Grammar database

The graphic  parsing method for Chinese language

As an analytical approach plays a major role in the learning of Chinese language, you are required to have some knowledge of Chinese grammar and grammatical terminology. One of the simplest ways of doing this is to use two axes to make a cross, with the two sides dividing the components of a sentence up for parsing. This will help you to understand the relationship between the components.

 

The following two examples demonstrate how to parse.

 

1. "These old methods are completely absurd."

 

               Subject

                  Predicate

            methods (noun)

are (verb) absurd (adjective)

           ↑                     ↑

                       ↑

     these (specifier) old (adjective)

                 completely (adverb)

 

2. "We teach our students at Oxford using an old fashioned method."

 

 Subject

                  Predicate

We (pronoun)

                        teach (verb)         students (noun)                    

 

                             ↑           ↑                  ↑             

 

 at (prep) Oxford (prop n.)  |               our (adj)                               

 

                                           |    

 

                                      using (verb) method (noun)                    

 

                                                              ↑

 

                                      an (article) old-fashioned (adj)

 

                      

 

It is a good idea to take out a few sentences for analysis from each lesson by using this method; it will be of great benefit to your reading skills when you are at a more advanced stage of learning.

 

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Stative verbs (1 & 2)

A stative verb expresses quality or conditions, as hăo to be good and máng to be busy. In Chinese a stative verb is used where in English one would use the verb ‘to be’ with an adjective. For instance,他很 tā hěn máng he is very busy.

               Subject

                  Predicate

                   (pronoun)

  (stative verb)

 

       ↑

 

      (adverbial intensifier)

The word máng to be busy is a stative verb in the above sentence. A monosyllabic stative verb is often preceded by the adverbial intensifier hĕn very. As you may have noticed, the adverbial intensifier hĕn very is placed before the stative verb hăo to be good.

As with any Chinese verb, the negation not should be placed before the verb, as in máng not to be busy. not is the only negation used for stative verbs. The negation méi not for is not used for stative verbs.

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The book is good. The magazine is not good. The fish is good The vegetable is no good.

 

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How do you say the following sentence? Place the mouse on the following phrases to view the answers.

He is very good? (He is , very is hĕn and you should know how to say good.) 

 

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Slight-pause mark (3)

The slight-pause mark "" is called 顿号dùnhào in Chinese (lit. mark for a pause). It is similar to a comma in English. It is used for separating a list of nouns, such as

你哥哥你弟弟好  ?

nĭ gēgenĭ dìdi hăoma?

How are (both) your older and younger brothers?

The slight-pause mark in this question is used to separate 哥哥 gēge older brother and 弟弟 dìdi younger brother.

 

How do you write the following sentences? Place the mouse on the following phrases to view the answers.

Both my older and younger brothers are very well.

My older and younger sisters are very well too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The verb shì to be (4)

The copula shì to be does not have the same usage as the verb to be in English. (See the notes on stative verbs.) shì to be is used for linking two noun phrases. It indicates that the nouns linked by shì to be are of the same nature or quality. For instance

         

Xiăo Wáng shì Zhōngguó rén

Xiao Wang is Chinese.

 

               Subject

           Predicate

        小王 (proper noun)

  (copula) 中国人 (qualified noun: formed by qualifier中国and noun)

 

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How do you say the following sentences? Place the mouse on the following phrases to view the answers.

My older brother is a doctor.    I am a student.    My younger sister is a teacher.

 

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Use of and (5)

The specifiers zhè this or that can be used as the subject of a sentence, if the subject is visible to listeners. ‘This’ is commonly used when introducing people to each other. For instance, 是我爸爸...zhè shi wǒ bàba   This is my father

 

               Subject

                  Predicate

                  (specifier)

 (copula/verb)   爸爸(noun)

                                    ↑

 

                                   (short for 我的)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The possessive indicator de (5)

This construction indicates that the noun after the particle de belongs to the noun that comes before de, as in 小王 Xiǎo Wáng de shū Xiao Wang’s book. As you may have noticed, this use of  de is similar to the use of the possessive apostrophe in English.

However, the possessive de can be omitted in the following situations.

 

  1. When a pronoun is followed by a relationship noun such as 爸爸 bàba father, 妈妈 māma mother, 哥哥 gēge older brother, 姐姐 jiĕjie older sister, 弟弟 dìdi younger brother, 妹妹 mèimei younger sister or 朋友 péngyou friend, 老师 lăoshī teacher...., de is not needed. For instance, 他妹妹 tā mèimei his younger sister.
  2. When a pronoun is followed by a place noun to which the pronoun is closely related, such as jiā home, 国家 guójiā country, 学校 xuéxiào school or bān class... de is not needed. For example 我家 wŏ jiā my home, 他学校 tā xuéxiào his school.

 

If you use more than one noun to classify the main noun, de is often placed before the main noun (unlike the possessive apostrophe in English) instead of being placed after each noun, as in

姐姐     老师 哥哥   爱人

Wǒ jiějie péngyou de lăoshī shì wǒ gēge tóngxué de àiren  

My sister's friend's teacher is my brother's class-mate's wife.

 

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How do you say the following? Place the mouse on the following phrases to view the answers.

1. His teacher 2. Teacher’s books 3. My friend’s younger sister 4. The teachers of my school  5. My father’s school 6. Xiao Wang’s mother 7. My country

 

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The descriptive indicator de (5,6)

The genitive particle de  is used to describe nouns. The description of the noun is placed before de. In this construction the description can take the following forms.

  1. The description can be a disyllabic phrase, formed by an adverb and an adjective, as in

 

hĕn hăo de shū

a very good book

However, a monosyllabic adjective such as hăo good or máng busy is often placed before a noun withoutde to form an adjective-noun phrase, as in 好书 hăoshū (a) good book, 好老师 hăo lăoshī (a good teacher, 忙人máng rén (abusy person.

  1. The description can also be a phrase or a sentence. It is like an inverted relative clause sentence in English. For instance,

         

Xiăo Wáng măi de shū hěn hăo

The book that Xiao Wang has bought is very good .

 

 

               Subject

    Predicate

                   (noun)               

                   ↑

  (stative verb)

       ↑                           

   (verb) (genitive particle)

      (adverbial intensifier)                  

    ↑

 

 小王 (proper noun)

 

The main sentence is 书很好 shū hěn hăo, which means the book is very good, and the description for the book is: that Xiao Wang bought 小王买 Xiăo Wáng măi, which is placed before the particlede.

However, de is not used in the following situations.

  1. When a noun qualifier is used to describe another noun forming a combined noun, de is not used. A noun that is described should be placed after its description. For instance 中国地图 zhōngguó dìtú  (a) map of China. 中国 zhōngguó China qualifies the 地图 dìtú  map, so China should be placed before map. In 汉语书 hànyǚ shū (a)  book in Chinese, 汉语 hànyŭ in Chinese (language) qualifies the book, so 汉语 hànyŭ in Chinese (language) should be placed before shū the book.
  2. As mentioned above, de is not used when a monosyllabic adjective is followed by a monosyllabic noun to form another noun such as 忙人 mángrén a busy person and 好书 hăoshū a good book.

 

Sometimes the nouns after de are left out to avoid repetition, but the omitted noun(s) should be obvious to the listener. For instance,

他的   ,       ,    ,

tā de shū hěn duō Zhōngwén de, Yīngwén de, dōu yŏu

He has many books; Chinese ones, English ones, he has them all.

It is clear to a listener that the omitted noun in the sentence is shū  books.

 

Tips:

  1. When you read a Chinese sentence you should always look for any nouns after de particles before translating into English.
  2. The particle de is used to describe nouns and de should be followed by a noun.

