Questions tagged [grammar]
Questions about the grammatical rules governing Chinese structure and composition.
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的, 地, 得, when do you use which?
So the age old question of 的, 地, 得, when do you use which? When spoken, it all sounds the same, but on paper it depends on if it's a verb, noun, adjective. But I don't quite remember if that is all ...
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Why there is no 的 after 你 in 你国家的医院好吗?
I got a translation of “Are hospitals in your country good?” from a native speaker of Mandarin as:
你国家的医院好吗？
Why there is no 的 after 你? It is after a pronoun for instance in such a sentence:
...
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Tense and use of 了
I struggle a bit to get my head around tenses in Mandarin, and in particular when I need to use 了 (le).
Do you have any tips, examples or resources to help me out with this?
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How do I decide whether to use 可以, 会 or 能?
According to every dictionary I've seen so far, there is a big overlap in these:
可以 = can, may, be able to
会 = can, be able to, able
能 = can, may, able, capable
How do I properly choose which ...
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Does 多 always come after the measure word？
I've realized that I still don't fully understand the placement of "多“ a relatively common word. Can you never place 多 before a measure word?
A friend recently corrected my "四多快美金“ into 四块多美金” but ...
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When should I use the 是...的 construction?
I've been told that 是...的 is used to put emphasis on something, but I'm not sure when or why I should use it.
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What does "了" do in the sentence "呆在家里， 这样你就能接电话了"?
In the sentence "呆在家里， 这样你就能接电话了", I can't see why "了" is used in this sentence.
I study Chinese these days, and I think that I can just say "这样你就能接电话", but in this ...
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How is 就 (jiù) used?
Pimsleur's Mandarin course teaches "I'm leaving very early tomorrow morning" as:
我明天早上很早就走 (wŏ míngtiān zăoshàng hĕn zăo jiù zŏu)
It says that 就 (jiù) doesn't have a corresponding meaning in ...
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To 了 or not to 了
I'm Chinese learner and as everybody else I'm puzzled by the verbal aspect 了. My research into the subject gave such results:
了 belongs to a class of perfective aspect markers just as many other ...
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How and when is 做 used as the verb "to be"?
Can someone please clarify how and when 做 is used to mean "to be" e.g.
不愿做奴隶人们
I am familiar with 做 meaning "to do" or "to make", and I would expect that if I was saying "I am a slave", “我是一个奴隶“ ...
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Why use combined characters that have the same meaning?
(rèn shí ) both characters means ( to know)and when combined it still have the same meaning.
So why can't I use only one of them ?
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Why use 的 at the end of a sentence such as 我一定會去看他的?
I'm looking for confirmation of the way I'm parsing a sentence with 的 at the end, and I'd appreciate some background or other examples of this usage.
I found this sentence on tatoeba.org:
我一定會去看他的。
I'...
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Learning how to use measure / count words properly
Chinese has measure (or count) words like “个” (一个人), “部” (三部车), etc.
These always get me confused, and there way too many of them. Are there any general rules that can help me memorize them?
Also, ...
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What are the rules in Chinese for adjective order when multiple adjectives describe a noun
See https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/1155/what-is-the-rule-for-adjective-order for the equivalent question in English. I didn't find any discussion online of the order for multiple Chinese ...
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Why do Chinese translations of English names sound very inaccurate?
I have noticed that most Chinese translation of English names sounds really inaccurate and weird.
For example, the common translation of person's name "Robert Wilson" is "罗伯特·威尔逊", which is not ...
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Which verbs DO NOT go with 了 and or 过?
I remember reading that some verbs don't accept 了 or 过.
Side question： When I use a word like 昨天 or 以前 do I use 了 or is it redundant? e.g. 昨天我去买了一台电脑 or 昨天我买一台电脑
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怎么.... with 的 and 了
So it is said that if you find 的 after 怎么, the sentence represents 'How', and if you find 了 after 怎么, the sentence represents 'Why'.
How : 你怎么来的？ "How did you come?"
