What is that use of 得?

Question

I have read the sentence: 你还记得我吗？ But I can’t understand the meaning of 得, here. I don’t think it belongs to the rules explained here

Answer 1

In the example sentence you give, 得 is just part of the word 记得 (= to remember).

你还记得我吗？

Do you still remember me?

Answer 2

Very briefly, you should be aware that one additional meaning of 得 (de2) is to obtain.

Examples of this usage include 得到 and 获得.

In this particular instance, I think of 记得 as being 记 + 得, where the 记 means memory, 得 means to obtain, and put together we have: to obtain a memory. Thus, 记得 means to remember.

Answer 3

记得 as a whole:

First I take back my comment saying 记得 is one word, but I keep the part that it should be understood as a whole.

记得 is a 离合词 (cleft word, a.k.a. separable word). Most, if not all, cleft words have their dictionary entries, however, grammatically whether they're words or phrases is still being debated by the professionals. No wonder there's a lot of confusion across the answers and comments.

There are different types of cleft words. 记得 is of type 'verb+result', where

• 记 (to memorize; to remember) is the 'action verb'.
• 得 (to obtain; 'can remember' in this context) is the 'stative verb as resultative complement'.

Words with the same structure include 看见, 听懂, 叫醒, etc.

Words with the same structure AND the 'result' word is also 得: 认得, 晓得, etc.

As a result, 得 in 记得 has the same meaning as in 得到, although the syntactic roles are different (in 得到, 得 is the action verb and 到 is the resultative complement). You're right that this usage is not listed in the link you have in the question.

记得得/记不得/记不记得/记得不记得:

Being a 'verb+result' cleft word, 记 and 得 can be infix-ed by a resultative particle to affirm/negate the result or construct an interrogative pattern. I.e.

• verb+得+result: 看得见, 记得得 (the first 得 is the resultative particle, read with neutral tone)
• verb+不+result: 看不见, 记不得
• verb+不/没+verb+result: 看没看见, 记不记得

记得得 is grammatically correct but seldom used due to the pronunciation difficulty caused by the repeating 得.

Besides, these cleft words can apply the common 'word+不/没+word' pattern just like non-cleft verbs. The meaning is exactly the same as #3 above.

• word+不/没+word: 看见没看见, 记得不记得

记不得 vs. 不记得:

There is a common misunderstanding that 记不得 means 'I used to remember but now forgot'; 不记得 means 'I tried to remember but never succeeded'.

In fact, the two patterns ('verb+不+result' and '不/没+verb+result') mean exactly the same thing, which is focused on the result rather than implying anything about the action attempt. 看不见 and 没看见 both mean 'I don't see it'. 记不得 and 不记得 both mean 'I don't remember' and that's all.

The only real difference is in geographical popularity. People from Northern China are more accustomed to say 不记得, while people from Southern China are used to both.

得 as in 记得住:

记住 is also a 'verb+result' cleft word. 记得住 is 记住 infix-ed with affirmative particle 得 (pattern 'verb+得+result'). Similar examples include 看得见, 跑得快, etc. 记 and 得 happen to be neighbors in this phrase but it has nothing to do with the cleft word 记得.

Answer 4

I check the link OP used. It is very close, or actually answered the question.

It is in the B1 category. The site contains many specific long examples, but none with the exact format OP is looking for.

It is very difficult to "explain" or give a translation to 得. I will try to give a list of example (specific to this usage/format) and hope OP can get a "feel" of it.

用得 Can use
打得 Can fight
记得 Can remember
读得 Can read
写得 Can write
跑得 Can run

得 in the above usage/combination gives a "sense" of positive/confirmation.

I hope this helps and not being too confusing.

Answer 5

I would translate 得 as "able" (for emphasis). So, 你还记得我吗？would mean, "Are you still (able) to remember me?