 

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Assignments

Frequently asked questions

Click on the following links to view the answers

1. When can I use the construction?

2. How do I form the construction?

3. Do I always have to put measure words at the beginning of the construction, as in the above sentence?

4. Do I always have to use when I use an adjective to describe a noun?

5. When can a possessive be omitted?

6. It seems that the nouns after are the most important nouns in sentences, but that in some sentences there are no nouns after .  Why is that?

7. Hints and conclusion.

8. Four "don’ts" for describing nouns.

 

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Formation of plural pronouns

 

men is a placed after a  pronoun to form a plural. For instance, if he is followed by men, it becomes 他们 tāmen they. If you is followed by men it becomes 你们 nĭmen you (pl) and if I is followed by men, it becomes 我们 wǒmen we.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The use of xìng and jiào (9)

 

xìng surname can be used as a noun, but it is most commonly used as a verb in Chinese sentences, as in  

 

xìng wáng

His surname is Wang (lit. he surname Wang)

    么?

xìng shénme?

What is your surname? (lit. you surname what)

A polite form for the above question is

nín guì xìng?

What is your surname?  (lit. your honourable surname is…)

When asking names, jiào to be called can refer either to given names or to full names. For instance,

  ,      

xìng Wáng, jiào Wénshū

My surname is Wang and I am called Wenshu  

  ,          

xìng Wáng, jiào Wáng  Wénshū  

My surname is Wang and I am called Wang Wenshu.

 

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Question and answers

 

Question words

 

 

ma (2)

 

It is very easy to form Chinese questions. One of the question formulas is to place the interrogative (question particle) ma at the end of a statement. For instance, if ma  is placed at the end of nĭ hăo hello (lit. you are well) it turns the statement into a question:

你好  ?  

nĭ hăo ma?

How are you? (lit. Are you well?).

If ma is placed at end of  你是老师 you are (a) teacher, the statement becomes a question of

你是 老师 ?

nĭ shì lăoshī ma?

Are you (a)  teacher

 

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The interrogative ne (2)

 

The interrogative (question particle) ne is placed at the end of a sentence or phrase. It is used in the following situations.

1. To bounce a question back to the person you are having a conversation with, as in:
     A:
 ?

         nĭ hăo ma?
         how are you?
     B:
 .  你 ?

        wǒ hěn hăo. nĭ ne
        I am very well, and you
?
2. To ask the question where? as in

?

wǒ de shū ne

Where is my book?

ne used for emphasis (35)

 

ne can also be used to reinforce questions that are formed with question-words such as who, what, which, when, why and where (See below) and to show that the speaker really would like to know the answers. For instance,

他在 哪儿

tā zài năr  ne

Where IS he?

你看  的是     ?

nĭ kàn de shì shénme shū ne

What book ARE you reading?

 

 

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什么, 哪儿 and (6, 7)

 

The question word 什么 shénme what does not have a fixed position in a question. It changes according to the position of the subject or the object of a sentence. In the following question 什么 shénme what refers to an object:

你吃  

nĭ chī shénme

What are you eating? (lit. you eat what).

什么 shénme what can also refer to the subject of a question, as in

        饭?

shénme rén chī zhōngguo fàn

What kind of people eat Chinese food?

 

哪儿 năr where and shuí who are like 什么 shénme what can refer to the subject or the object of a question. The following question words are used as the objects of the questions:

你去哪儿

nĭ qù năr

Where are you going? (lit. you are going where?)

你找  

nĭ zhăo shuí

Who are you looking for? (lit. you are looking for whom).

The question words refer to the subjects of the following questions.

哪儿 图书馆?

năr  shì túshūguăn?

Where is the library?

       

shuí chī zhōngguuó fàn

Who eats Chinese food?

If you listen to a question very carefully and remember its word order, it is easy to form an answer in Chinese, because the word order of an answer is the same as that of the question. If you use an appropriate noun or pronoun and replace the question word with an appropriate word, you will be your answer in Chinese. Take a question like

你去哪儿

nĭ qù năr

Where are you going? (lit. you go where).

If your answer is the library, you just have to replace the pronoun you with I and replace the question word  哪儿 năr where with the word 图书馆 túishūguăn library. The answer is then 

图书

wǒ qù túshūguăn

I am going to the library

When forming a Chinese question, you should try to form the sentence pattern for the answer and replace the required information with a question word. For instance, 去图书馆…qù túshūguăn  (someone) is going to the library. Replace "someone" with the question word shuí who and the question will be

  图书 ?

shuí qù túshūguăn  

Who is going to the library?

 

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怎么and 为什么

 

Question words used for numbers (10,15)

 

多少 duōshao how many and how many are used to ask about quantity. 多少 duōshao how many is used to expect a number in the answer which is over ten, while the question word how many is used to expect a number which is under ten.

你们系  老师,  多     生?

nĭmen xì yǒu ge lăoshī duōshao xuésheng?

Wow many teachers and students are there in your department?

The speaker expects that there are fewer than ten teachers and more than ten students in the department. You might have noticed that in questions is followed by a measure word, but 多少 duōshao is not. However, measure words are needed for answers with numbers:   系有 七个 老师,   生?

men xì yǒu ge lăoshī bā shí ge xuésheng

In our department there are seven teachers and eighty students.

 

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Choice-type questions of verb verb (13)

 

Choice-type questions ask people to decide between taking and not taking an action. No specific question words are needed. The format of the question is verbverb, but it has the following two variations.

  1. Subject verb verb object?

                学生

nĭ        shì   bu shì    xuésheng

Are you a student? (lit. you are not are student)

  1. Subject verb object       verb?

            学生        

nĭ         shì  xuésheng bu shì

Are you a student? (lit. you are student not are )

If a bi-syllabic verb (A and B) is used, there are three ways to form the questions.

  1. Subject AB        AB     object?

        认识    认识 

Nĭ       rènshi bu rènshi ta

Do you know him? (lit. you recognise not recognise him)

  1. Subject  AB     object   AB?

       认识         认识

nĭ        rènshi ta      bu rènshi

Do you know him?  (lit. you recognise him not recognise)

  1. Subject  A  不 AB      object?

          认识   

nĭ        rèn bu rènshi ta

Do you know him?

 

Choice-type question with the negation ()

 

(This section should be learned with the section of  the aspect for the completion of actions in Week 7)

() negates completed actions. The sentence patterns for choice-type questions with () are similar to those with .

Subject verb  verb object

                

Nĭ         chī   méi chī fàn

Have you eaten? (lit you ate not ate meal)

However, if the pattern of verb verb is broken up, the affirmative aspect particle for completed actions is placed after the verb and the verb is not repeated. Instead 没有 is add to the end of the question.

Subject  verb object  没有

                    没有

Nĭ           chī  le   fàn       méiyou

Have you eaten? (lit you ate meal not ate )

 

Choice-type questions with 还是 (19)

 

还是 háishì or is used to request that a choice is made between two objects or two actions:

你学       日文

xué Zhōngwén háishì rìwén.

Are you learning Chinese or Japanese? (lit. you learn Chinese or Japanese)

 

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The short answers for "yes" and "no"  (2)

 

 

There are no "fixed" words for "yes" or "no" in Chinese answers. One uses the verb or verb with verb particle used in the question.

?

nĭ hăo ma?

How are you?

The short affirmative answer is the stative verb of  hăo yes (lit. well) and its negative form is 不好 bù hăo no (lit. not well). If the question is

你是 老师  ?

nĭ shì lăoshī ma?

Are you a teacher?

The affirmative answer is the verb shì yes, and the negative form is 不是 búshì no.

The short answer to 你吃了饭吗?nĭ chī le fàn ma? have you eaten? is the verb chī and the verb particle le: 吃了 chī le.