Why : 你怎么来了？ "Why did you come?"
...
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How can I tell apart which two-syllable adjective forms "ABAB" to emphasize it?
I'm now learning on emphasizing adjectives by the repetition (e.g. 你的脸红红的。).
However, some two-syllable words form ABAB and others AABB to emphasize the adjective. For example,
开开心心
好吃好吃
干干净净
便宜便宜
...
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What is 了 doing in 这个表快了+time？
I am confused about the 了 in the sentence:
这个表快了五分钟。
Zhèɡe biǎo kuàile wǔ fēnzhōnɡ.
This watch is running five minutes faster.
Clearly there is no change of state. Is it for completion? I don't ...
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The word order of co-existing adverbs in a sentence
I am wondering whether there is a commonly accepted rule about the word order of co-existing adverbs in a sentence.
For example, in the following sentences, 果然，昨天，直接，从学校 are adverbs. Which of the ...
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When does an adjective require 的 to describe a noun?
In this post on the omission of the possessive 的，I came across an explanation of the adjective suffix 的 by Tang Ho. An example was:
强大勇敢 (brave + strong) = correct without 的
强大勇敢的人 (brave and strong ...
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answer
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Using xiànzài and zhèngzài in a single sentence
I saw sentence xiànzài wǒ zhèngzài xué hànyǔ. And I can understand it as "I'm learning Chinese now". What bothers me is would it be any different meaning if I just say xiànzài wǒ xué hànyǔ? Or even wǒ ...
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Using SHI4 for noun and adjective, exceptional rules
I have noted the confusion for using "SHI4" and too struggle to grasp the difference.
Common rule for learners is that Noun + Adjective is never linked with "SHI4". As in "He is tall" etc.
However, ...
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What is the difference in use between 以及, 和 and 与?
I have a book with the following lesson titles:
中文以及中国
聚会和饮食
交通与环境
Why are these terms connected with 以及 / 和 / 与, why not always use 和 for example?
Are there any rules for proper use of these ...
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What's the difference between 了, 著 and 到 when used as verb complements?
I need help with sorting out the difference between 了, 著 and 到 when used as verb complements. I have learnt most of my Chinese in Taiwan and in my experience, Taiwanese people don't use 著 as a verb ...
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How to correctly use "多" to say "more than"?
I know a similar question has already been answered but I still have a lot of doubts.
To my understanding if a number is ≤9, you need to put "多" after the measure word (or after the name if it doesn'...
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Questions on "的话"
What is the etymology behind "的话" in the common construct 如果...的话 or 要是...的话?
In addition to wondering about it's meaning, what exactly is the 的 doing? Is it modifying the 如果? Is it modifying the ...
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What is 吗 doing in 你有什么事吗？
In a Chinese lesson, I came across these sentences:
你有什么事吗？
Nǐ yǒu shénme shì mɑ?
你有什么事？
Nǐ yǒu shénme shì?
And both were translated as:
What's the matter?
I don't understand 1. Without 吗, I ...
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What does it mean to end a sentence in 没?
In the following example:
你找到你爸爸了没
Does the 没 make it a question? And if so, how is it different from “你找不找到你爸爸了”
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What is the purpose of 是 in "我应该是感冒了"?
I came across the following translated example:
我应该是感冒了，耳朵也有点儿疼，不过没发烧。
Wǒ yīnɡɡāi shì ɡǎnmào le，ěrduo yě yǒudiǎnr ténɡ，búɡuò méi fāshāo 。
I think I caught a cold, and my ears are a little painful, ...
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When should I use 经验 and when should I use 经历?
Can I say "跟据我的经历那儿的人很友好"? Is this a correct sentence?
Should I use 经历, 经验, or is there a better way to say this sentence?
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What is the difference between 参加 and 参与？
I have been using these interchangeably, until today I was corrected, being told that one "参加活动”， not "参与活动“. I then looked up the definition, but it wasn't too helpful. How do I know when to use ...
