3

I want to make some notes on the general grammar of Chinese, and standard Chinese uses SVO or subject-verb-object. How do I say this in Chinese?

Google translate gives:

主语动词宾语

But other sites mention otherwise:

主动宾

Improve this question
1
  • Note, it is called 主词(subject)动词(verb)受詞(object) in Taiwan.
    – r13
    Jun 29, 2022 at 15:24

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
5

I think it is commonly called 主谓宾 (short for 主语，谓语，宾语), where 主 is the subject, 谓 is the action/verb by the subject and 宾 is the object that is acted upon.

For example, in this sentence - I ate an apple:

  • I: 主语
  • ate: 谓语
  • an apple: 宾语
Improve this answer
6
  • 2
    "an apple" is the 宾语 I think.
    – wznmickey
    Jun 29, 2022 at 3:46
  • @wznmickey No, an is used to quantify the quantiy of apple, I think it is called 定语.
    – jdhao
    Jun 29, 2022 at 9:44
  • 2
    @jdhao Surely the two words together serve as the object in the sentence, so "an apple" is 宾语.
    – iBug
    Jun 29, 2022 at 15:48
  • @iBug I am not an expert on this topic, maybe you are right. Some references would be great :)
    – jdhao
    Jun 29, 2022 at 16:38
  • 1
    Also, the terminology for 谓语 is predicate. In English we may say "SVO order", which is probably because a predicate is always a verb. There exists non-predicate verb (surely).
    – iBug
    Jun 29, 2022 at 17:10
4

This can be called 主谓宾 or 主动宾语序:

Subject–verb–object word order (主动宾语序) Source

subject-verb-object SVO or subject-predicate-object sentence pattern (e.g. in Chinese grammar) Source

Improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.