 

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The position of time words in Chinese sentences (17)

 

Time words describe time "when", such as 现在 xiànzài now, 今天 jīntiān today and 三点sān diăn three o’clock. A time word should be placed before adverbs, verbs and stative verbs in sentences.

今天   

jīntiān hĕn máng

I am very busy today.

The time word 今天 jīntiān today is placed before the adverbial intensifier hĕn very and is followed by the stative verb máng busy.

今天      去我家

jīntiān sān diăn qù wǒ jiā

He is going to my house at three o’clock today.

The time words 今天三点 jīntiān sān diăn three o’clock today are placed before the verb to go. You might have noticed that the word order for time words is a reversed version of English word order. This is because Chinese word order in descriptions starts from the background and extends to the foreground. When expressing time, one starts with the year, then moves to the month, then the date, then the time, and so on. For instance, today is 24 June 2006. The word order in Chinese is 2004, June 24: 2004 nián 6yuè 24. Last May in Chinese will be 去年五月qùnián wŭyuè (lit. last year’s May).

 

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Binominal verbs and verb-object patterns (8)

 

A Chinese character has only one syllable, and every character has its own meaning or function in a sentence, but many words in spoken Chinese are multi-syllabic. There are many binominal verbs, some of which take an adverb-verb form, such as 欢迎 huānyíng welcome (lit. joyfully greet). Some take a verb-verb form, as in 学习 xuéxí study (lit. learn practise), while others take a verb-object form of a verb and a noun, such as 吃饭 (chī fàn lit. eat meal) to eat; 教书 (jiāo shū lit. teach books) to teach and 吸烟 (xī yān lit. inhale smoke) to smoke. Have you eaten in Chinese is 吃饭了吗? chī fàn le ma (lit. you eat meal LE MA), while I teach at Oxford will be

牛津  

wǒ zài Niújīn jiāo shū

(lit. I am at Oxford teach books).

 

Many textbooks don’t indicate the structure of Chinese words in their vocabulary lists. Verb-object words are often categorised as verbs. This may cause confusion when forming sentences at a more advanced stage in your learning, so it would be a good idea to mark verb-object pattern words when you are learning new vocabulary. The following table consists of the most commonly used verb-object words.

 

V-O words

Meanings

Examples

说话 shuōhuà say speech

speak

别说话!       bié shuō huà     Don’t speak!

吃饭 chīfàn eat meal/rice

eat

不吃饭。           bù chī fàn      Not eating.

睡觉 shuìjiào sleep a sleep

sleep

没睡觉。           méi shuì jiào    Didn’t sleep.

看书 kànshū read books

read

他在看书。    tā zài kànshū     He is reading.

写字 xiězì write words

write

我不会写字。   wŏ búhuì xiě zì    I can’t write.

画画 huàhuà draw pictures

paint/draw

你会画画吗?   nĭ huì huà huà ma    Can you draw?

唱歌 chànggē sing songs

sing

他会唱歌吗?  tā huì chàng gē    Can he sing?

吸烟 xīyān inhale smoke

smoke

我不吸烟。        wŏ bú huì xī yān    I don’t smoke?

教书 jiāoshū teach books

teach

他在中国教书。tā zài zhōngguó jiāo shū    He teaches in China.

念书 niànshū read books

study

你在哪儿念书?nĭ zài năr niàn shū    Where do you study?

洗澡xĭzăo wash bathe

wash/bathe

我不洗澡。        wŏ bùxĭ zăo    I don’t wash.

 

 

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Greeting words (8)

 

These are the most commonly used greeting words

 

你好  nĭhăo

Hello

你早 (nĭ)zăo

Good morning

再见 zàijiàn

Goodbye

欢迎  huānyíng

Welcome

谢谢  xièxie

Thanks

 

Some English greeting words are not used in Chinese. For instance, 晚安 wănān good night is only used by people influenced by Western culture. 再见 zàijiàn goodbye is the expression that Chinese people use when parting in the evening. The most commonly used greeting in Chinese is 你好 nĭhăo hello (lit. you well). The expression zăo morning is also used. Close to meal times the greeting words between friends and colleagues of the same social rank might be

吃了 吗?

chīle ma 

Have you eaten?

Chinese people often use a person’s title to show respect to those who are socially superior. For instance, if you met your teacher Mr. Wang in the street you would greet him like this:

    老师

Wáng lăoshī hăo

Hello, Mr. Wang (lit. Wang Teacher well).

In the morning you should say:

    老师

Wáng lăoshī zăo

Morning, Mr. Wang. (lit. Wang Teacher morning).

 

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Repetition of greeting words (8)

 

Chinese people often repeat greeting phrases to show sincerity and enthusiasm. When you meet a Chinese person he or she may say 你好, 你好 nĭhăo nĭhăo hello, 欢迎, 欢迎 huānyíng huānyíng welcome, 谢谢, 谢谢 xièxie xièxie thank you very much and 再见, 再见 zànjiàn zàijiàn goodbye.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prefixes and (31)

 

Both lăo old and xiăo little are used as prefixes for surnames to show a degree of closeness when addressing colleagues or friends. 

 

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The Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) sentence patterns (9)

 

Most commonly-used Chinese sentences are like English ones, and use a subject-verb-object pattern:

    

wǒ shì Zhōngguóliú xuéshēng

I am an overseas student from China

   

wǒ jiào Dīng Yún

I am called Ding Yun.

 

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Numbers in Chinese

 

Counting numbers (10,11)

 

If you have learned the numbers one to ten ( èr sān liù jiŭ shí) and the words for a hundred băi, a thousand qiān and ten-thousand wàn, you will be able to count in Chinese.

 

It is very easy to work out the Chinese number system. For instance, eleven is 十一 shí yī lit. ten and one, so twelve is 十二 shí èr ten and two, twenty is 二十 èr shí two tens and twenty two is二十二 èr shí èr two tens and two. A hundred and twenty two is 一百二十二 yī băi èr shí èr one hundred, two tens and two.

 

The word for zero líng is also used for missing units in counting. For instance, 105 will be 一百零五 yì băi ling wŭ one hundred zero and five. The word líng zero here indicates the missing unit of tens. If there are two or more missing units in a number, only one zero is used. For instance, 10,202 in Chinese is 一万二百零二 yí wàn èr băi líng èr one ten thousand, two hundred, zero and two.

 

If you are going to be a Chinese banker, you may have to learn more complicated figures. For instance, one million is  一百万 yì băi wàn (lit. one hundred of ten thousands); a hundred million is 亿Yì.

The following is a table of Chinese number units to help you to work out any figures you want in Chinese.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

亿

qiān wàn

băi wàn

shí wàn

wàn

qiān

băi

shí

 

Only the Chinese words on the first line are said aloud here. For instance, if you insert the figure of 453,679,102 into the boxes below you should say: 

4

5

3,

6

7

9,

1

0

2

亿

qiān wàn

băi wàn

shí wàn

wàn

qiān

băi

shí

 

四亿五千三百六十七万九千一百零二sì yì wŭ qiān sān băi liù shí qī wàn jiŭ qiān yì băi ling èr.

However, a word in orange from the second line is said when there are no more figures after it. For instance, the figure 150,000,000 is a hundred and fifty million in English and is 一亿五千万 yí yì wŭ qiān wàn in Chinese:

1

5

0,

0

0

0,

0

0

0

亿

qiān wàn

băi wàn

shí wàn

wàn

qiān

băi

shí

 

The figure only uses the first two columns on the left, including one word in orange.

 

 

Reading out aloud a number

 

Telephone numbers and year numbers are spoken individually in Chinese. The year 1965 is 一九六五年 yī jiŭ liù wŭ nián (lit. 1965 year).

