Surely not? chẳng lẽ / lẽ nào

Chẳng lẽ at the start of a question says you can hardly believe something, or don't want to: "surely not …?", "don't tell me …": Chẳng lẽ anh quên rồi? Don't tell me you've forgotten? The rest is a plain statement; chẳng lẽ turns it into a doubtful question.

It also questions a conclusion you don't like: Chẳng lẽ em phải làm hết một mình? Surely I don't have to do it all on my own? Lại before the verb often adds "of all things": Chẳng lẽ chị ấy lại nói dối? Surely she wouldn't lie? Some speakers end with sao or hả as well.

Lẽ nào means the same and sounds a little more serious; you'll meet it in films, songs and stories. Chẳng lẽ is the everyday one. In Hà Nội you may also hear chẳng nhẽ.

The other person usually reassures you, or confirms the bad news: Đâu có, anh nhớ mà. Of course not, I remember. Phải chăng, the written cousin in headlines and essays, asks "could it be that …?" without the disbelief.