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Why is (是) shi4 dropped in this sentence："我很好"?
I''m a Chinese learner for quite a while, I've been wondering why (是) shi4 is dropped in sentences like this："我很好" Isn't there supposed to be a verb in every sentences? like 我（是）很好.
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这就是台湾，这才是台湾. Cracking the 就 again
Many moons of my struggle with 就 and 就是 maybe finally over. But still I need help from natives and others.
There is a book out there with a title: "这就是台湾，这才是台湾"
Once I saw that phrase I thought that ...
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How to say "I prefer x over y"?
For example:
I prefer eating fried rice over fried chicken.
How to say that in chinese?
How about this?
我较喜欢吃炒饭比炸鸡
我炒饭比炸鸡较喜欢吃
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A Golden Rule for When Chinese Repeat a Word Twice X Twice? 热热闹闹
I have come across several times reading Chinese that they repeat words twice and then again.
For an Instance what is the difference between 热闹 and 热热闹闹 ？
what is the grammar meaning when words get ...
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Adverbs that don't use 地
So I know that to make an adverb, you use 'de/di' and put it before the verb like:
我兴奋地打开了我的礼物
But in my studies this week I saw this:
...病症的人逐年增加
and
逐渐成长为独立
Am I right in thinking that ...
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When 了 has the same verb before and after it, is it reduplication combined with 了1?
Some sentences that I have seen contain the pattern "verb + 了 + verb". An example of this is:
"他們碰了碰杯子。" [1]
Since in all examples that I have seen the verb before and after 了 is the same, I ...
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Complement of result:完 or 好
I‘m currently learning how to form the complement of result and what are the translations of some common compound verbs. My book makes this examples:
• 看完=to finish watching
• 写好=to finish writing
• ...
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Are there relative pronouns in Chinese
Are there words for relative pronouns, for example:
The man, who was walking to the shop, was tall.
Is there a Chinese word for the bolded "who"?
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What is the grammatical reason for 的 at the end of short responses such as 好的, 是的 and 會的?
I've always been curious about this: What is the grammatical reason for 的 at the end of these short responses?
Q: 這樣好嗎？
A: 好的。
Q: 你是美國人嗎？
A: 是的。
Q: 你會彈鋼琴嗎？
A: 會的。
Can someone shed some light on it ...
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2
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What is the motivation for the use of 把 or 将？
Chinese is a language without case markings on words, but it does make some steps in that direction. It sometimes marks what in some languages would be an accusative or oblique case noun with 把/将 and ...
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4
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"真的" vs "真地" to mean "really"
"真的太可爱了" has 3,930,000 results on Google. "真地太可爱了" has only 17,500. Why do we use 真的 instead of 真得? I thought that 地 is used to connect an adjective and connect it with a verb, ...
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Is it permissible to use 个 in any nouns as a measure word?
In the book titled "Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide", the author writes the following:
In mainland China, in informal speech, 个 can be used as the classifier for almost ...
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Question words at the end or beginning? (e.g. "Nide baba shi shei?")
So far, question words in Chinese have always appeared at the end. But with "shei" I saw sentences like
Shei shi nide baba?
So can it be used at the start or end of a sentence? Can we say
...
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When is the 把 construction forbidden?
I would like to understand which (if any) of these sentences are incorrect and why.
我给了我妹妹一支笔。(being the most basic, this is the one I think I understand)
我把那支笔给我妹妹了。
我把一支笔给我妹妹了。
我在把这支笔给我的妹妹
Thanks ...
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What does 也 mean in the dialogue: A: 他迟到了。B: 这也难怪。 今天地铁坏了。
A: 他迟到了。
B: 这也难怪。 今天地铁坏了。
As I understand it, 也 means also or too. I'm not sure how this fits in this sentence.
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Translation of "this much and no more"
I found this sentence and its English translation on tatoeba.org:
我知道的就這麼多了。
Beyond this I know nothing.
Now I'm trying to parse the sentence structure, and I'd like some confirmation or a ...
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