Two irregular features about numbers are worth mentioning here.

1. The tone for one changes according the tone of the succeeding word. It should be pronounced in the fourth tone unless the word after is in the fourth tone, in which case should be pronounced in the second tone. one is only pronounced in the first tone when there is no word after it. The pronunciation for one can become indistinct if used with other numbers or (especially) if repeated, so one is also pronounced yāo when used for numbering:

1    1     3   路电 

yāoyāosān lù diànchē

Route 113 trolleybus.

2. When expressing quantity, liăng two is used instead of èr two. For instance, 两个老师 liăng ge lăoshī   two teachers. However, in a larger number that involves two, then èr is used, but not liăng. Some examples are: 十二个老师 shí èr ge lăoshī twelve teachers.

Written from for numbers

 

Complicated Chinese characters are used for bank notes, cheques and receipts to avoid forgery, as shown on the second line below.

 

亿

 

 

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Verb (11)  

When yíxià is preceded by a verb, it has the following two functions.
1. It is used as a time measure to imply that an action lasts for a short time:

  一下, ?

yòng yíxià hăo ma 

Could I use it for a little while?
2. Verb
yíxià is used to soften the tone of voice, as leaving a verb at the end of a sentence sounds too definite, or even rather crude.

 

There are two other formulas that have the same function.

1. Reduplication of verbs, as in: 我给你介绍介绍wǒ gěi nĭ jièshao jièshao let me introduce you

2. The verb yi verb pattern, as in 请你说一说 qĭng nĭ shuō yi shuō (you) please speak.

 

 

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Co-verbs and co-verb phrases

 

The term "co-verb" refers to a verb when, used with its own object, its function is to modify the main verb of a sentence. An example is zài, which can be used as a co-verb meaning to be located in, on or at a place. Please note in this context that sequence and background are important in Chinese when it comes to describing actions. The first action in a sequence should come first in an utterance. The way to learn co-verb phrases properly is to understand the description of sequence in Chinese word order. For instance,

    

Xiăo Dīng zài jiā kàn shū

Xiao Ding is reading a book at home.

The first action in the sequence could be described as the background to the main action, but it still has to come first in the sentence, with the co-verb zài to be located in followed by the noun jiā home forming a co-verb phrase. In the example given here Xiao Ding would have had to be at home before he started reading the book.

 

English prepositions are similar to Chinese co-verbs, but they appear after the main verbal clause. This means that it can be difficult for English speakers to master Chinese co-verb phrases.

 

Here are some more examples to help you to consolidate the concept of co-verb phrases.

1. 飞机去中   

     zuò fēijī qù Zhōngguó

     I’ll go to China by plane.

The action of zuò taking (lit. sitting on) the plane happens before going to China, so the co-verb phrase 坐飞机 zuò fēijī by (taking the) plane is placed before the main verbal clause去中国qù Zhōngguó go to China.

2. If you want to say I study Chinese at Oxford you must bear in mind that in a Chinese person’s mind the person has to be在牛津 zài Niújīn at Oxford before he can 学汉语 xué Hànyŭ study Chinese, so the sentence in Chinese is

牛津   汉语

zài Niújīn xué Hànyŭ

3. How do you say He goes to school by car? You must bear in mind that he has to take (or sit in) the car before he can reach school, so 坐汽车 zuò qìchē by (taking the) car should be placed before去学校 qù xuéxiào go to school. The Chinese sentence should be 坐汽车去学校 ta zuò qìchē qù xuéxiào.

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Going to School by car. Learning Chinese in classroom. Watching TV at home.

 

The words in the following list are the most commonly used co-verbs for beginners.

Co-verbs

Verb meaning

Prep. in English sentence

Followed by words of

cóng

to start

from /through

place/time (when)

cáo

to face

towards

direction/place

dào

to arrive

to

place/time

duì

to be face to face

to/towards/about

people/knowledge

gĕi

to give

to/for

people/organisation

gēn

to follow

with/to

people/organisation (...一起)

to distance

from

place/time

to replace

for

people/organisation

wàng

to go

towards

direction/place

wèi

to be on behalf of

for

people/organisation

yòng

to use

with/in

noun (used as a tool)

zài

to (be) locate(d)

at/in/on

place/time

zuò

to sit

by ...   

transport 

 

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Frequently asked questions

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  1. What are co-verbs?

  2. Why should I treat these words as co-verbs, but not prepositions?

  3. How can I form a sentence with a co-v. clause?

  4. Where should the adverbs, such as 常常, 总是, and modal verbs such as 可以, 应该 be placed in the sentences which co-verbs are used?

  5. What should I do if a sentence has more than one co-v. clause?

  6. Can you tell me the difference between and ?

  7. What is the difference between the co-verb and ?

  8. What is the difference between  我跟他说 我对他说 and 我给他说?

 

 

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Measure words(15)

 

Words used for quantifying objects are called measure words. In English, some nouns are used in expressions of quantity to measure uncountable nouns, such as cup of in a cup of tea, bottle of in a bottle of wine and piece of in a piece of paper. However, measure words are used to quantify every object in Chinese. In

 

sān ge rén

Three people.

The word GE is a measure word used to quantify people. Here are some more examples.

1. If a number is attached to a noun, a measure word is inserted between the number and the noun, as in

  老师

wǒ yǒu sān ge lăoshī

I have three teachers.

2. If a specifier such as zhè this, that or měi every is attached to a noun, a measure word is inserted between the specifier and the noun, as in

老师  老师

zhè ge lăoshī shì Hànyŭ Lăoshī 

This teacher is a Chinese language teacher.

3. If a question word such as how many or which is used, a measure word is inserted between the question word and the noun, as in 你有几个老师 nĭ yǒu jĭ ge lăoshī? How many teachers do you have?

The most commonly used measure word is the very general ge but other Chinese measure words often categorise what follows according to shape and type. For instance, the measure word tiáo is used for quantifying objects that are long, thin, narrow and twisted, such as ropes, snakes, streets and rivers, but is also used for quantifying news, lives, and lower-body worn items such as trousers!

 

There are two special Chinese nouns that do not need measure words. One is nián year and the other is tiān day (including )

 

There are so many measure words that they are even a nightmare for the Chinese. Worse still, measure words used in the north of China may be different from those used in the south. The following list gives the "essential" Chinese measure words for beginners.

 

MW

Used for           

Examples

bĕn

book-like objects        

Magazines 四本杂志; novels三本小说

céng

floors (similar to )

storey三层楼

actions

to pay a visit 去了一次中国; to do something

这件事作了两次

dĭng

something to put over one's head

hats 一顶帽子; umbrellas一顶雨伞

dùn

actions which last for a short period

to eat a meal 吃了一顿饭; to beat somebody up把他打了一顿

fēng

something sealed in an envelope

letters 两封信; telegrams一封电报

picture-like objects

paintings 三幅画; banners八幅标语

ge

units of something (common measure word for abstract and physical objects)

people五个人; ideas一个主意...

 

jiān

any kind of room

 

bed-room 一间卧室; kitchen 两间厨房;

jiàn

upper-body worn clothes; matters

shirts 两件衬衫; matters三件事

Sentences; lines (e.g. of poems)

sentences 两句话; idioms三句成语;

liàng

vehicles (on wheels)

cars 一辆汽车; bikes一辆自行车

piān

writing

essays一篇文章;

shŏu

verse

songs  一首民歌; poems两首中国诗歌

tiáo

narrow, long and twisting; lower-body worn clothes

fish 一条鱼; trousers 两条裤子, boats一条船

wèi

people (used to show respect)

teachers 三位老师; customers一位顾客

zhāng

objects made of paper; flat objects

paper一张纸; tickets, table 一张桌子; bed 一张床

zhī

animals; one of a pair

chickens 三只鸡; shoe一只鞋

 

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Measure words

 

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Frequently asked questions

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  1. How many measure words are there?

