好(不)容易 (with great difficulty)

A ticket took several attempts to obtain

• I我wǒwith great difficulty好不容易hǎo bù róng yìonly then才cáito buy买mǎiresult complement: attained or found in 买到 / 找到到dàoticket票piào。 The speaker finally obtained a ticket after difficulty. to buy买mǎiresult complement: attained or found in 买到 / 找到到dào states the achieved result.
• The expression highlights a hard-won result; it does not specify an exact number of attempts or hours.

Read the whole hard-won construction

• with great difficulty好不容易hǎo bù róng yìonly then才cáito find找到zhǎo dào reports finally finding something with difficulty. only then才cái adds the only-then sense in this example.
• with great difficulty好不容易hǎo bù róng yìto find找到zhǎo dào(completed / change)了le一份yī fènto work工作gōng zuò is also possible without only then才cái. Do not turn a useful model sentence into a rule that every example must contain only then才cái.

I我wǒwith great difficulty好不容易hǎo bù róng yìonly then才cáimanaged to buy买到mǎi dào。

Recognise the matching idiomatic reading

• I我wǒhard-won in this construction; context matters好容易hǎo róng yìonly then才cáito buy买mǎiresult complement: attained or found in 买到 / 找到到dàoticket票piào can also use hard-won in this construction; context matters好容易hǎo róng yì in the hard-won sense. The construction and context support that reading.
• hard-won in this construction; context matters好容易hǎo róng yì is not interchangeable with with great difficulty好不容易hǎo bù róng yì in every possible sentence. In an easy-task context, this这个zhè getopic题tíhard-won in this construction; context matters好容易hǎo róng yì can mean that the question is very easy.

Separate difficulty from the count

• to try to find找zhǎo(completed / change)了leseveral days几天jǐ tiān，only then才cáito find找到zhǎo dào supplies a search duration. with great difficulty好不容易hǎo bù róng yìto find找到zhǎo dào emphasises the difficulty without giving that duration.
• Translate finally or with difficulty when it fits, but do not invent three days, ten tries or another precise number.

A hard-won result can be lost later

• I我wǒwith great difficulty好不容易hǎo bù róng yìmanaged to buy买到mǎi dàoticket票piào，afterwards后来hòu láibut却què(把: marks the object)把bǎticket票piàovariant of 弄弄nòngto lose丢diū(completed / change)了le。 The ticket was obtained, then lost. The later loss does not undo the earlier achieved result.
• Identify the result at each stage. A difficult process can also achieve avoiding an unwanted event, so a negative word alone is not proof of contradiction.

Choose an unambiguous expression

• To say an exercise is very easy, 这道题zhè dào tídegree / adjective linker很hěneasy容易róng yì is clear. To say a ticket was hard to obtain, I我wǒwith great difficulty好不容易hǎo bù róng yìonly then才cáito buy买mǎiresult complement: attained or found in 买到 / 找到到dàoticket票piào is clear.
• In a new account, identify the context, the achieved result and any later change before deciding how to translate hard-won in this construction; context matters好容易hǎo róng yì.

Read the full reference: HSK 5 grammar — Adverbs.