence’s contrast well.

Why is there no explicit subject in the second clause (做起来不容易)?

This is a typical topic–comment structure. 这件事情 sets the topic for the whole sentence. In the second clause, the subject is understood (either “this thing” or an implicit generic “you/one”), so it’s omitted: “(As for this matter,) doing (it) is not easy.”

Can I switch the word order to 看起来这件事情很容易?

Yes. Both are acceptable:

这件事情看起来很容易 (topic first; very common)
看起来，这件事情很容易 (speaker-first viewpoint; slightly different emphasis) The original is the most typical neutral order.

What’s the difference among 但是, 可是, and 不过 here?

All can mark contrast:

但是: neutral, a bit formal.
可是: a bit more colloquial/emotional.
不过: “however/but,” often softening the contrast. Any of the three works in this sentence with slight tone differences.

Is the repetition of 容易 stylistically okay?

Yes. The parallelism strengthens the contrast: appearance vs. reality. It’s a very natural rhetorical pattern. You could also vary it: 看起来很容易，但是做起来很难/并不容易。

What about tones—how do I pronounce 不容易 and 起来?

不容易: bù róngyì (no tone change on 不 here because the next syllable is second tone, róng).
起来: qǐlái (third tone + second tone).
看起来: kàn qǐlái. In fast speech, 起来 can sound lighter on the second syllable, but the dictionary tones are as above.

Could I express the same idea with a set phrase?

Yes: 说起来容易，做起来难。 This proverb-like pairing means “Easier said than done,” matching the same appearance-vs-reality contrast.

Can I shorten 这件事情?

Yes:

这件事 (most common)
这事儿 (very colloquial/northern) All three—这件事情/这件事/这事儿—work; choose based on formality and region.

Any close synonyms for 看起来很容易?

看上去很容易
看着很容易 (colloquial; from the look of it)
More inferential: 似乎很容易/好像很容易 Each carries a similar “seems easy” meaning with slight stylistic differences.