  2. When do I need a measure word (category 1) in a sentence?

  3. Where should I place a measure word in a sentence?

  4. Are there any other tips on the use of measure words?

  5. Should the word (more, over) appear before or after a measure word?

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expresses excessiveness (16)

This construction is used to express an extreme state in a situation or action. The affirmative form of the tài construction is [stative verb] , which means extremely [stative verb] as in tài hăo le    extremely good. Without the particlein the affirmative form, the tone is rather crude. The negative form bú tài [stative verb] without le means that something is not extremely… [stative verb], as in bú tài hăo not very good.

 

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Pronoun/noun + 这儿 or 那儿 (16)

A pronoun/noun + 这儿 or  那儿is similar to the English expression (somebody’s) place, as in

        那儿

wǒmen qù Xiăo Wáng nàr

We will go to Xiao Wang’s place.

你来  这儿

nĭ lái wǒ zhèr

You come to my place. (The speaker is in his place as he is talking.)

 

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Telling the time (20)

 

You might remember that when giving the date in Chinese you start from the year, then go to the month and then the day. This background-to-foreground logic also applies to time-telling, where you start from diăn o’clock, then go to fēn minute, then to miăo second. The other two words that are commonly used for telling the time are bàn half and quarter, as in 十一点半 shí yī diăn bàn half past eleven (lit. eleven o’clock half); 十一 shí yī diăn quarter past eleven (lit. eleven o’clock a quarter). The word quarter is only used for time, not for other objects. In colloquial Chinese, for 12 hour clock time reading you use the words 上午 shàngwŭ a.m. (lit. up noon) and下午 xiàwŭ p.m. (lit. down noon):

    十一  

shàngwŭ shí yī diăn

Quarter past eleven in the morning (lit. up noon, 11 o’clock, a quarter)

Another irregular feature which should be mentioned here is that two o’clock in Chinese can be either èr diăn or liáng diăn, although elsewhere it is normally liăng two that is used for describing quantities.

When asking or telling the time, shì to be is not needed:

?

xiànzài jĭ diăn

What time is it? (lit. now what time)

 

xiànzài wŭ diăn

It’s 5 o’clock. (lit. now 5 o’clock)

The modal particle le, which indicates a change of situation, can be placed at the end of a sentence when expressing present time, as in

几点 ?

jĭ diăn le

What time is it now?

五点  

wŭdiăn le

It’s 5 o’clock now.

 

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Modal verbs (19)

 

There are about a dozen modal verbs in Chinese. Modal verbs such as 喜欢 xĭhuān like, xiăng wish and 应该 yīnggāi ought to are used to express feelings, intentions and obligations. Modal verbs are placed before the main verbs in sentences. For instance,

      

xiăng chī Zhōngguó fàn

I fancy eating some Chinese food

The word xiăng fancy, wish in is a modal verb which indicates the speaker’s inclination and intention.

When a modal verb is used in a sentence, the aspect particle le for completed actions is not used. A time word (time when) is placed in the sentence to indicate that an action has taken place:

以前     去中   

wǒ yĭqián xiăng qù Zhōngguó

I wanted go to China in the past.

The modal verbs in the following list are the most commonly used.

Chinese

Pinyin

English

yào

want; ask for; wish; desire

xiăng

want to; would like to; feel like (something)

应该

yīnggāi

should; ought to; must

néng

can; be able to; be capable of

喜欢

xĭhuān

like; love; prefer; enjoy; be fond of

可以

kěiyĭ

can; may

huì

be good at; be skilful in

愿意

yuànyì

be willing to

kěn

be willing to

 

 

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Asking ages

 

As with telling the time, the verb shì  to be is not used when talking about years of age:

你弟弟几岁?

nĭ dì di jĭ suì

How old is your younger brother? (lit. your younger brother how old)

时候       

wŭ suì de shíhou měitiān dōu chī Zhōngguó fàn

When I was five years old, I ate Chinese food every day.

 

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Aspects

Progressive aspects (23)

Use of the 正在 sentence pattern 

The subject (S) 正在 verb (V) object (O) sentence pattern is used to describe a progressive action in the past, at the present, or in the future. The verbs that are used in this construction are transitive verbs. For instance,

Time clause     

S                  V        O   

          时候                  

zuótiān wǒ qù tā jiā de shíhou    tā zhèngzài zuò wănfàn

When I went to his house yesterday, he was cooking the supper.

Time clause     

 S          V         O   

      他来         时候         

zuótiān tā lái kàn wǒ de shíhou  wǒ zài xuéxí Hànzì

When he came to see me yesterday, I was learning Chinese characters.

S              V      O   

                

zhèng  kàn diànshì ne

He is right in the middle of watching the TV.

Time

 S          V         O   

现在                    

xiànzài    wǒ zài shàng kè ne

I am having a lesson now.

Time clause     

S    V         O   

                        候,我     

míngtiān tā dào zhōngguó de shíhou,  wǒ zài kāihuì 

When he arrives in China tomorrow, I will be having a meeting.

 

He was cooking the supper”, “I was learning Chinese characters”, “He is watching the TV”, “I am having a lesson” and “I will be having a meeting” are all progressive actions.

Some of the elements for the progressive constructions have special emphasis if they are used selectively. For instance, zhèng can precede a verb with ne at the end of the sentence, without using the element zài to create an emphatic tone of “right in the middle of”. (See the highlighted sentence below.)

All the following sentences mean he is watching the TV with different tones of emphasis.

S

V

O

 

    

 

 

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The use of the particle (36)

Many grammar books describe the use of verb (V)+ zhe as the continuous aspect, but I have divided the usages into the following five categories.

1. V+ zhe can be used to describe how an object has been left in a place in a certain position.  For instance,

                  

shū zài zhuōzi shàng fàngzhe.

The book is on the table.

This implies that the book has been fàng put on the table by someone.

     

mén kāizhe 

The door is open.

This implies that the door has been left kāi open by someone.

                          

zàiqiángshàng guàzhe yì zhāng huà

There is a picture hanging on the wall.

This sentence implies that a picture has been guà hung on the wall by someone.

 

2. However, if an action is carried out by the subject of a sentence, the V + zhe pattern implies that an action is in progress. For instance, if you see a friend of yours standing there, you might say:

       。快      

bié zhànzhe. kuài zuòxia

Don’t stand there. Quickly sit down!

You might describe a group a students sitting in a classroom in the following way:

                          

xuéshengmen  dōu  zài jiàoshì lĭ zuò zhe

The students are sitting in the classroom.

The meaning of this sentence is similar to the form of its progressive aspect

                                里坐    

xuéshēngmen dōu zhèng zài jiàoshì   lĭ  zuò zhe ne

As you might have noticed that there is no object after the verb zuò sit, but instead the verb is followed by the particle zhe. Another difference between the above sentence and the sentence pattern of the progressive aspect is that the word zài here is a co-verb which means to be in (classroom)  and it is not part of the elements that are used in the progressive aspect.

 

3. V + zhe can also be used to describe how an action is carried out with another action. For instance,

                           

xiăoxuéshēng chàngzhe qù xuéxiào 

The primary school children go to school singing.

The phrase 唱着歌chàngzhe kē singing describes the way that the primary school children go to school.

吸着        

xīzhe yān kàn shū

He reads while he is smoking.

The phrase while he is smoking describes the way that he reads.

The stative verb máng can be followed by particle zhe to describe other actions as demonstrated below.

                   

mángzhe zhŭnbèi kăoshì ne

He is busy preparing the exams.

             

mángzhe tán liàn ài ne

He is busy being in love.

There are other verbs that can be used like máng such as 吵闹着

孩子们          ()           他们            

háizimen chăo(nào)zhe yào wǒ dài tāmen qù gōngyuánwán

The children are nagging me to take them to the parks.

 

4. The expression of V+ zhe has a commanding tone. It is used to demand that a listener to carry out an action continuously. The only verbs that can be used in these expressions are some of the monosyllabic ones. For instance,

                                                                    

děngzhe                                                     zhànzhe

Wait! (Don’t go away.)                                     Stand up! (Don’t sit down.)

                                                                  

jì     zhe                                                      zuòzhe

Remember! (Don’t forget.)                               Sit! (Don’t stand up or move about.)

 

kānzhe

Watch it! (Don’t lose your concentration)

 

5. A stative verb can precede 着呢 zhene to describe excessiveness. The expression is placed at the end of a sentence. For instance,

                热着呢                       他的          

zhōngguó de xiàtiān rèzhene                   tā de qián duōzhene

The summer in China is extremely hot.          He has got plenty of money.

 

                      

wǒ měi tiān dōu máng zhe ne

I am busy everyday

 

If you have any questions about the above explanation, please click here to ask.

 

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The aspect for the completion of actions (27)

 

Although the aspect particle le is one of the most complicated Chinese grammar points, I will only be explaining the practical aspect of the particle in this section.

 

Unlike the English past tense, the aspect particle le only affects certain verbs in certain sentence constructions. The following list consists of the common rules for the use of the particle which are supported by examples. Learning where to apply the aspect particle le in a sentence is important, but the most difficult thing is to know when it is not used. Learners must remember the following eight points when expressing a completed action in Chinese.

 

1. The aspect particle le is placed after the main action verb of a sentence to indicate that the action has been completed. The aspect particlele is not used when a verb is in the negative form. When expressing an action that did not occur in the past, a verb is preceded by the negation méi did not. The following sentences demonstrate how some of the action verbs such as xué to learn, chī to eat or to go are used in the sentences with the aspect particle le and the negation méi.

The sentence below shows that the verb chī to eat is used in the affirmative form.

        吃了         

wǒ gāng chīle yí huài miànbāo

I’ve just eaten a piece of bread.

The following sentence shows the verbchī to eat in the negative form.

          

méichī miànbāo

I didn’t eat bread.

The next sentence shows the verb to go in the affirmative form.

去了          

qùle  liăngcì zhōngguó

He went to China twice.

The following sentence shows to go in the negative form.

         

méiqù zhōngguó

He didn’t go to China.

The following sentence shows the verb xué to learn in the affirmative form.

                   法文

xiăowáng xuéle sānnián făwén

Xiao Wang studied French for three years.

The following sentence shows the verb xué to learn in the negative form.

               法文

xiăowáng méixué făwén

Xiao Wang didn’t study French.

 

If a sentence consists of a time measure such as three months or an action measure such as twice, the measures should be placed after the main verb of the sentence, as demonstrated below. More examples can be seen in Lesson 31 of Practical Chinese Reader Book II.

                

wǒ xué hànyŭ xuéle sān ge yuè 

               

xuéle sān ge yuè de hànyŭ

  汉语           

wǒ hànyŭ xuéle sān ge yuè

I studied Chinese for three months.

 

2. One might have noticed that the above affirmative sentences have complex objects. However, when describing a particular action, if the object of the sentence is a simple one i.e. a noun, which is not attached to a number and measure word, and not attached to a descriptive clause ( clause), the aspect particle le can be placed at the end of the sentence. For instance,

 

           哪儿                 or          去了  哪儿
jīn   tiān shàngwŭ nĭ năr   le              or jīn  tiān shàngwŭ nĭ  qù le  năr  

Where did you go this morning?

 

        

wǒ qù măi shū le

I went out to buy (a) book.

Both objects of the sentences, 哪儿 năr where and shū book are simple words without clauses attached, therefore the aspect particle le can be placed at the end of the sentences.

As one can see that the answer in the above conversation uses the same sentence pattern as it is in the question.

 

3. The rules of the aspect particle le only apply to the main verb of a sentence. If an action verb is used in a descriptive () clause as it demonstrated below, it will not be affected by the rules.  The aspect le is not used with stative verbs either. For example,

                         

wǒmen  zuótiān xué de  hànyŭ  hěn róngyì  

The Chinese language that we learned yesterday was very easy.

The aspect particle le is not used in the above sentence for the following two reasons.

  • The action verb xué learned is only used to describe the subject of the sentence, 汉语 hànyŭ Chinese language, and is not the main verb of the sentence.
  • The main verb of the sentence is the stative verb, 容易 róngyì was easy, therefore the aspect particle le is not applied.

 

4. The aspect particle le is not used when describing a completed action that one has done regularly. In other words, if a sentence consists of the words that indicate regularity, such as 每天 měitiān everyday, 常常 chángcháng often or 总是 zǒngshì always, the aspect particle le is not used, but a time adverb such as 昨天  zuótiān yesterday or 去年 qùnián last year is placed in a sentence to indicate that the action has been completed. The negation for a habitual action in the past is do not, but not méi. For example,

                          

qùnián wǒmen zǒngshì chī zhōngguó fàn

We always ate Chinese meals last year.

                           

qùnián wǒmen měitiān dōu bùchī zhōngguó fàn

We didn’t eat a Chinese meal during a single day.

 

5. When the verbs that imply habitual actions such as shì, to be, zài to be in and yǒu to have are used as the main verbs of sentences, the aspect particle le is not used. In this case the negation for these verbs is not except for yǒu. See below,

       以前                    

shí nián yĭqián xiăo wáng shì hànyŭ lăoshī

Xiao Wang was a Chinese language teacher ten years ago.

       以前                      

shí nián yĭqián xiăo wáng búshì hànyŭ lăoshī

Xiao Wang wasn’t a Chinese language teacher ten years ago.

          图书 

zuótiān wǒ zài túshūguăn

I was in the library yesterday.

       不在  图书  

zuótiān wǒ búzài túshūguăn

I wasn’t in the library yesterday.

                

qùnián wǒ yǒu hěnduō qián

I had a lot of money last year.

                  

qùnián wǒ méiyǒu hěnduō qián

I didn’t have a lot of money last year.

 

6. If a modal verb is used in a sentence, the aspect particle le should not be applied, but a time adverb such as 昨天 zuótiān yesterday or 去年 qùnián last year is placed in the sentence to indicate the completion of the action. The negation for a modal verb in the past is do not, but not méi. Modal verbs are those verbs which express intentions, such as xiăng wish to and yào want to; the verbs that are used to express feelings such as 喜欢 xĭhuān like and ài love; or the verbs that express obligations such as 应该 yīnggāi ought to, néng can and 可以 kěyĭ may. For instance,

                                    

zuótiān wănshang wǒhěn  xiăng chī  zhōngguó cài

I really wanted to eat some Chinese food last night.

                 不想                

zuótiān wănshang wǒbùxiăng chī zhōngguó cài

I didn’t want to eat Chinese food last night.

 

7. The aspect particlele is not used in the complement of degree construction. In other words when one expresses a sentence using verb++adverb, the aspect particlele is not used. As you may have remembered, the complement of degree construction is used to describe habitual actions, such as “he runs very fast” and “she eats slowly”. It is mentioned in points 4 and 5 of this section that the aspect particlele is not used when describing a regular action in the past. Although the complement of degree construction can also be used to describe the result or the outcome of a particular (one off) action, the aspect particlele is not used. The following sentence describes a past habitual action without using the particlele. The following sentence describes the regular action of studying in the past without using the particlele.

                     得   

qùnián tā xué zhōngwén   xué de hěnhăo

He studied Chinese very well last year.

The following sentence describes the outcome of a particular action, cooking in the past, without using the aspect particlele.

                        

zuótiān wănshàng  tā zuòfàn zuò  dehěnhăo

He cooked a lot last night.

 

8. If a sentence describes a sequence of completed actions, the aspect particlele is placed after the last verb in the sequence, but in a negative sentence, the negation méi is placed before the first verb. For instance,

                         

zuótiān wǒ dàxué shūdiàn măile sān běn shū

I went to the university bookshop and bought three books yesterday.

                      

zuótiān wǒ méiqù dàxué shūdiàn măi shū

I didn’t go to the university bookshop to buy books yesterday.

If one of the actions in a sequence is completed and the other is not, they should be treated separately as indicated below.

  去了大学         店,可是     

qùle dàxué shūdiàn, kěshì méimăishū

Yesterday I went to the university bookshop, but I didn’t buy books.

 

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Assignments

Frequently asked questions

Click on the following links to view the answers

  1. When should I use it?

  2. When should I place the at the end of a sentence, and when should I place it after the main verb of a sentence?

  3. Is it incorrect if I place after the verb in a simple-object sentence?

  4. Can I place at the end of a sentence that has a complex object?

  5. Where should I place if a sentence has a time measure?

  6. Is a time measure placed after in a negative sentence?

  7. Do I have to put the time-measures before in all negative sentences?

  8. Do I have to put after every verb in a sentence, if the sentence has a sequence of actions?

  9. Do I always have to place after the last verb of a sentence when describing a sequence of actions?

  10. Do I always have to use to indicate a completed action?

  11. Apart from the negation, are there any circumstances in which is not used?

  12. Is it true that if I use a time-word I don't have to use ?

  13. Are there any constructions that cannot take an aspectual particle ?

  14. Do I always have to consider the use of when I see a past tense in an English sentence?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

expressing experiences of actions in the past (32)

The verb suffix guò can be used in the following two situations.

 

1. The particle guò is placed after a verb to express an experience of action in the past, such as

                                      去过          

xué guò zhōngwén                   qùguò zhōngguó

He has studied Chinese.                      I’ve been to China.

When expressing an experience of action that didn’t occur, the negation méi will be used and the verb will be followed by guò. For example

                                       去过        

méi xué guò zhōngwén            méiqùguòzhōngguó

He has never learned Chinese          I haven’t been to China.

 

2. The particle guò can also be used to express the completion of a regular activity within a specific time, such as having a meal, sleeping, having lessons or doing homework. This type of affirmative sentence is often ended with the modal partical le to indicate the change of the situation. The following sentences imply some of the regular activities that one does daily. Many native Chinese would use the aspect particlele instead ofguò in the following affirmative sentences.

( )           午饭               ( )              午饭

(jīntiān)  wǒ  chī guo wŭfàn le         (jīntiān)  wǒ méi chī guo wŭfàn

I’ve had lunch (for today).                    I haven’t had lunch today.

 

( )                           (今天)我             

(jīntiān)  wǒ shuì guo jiào le          (jīntiān)  wǒ méi shuì guo jiào

I’ve slept today.                                    I haven’t slept today.

 

(  )                          ( )                 

 (jīntiān)  wǒ shàng guo kè le         (jīntiān)  wǒ méi shàng guo

I’ve had today’s classes.                       I haven’t had today’s classes.

 

( )                         ( )                练习

 (jīntiān)  wǒzuò guo liànxí   le         (jīntiān)   wǒ méi zuò guo liànxí 

I’ve done today’s homework.               I haven’t done today’s homework.

 

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particle , used for making suggestions

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Position words with , and(22)

1. The following table consists of all the position words. Position words are often bi-syllabic in spoken language. They are often formed by a joining position word with biān side, miàn face or jiān between. Either of the suffixes biān side or miàn face can be used as a suffix in a position word. The suffix jiān between can only be preceded by zhōng centre.

 

Position words

Suffixes

English

qián

/ biān/miàn

in front

hòu

/

behind

zuǒ

/

left side

yòu

/

right side

shàng

/

upper side

xià

/

underside

/

inside

wàn

/

outside

dōng

/

east side

nán

/

south side

西

/

west side

běi

/

north side

zhōng

jiān

middle

 

2. The word order for expressing the position of an object in Chinese is different from what it is in English. As explained in the de section, the primary information is placed after de and the descriptions of the information are placed before de. If one wants to say, “on the left of the dormitory”, in Chinese it would be宿舍的左边sùshè de zuǒbiān dormitory’s left. The primary information is left which is placed afterde. To illustrate this speech pattern an English – Chinese comparison table is given below.

 

English

Chinese word order

Chinese

Top of the bookshelf

Bookshelf’s upperside

书架()上边 shūjià shàngbiān

Underneath the table

Table’s underside

桌子()下边 zhuōzi xiàbiān

Inside the house

House’s inside

房子()里边 fángzi lĭbiān

On the east side of the library

Library’s east

图书馆()东边túshūguăn dōngbiān

 

3. There are three common ways to express the position of an object in a sentence by using the verbs zài to be in/on/at, shì to be and yǒu there is/are. In the following patterns, “A” and “B” represent objects or items and the PW stands for position words.

English sentence

Chinese sentence

A                  is  PW     of B

The canteen is in front of the dormitory.  

A            is B          ’s     PW

食堂      宿         

shítáng zài sùshè de qiānbiān

PW        of  B                  is A

In front of the dormitory is the canteen.

B          ’s PW           is    A

宿               食堂

sùshè de qiānbiān shì shítáng

There is  A             PW      of B

There is a canteen in front of the dormitory.

B          ’s PW           is             A

宿               一个 

sùshè de qiānbiān yǒu yíge  shítáng

 

                       

 

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The use of (8)

qĭng has many meanings in Chinese. It means to ask (sb. to do sth.), to invite, and please, and is sometimes used with other Chinese words to form expressions. The best way to learn qĭng is to see how it is used in various practical contexts.

1. When a friend comes to your house, you might use the following expressions to welcome him.

                                                        

qĭng jìn                   qĭng zuò                qĭng hē chá

Do come in.              Do have a seat.           Would you like some tea?

In China you might also say:

     吸烟

qĭng xī yān

Would you like a cigarette? (lit. please breath in smoke)

You might have noticed that the word qĭng is followed by verbs in the above examples.

2. When you want to ask someone a favour, you can the word qĭng. For example if you want your Chinese friend to help you with your homework you might say:

           

qĭng nĭ jiāo wǒ Hànyŭ

Please teach me Chinese. (lit. please you teach me Chinese)

If your Chinese friend is incapable of answering your questions, you might say:

     你问     

qĭng nĭ wèn nĭ lăoshī

Please ask your teacher. (lit. please you ask your teacher)

When qĭng is used to ask a favour, it is followed by full sentences, as can be seen in the above examples.

 

3. qĭng means to invite. For example:

        

qĭng  nĭ  hē jiŭ

Let me buy you a drink. (lit. I invite you to drink wine.)

When you useqĭng  for to invite, it usually means that you will take care of any payment. For example, if you say to a Chinese friend 我请你吃饭 wǒ qĭng nĭ chī fàn, you are expected to pay the bill.

 

4. The use of  qĭng in Chinese is not the same as that for the English word “please”. qĭng is not used when asking for permission, as can be seen below.

              吗?

wǒ néng hē bēi chá ma

May I have a cup of tea please? (lit. I can drink a cup of tea MA?)

          一下     吗?

tā néng yòng yíxià nĭ de chē ma

Could he please use your car for a while? (lit. he can use for a while your car MA)

As you may have noticed, the word qĭng is not used in the Chinese questions above, although the word “please” is used in the English translation.

 

5. qĭng is also used to form the following expressions.

                                                                                       

qĭng wèn         qĭng jiào                                 qĭng kè                        qĭng jià

May I ask…     May I ask your advice?          Entertain friends         Ask for leave

Let’s see how the first expression above is used in sentences.

请问qĭng wèn excuse me; may I ask…is one of the most common expressions used for starting a question politely. For example:

                 你的       师?

qĭng wèn  shéi shì  nĭ de hàn yŭ lăo shī

Excuse me, who is your Chinese teacher?

谁是你的汉语老师 shéi shì nĭ de hàn yŭ lăo shī  who is your Chinese teacher is a question. The function of the expression 请问 qĭng wèn is to attract the listener’s attention before the question is asked.

           

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Verbs that take two objects (15)                  

 

There are only a few verbs in Chinese that can take both indirect and direct objects without any other particles being used. Lets’ look at the following examples, which make use of the verbs huán to return (sth to sb), jiāo to teach and gěi to give.

S

V

Indir O

Dir O

词典

huán

cídiăn

I’m returning the dictionary to you.

S

V

Indir O

Dir O

汉语

jiāo

hànyŭ

He teaches me Chinese.

 

S

V

Indir O

Dir O

huán

shū

I’m giving the books to you.

 

 

                       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Serial verbs (after verbs of motion and )

The verbs lái to come and to go are used to describe motion coming towards or moving way from a speaker. More explanations and examples will be given in the “directional complement” section, but we would like to demonstrate here how lái and are followed by the noun or the main verbal clause of a sentence. For example:

 

   

lái wǒ jiā hē chá

He is coming to my house for tea. (lit. he is coming to my home to drink tea)

The motion in the above sentence moves towards the speaker. lái to come is followed by wǒ jiā my home.

 

 

lái hē chá

He is coming for tea. (lit. he is coming to drink tea)

The motion in the above sentence moves towards the speaker. lái to come is followed by the verbal clause hē chá drink tea.

 

            

qù shū diàn mǎi shū

I’m going to the bookshop to buy books.

The motion in the above sentence moves away from the speaker. to go is followed by the noun shū diàn bookshop.

 

    

qù mǎi shū

I’m going out to buy books. (lit. I’m going to buy books)

The motion in the above sentence moves away from the speaker. to go is followed by the verbal clause  买书mǎi shū buy books.

 

Apart from indicating motion direction, lái has the following functions.

1. It can mean that let sb. do sth

 

                                 

lái gěi nǐ zuò                wǒ lái jiāo nǐ hàn yǔ              

Let me do it for you.               Let me teach you Chinese.

 

2. lái is used for ordering food and drinks in restaurants. The expression implies the Bring me …that you might say to a waiter:

 

一瓶    啤酒                                                 咖啡

lái yì ping pí jiǔ                                          lái yì bēi kāfēi

I’d like a bottle of beer.                                  I’d like a cup of coffee.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Use of  

 

 yǒu means to have. This is the only verb whose negative form is 没有méiyǒu not have. not is not used withyǒu.

The Chinese word yǒu to have is not used when translating an English past participle. In other words, yǒu to have is not used when saying ‘I have done my work’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Review of interrogatives following 好吗

The interrogative expression 好吗 hăoma is it OK? / how about? is used in making suggestions. 好吗 hăoma is placed at the end of a statement to form a question. For instance:

 

                    

wŏmen qù kàn diànyĭng hăoma

Shall we go and see a film? / How about seeing a film?

 

我们去看电影 wŏmen qù kàn diànyĭng we are going to see a film is a statement. hăoma is it OK? / how about? is added at end to form a question with the force of a suggestion. The use of hăoma is similar to the use of the sentence particle ba. However, the sentence particle ba has a more assertive tone (equivalent to the first person plural imperative ‘let’s’ in English), while hăoma leaves more of the choice to the listener.

 

If we replace 好吗 hăoma with the sentence particle ba in the above statement, the imperative connotation is stronger.

 

                

wŏmen qù kàn diànyĭng ba

(Come on.) Let’s go and see a film.

 

The answers for both types of question are eitherhăo OK or bù xíng no (not OK). The negative answer bu xíng no (not OK) is often followed by a reason. For instance, to give a negative answer to the above suggestion, we could say:

 

  ,我                  一起    京剧。

bù xing, wŏ gēn wŏ nán péngyou yìqĭ   qù kàn jīngjù

Sorry, I can’t; my boyfriend and I are going to a Peking Opera.

 

NB Apologies such as sorry are not as common in Chinese as in English.

 

Assignments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Modal particle

This section gives a brief introduction to the use of the end-of-sentence particlele. This modal particle le may be used in the following situations.

  1. To indicate change
  2. To indicate imminent action
  3. To indicate excessiveness (Please see notes on )

1. The modal particle le can be used to indicate change, such as in the weather, in seasons or in time.

                                   

liăngdiănbàn le                 dōngtiān le

It’s 2:30 now.                          It’s winter now.

The modal particle le can also indicate a change of situation, or that a situation no longer exists.

    老师   去年             汉字               语法

dīng lăoshī qùnián jiāo wŏmen hànzì, xiànzài jiāo wŏmen yŭfă le

Mr Ding taught us Chinese characters last year. He teaches us grammar now.

不是  老师 

wŏ búshì lăoshī le 

I am no longer a teacher.

The modal particle le in the above examples implies “now”. The following end-of-sentence also has the function of bringing the action of “learning” into the present.

              

wǒ xué hànyŭ xuéle sān ge yuè le

I have been studying Chinese for three months.

Here, the modal particlele at the end of the sentence indicates that the action of learning is still going on. Without the end-of-sentence le it means that the action of learning has been completed.

 

2. The modal particle le is used as a sentence component to indicate that an action is about to take place.  The other components used in this type of sentence pattern are yào, jiù and kuài. Possible formulas for this speech pattern are as follows.

·        ...

·        ..., 快要..., 快就....

·        就要..., 就快....

The imminent action is placed between yào, jiù, kuài and le. Other possible elements that can be placed in this speech pattern are time words (such as winter, summer, June and 10 o’clock), verb-object phrases, and verbs. For instance,

         (month)             快             (season)

kuài shí èr yuè le                           kuàiyào dōngtiān le

It’s nearly December.                          It’s almost winter.

           (verb)                        (verb-object)               

xiăo dīng yào lái le                        jiù yào kāi chē le

Xiao Ding is about to arrive.              The bus is about to leave.

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Frequently asked questions

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  1. What else can be used for, apart from for indicating a completed action?

  2. How is used for emphasis?

  3. Can be used to emphasize negative actions?

  4. Can be used to emphasize stative verbs or complements of degree?

  5. How is used to express excessiveness?

  6. Can be the following expressions be placed before nouns: stative verb ; stative verb ; and stative verb ?

  7. Can the above three expressions have negative forms?

  8. When do I use for a change of situation, and where does it go in a sentence?

  9. Are the functions of always clear in sentences?

  10. How many sentence patterns can be used to indicate imminent action?

  11. Do these expressions indicate the same degree of urgency?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

[1] The term of "stative verbs" is used in Colloquial Chinese by T’ung and Pollard. It is described as "predicative-only adjectives" on page 68,  in Chinese A Comprehensive Grammar by Yip Po-Ching and Don Rimmington and it is described as "adjectival verbs" on  page 56, in Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar by Claudia Ross and Jing-heng Sheng Ma

[2] Co-verb phrases are called prepositional phrases in Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar; prepositions in Practical Chinese Reader

[3] Measure words are called classifiers in Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar