Questions tagged [verbs]
Questions about verbs, their characteristics and their specific use.
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Repetition of the first verb (separable verbs)
I am learning Chinese and I have a question about separable verbs. I understand that separable verbs are verbs that can be split by an object or a complement, such as 看书 (read a book) or 看见 (see). ...
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To Be - 变成 vs 当
In the song 学猫叫 (Xue Mao Jiao) are two lines that seem to have similar English translations:
我想要当你的小猫猫 - "I want to be your cat"
想要变成你的猫 - "I want to be your cat"
Do 当 and 变成 ...
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Is 这部电影非常精彩，我很推荐 grammatical, despite the verb 推荐 lacking an object?
这部电影非常精彩，我很推荐。
This movie is brilliant and I highly recommend it.
At the Glen Waverley library (Melbourne), they have some Chinese study classes, and the above is from their notes. I was surprised ...
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How do you handle separable verbs or phrasal verbs in Chinese?
Looking at phrasal verbs:
Check out my new computer.
They can be "separable" too:
Check my new computer out.
Does Chinese have this sort of feature? If not, what does it do instead? If ...
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Is 看上去(他们找到了新的游戏场所) an impersonal sentence (a proposition without a subject)?
I’m trying to do the analysis of the sentence 看上去他们找到了新的游戏场所. I thought that 看上去 was the verb of the impersonal sentence, and that the object was the subordinate 他们找到了新的游戏场所, but I can’t find anything ...
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How can I parse 购房贷款 in 他向银行申请了购房贷款。?
他向银行申请了购房贷款。
He applied for a purchase loan from the bank.
The above translation has been gained from DeepL.
Currently I've been struggling for understanding 购房贷款 which is used in the original ...
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Is this 开会 only means "hold a meeting" of 今天有点儿冷,开会儿暖气吧。
今天有点儿冷,开会儿暖气吧。
I guess that 开会 here might have a meaning of "turn on a switch" or kind of like that.
But as I looked up several dictionaries then I was only able to find a definition "...
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How is 都是 used here?
他现在都是卡着时间准点开会
Does 卡着时间 mean stop time right? I remember being told it is slang for 卡点 which means to like check the time but whaf I am confused about is 都是 卡着时间 is a verb and object right? How come 是 ...
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他一叠声应着 How does 叠 work here?
for 他一叠声应着
I know what yidiesheng means repeat the sound, but I just wanted to know the structure is die a measure word here? A pile of sounds? It doesn't actually say anything like that in the ...
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What verbs are abbreviated "FV"?
I'm learning Mandarin from the New Practical Chinese textbook series by Taipei Language Institute Press, and there are a few mentions of "FVs" as follows:
你去過台中沒有？ - Explanation: 過 is ...
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Use of 要...(了) to indicate future
This is a question about the use of 要 yào as a verb to indicate immediate future ('going to') and its common complementation by 了 le.
要 is a confusing word for learners because of its various meanings....
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Interpreting a line from Li Shangyin -- 鶯花啼又笑
The full poem is as follows:
早起
風露澹清晨
簾間獨起人
鶯花啼又笑
畢竟是誰春
I was discussing this with a friend who speaks Chinese, and they translated this line:
鶯花啼又笑
as "Birds and flowers cry and laugh". ...
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Why can't I use "可不可以" to ask whether you can go to the company tomorrow?
An exercise in HelloChinese course asked to translate the following sentence to Mandarin Chinese: "Can you (singular) go to the company tomorrow?".
I answered "你明天可不可以去公司？", which ...
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What is the meaning/purpose of 一 in the following sentence?
水乌儿一抿翅膀
The waterbird tucked its wings.
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Talking about habits and the present time using 会
So far I have learned that 会 is used in order to refer to the future, and thus it is somewhat similar to English "will", like in the sentence:
明天你会来吗？
Will you come tomorrow?
But, I have ...
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Where to find collection of Chinese serialized verb constructions (SVC)?
I have encountered a pretty cool area of research of translating between Chinese and English back and forth, and found documents like A cognitive approach to multi-verb constructions in Mandarin ...
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Can 你去吧 be considered rude and what are some alternatives?
For example, if your classmate says he has to get home soon before it starts raining, and you want to support his decision, can you say “你去吧” ？In English one could say "Go, go!" But ...
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What is the function of 放 in 我们学校十二月二十二号开始放寒假？
Would a literal translation be:
"As for our school, 22nd Dec begins the release (of students) for Winter vacation"?
If so can you just say:
"...开始寒假"？
(And maybe this would move 学校 ...
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What is the difference between 过 and 度 in their meanings "to spend/pass (time)"?
Is there a general difference between the two?
There are two examples I have found:
度假
Is this interchangeable with 过假?
And the second
这个假期你打算怎么过？
Can this be exchanged with "...怎么度"?
If ...
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What is the meaning of the verb 围？Its subject and object?
四合院，是中国华北地区民居中的一种组合建筑形式。所谓四合，“四”指东、西、南、北四面，“合” 就是四面房屋围在一起，中间形成一个方形的院子。
Hi all. I found this in the Standard Course Book of HSK5, chapter 14. What is the meaning of the verb 围？What are its subject and ...
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How does 给 change the verb meaning in 有一天国王把他的故事给一名作家看?
In the sentence 有一天国王把他的故事给一名作家看 , the intended meaning is, “One day the king showed his stories to a writer”. 看 by itself means to see or to look at. 给 is used as “to” but does this change the ...
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Difference between using bare verb and "tensed" verb?
The bare verb in Chinese can communicate many different things, depending on context:
A habitual action: 在他家发生的事情，我没法了解 = I cannot understand the things that happen at his house.
An ongoing action: ...
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Can 同学 really be used as a separable verb?
Online, you can find this example of 同学 being used as a separable verb:
我和他同过三年学。
He and I were classmates for three years.
I'm skeptical this is correct. (Sometimes databases have errors, and ...
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Is there something like a reflexive verb in Chinese?
I was wondering whether the Chinese language has a reflexive verb construct. I know for example I wash myself, "我洗自己", can be thought of as a reflexive verb (if I am mistaken here and this ...
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Confusion over 得，唔得 + verb
I am confused about how to construct (and understand) phrases that involve: 得 and its negative 唔得 with a verb.
Specifically, what is the difference between 唔得買，冇買得。
A corresponding confusion would be ...
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Translation of a poem, gerund form of 加速
I have to translate this poem in chinese:
I am still alive, right here and now //
Speeding up immobile in the tangible matter //
I dream the eternal life or death
I found this translation, but I am ...
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开始和起来有什么不同？to start + verb
When used with another verb 开始 and 起来 both convey the meaning: to start doing something. Are they synonymous in that specific usage?
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Difference between 不 and 没(有) in the past tense [duplicate]
As far as I know, the negative form of a verb is formed by adding 不 to the verb. 没 is used only with the verb 有.
On the other hand, there is no present/past modification in Chinese. Hence, the ...
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Is 起草 a separable verb?
Pleco lists the following example sentence for 起草:
这封信你来起个草吧。
This indicates 起草 is a separable verb. And it's possible to find examples online of 起草 being used as a separable verb, such as 我已经起了个草 ...
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How to more carefully explain how coverbs work in Chinese?
I learned that Chinese uses coverbs instead of prepositions. But it's not 100% clear to me what the difference is between coverbs and prepositions, as the Wiki page and several sites are hand-wavy, ...
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Confusing structure in 这一个是要给李芳的
这一个是要给李芳的。
I understand by the context that it is referring to a gift（礼物）for 李芳. And the sentence is translated like "this one is for 李芳."
But why is 要 in the sentence? Cause if it has the ...
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How many verbs can be used with 到?
I see 到 used with some verbs describing a result, I am wondering if there are a specific number of verbs in the structure V+(de)dao到. Is there an exhaustive number of verbs that can be used with V+ 到?...
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How are the sentences 我第一次挑战这么高难度的手术 and 这么高难度的手术我第一次挑战 grammatical? Where are the verbs?
挑战 我 第一次 这么高难度的 手术
A HSK5 past exam question is given above; the task is to reorganize the sentence fragments into a grammatical sentence. My (incorrect) answer was:
第一次这么高难度的手术挑战我。
I was hoping ...
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Expressing knowledge or skill: 认识 vs 会 vs 知道
I came across several verbs meaning knowledge or skill about something.
I guess that 会 (simplified) / 會 (traditional) is used specifically to imply a skill, as in "他会说中文" - He can speak ...
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Still about the filler word 很, after 得
I just learned that an adverb or quality describing how a verb (action) is performed must be preceded by the filler word 得, which introduces an "expression of degree" ("well", &...
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很 as a filler word?
Beginner's question here.
If I understood correctly, all descriptive words in Mandarin can work both as an adjective and a "descriptive verb", which would be equivalent to the construction &...
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抱有 vs 摆有: When does a serial verb become a word?
Observation:
保有财产; 抱有好感; 怀有敌意; 他俩育有一子; 学校设有音乐课; 杯子留有指纹
Bi-syllabic verbal compounds like those in bold above are sometimes treated as words (insofar as I found them all listed as "entries/...
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what is the grammar form where 找 is used twice in the sentence 林先生找工作找了多长时间?
I'm learning Chinese by studying Zhongwen Red (中文 Red).
I've come across the following sentence: 林先生找工作找了多长时间? This sentence is from http://www.zhongwenred.com/R67.html.
This webpage spaces out the ...
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What does "中" as an independent verb means?
I found one 明星 saying this on Youtube: "我中了，我中了." ； https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4egudxwbdI (4:27)。I have tried asking this to tutor online, and he answered: 中 means:
-to hit (the mark)
...
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Does 那个公共汽车很红 sounds right?
A friend told me all adjectives in Chinese are verbs. I am not so sure if it is right in general, especially when it comes to color. I ask him to give me examples and he said
1 天黑了
2 那个公共汽车很红
I think ...
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Do you use 有 if you speak about 头疼?
最近我常常会莫名其妙的头疼
I've encountered this sentence and I'm wondering why there's 会 used here. Would this sentence be correct without 会?
Would this sentence be correct? 我常常头疼
Would this sentence be correct? ...
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躺着 can be used for persons laying on an object. What can we use for an object laying on another object? ...着?
What verb can one use to describe an object laying on another object.
I know that one can use 躺着 for a person laying on/in a bed... what about an object laying, for example, on the table? ...着
I ...
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When can I use 起来 to say "to begin"?
Once I thought that 起来 meant "to begin" but could be used only in situations when something is going up or taken up (just as characters say). But it's not true. There are:
笑起来,
藏起来,
吃起饭来,
...
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What's the correct word order and why? Should it be 红中国茶 or 中国红茶？
So, since 红 is a verb, it should precede any other attributive.
Still, if I Google both phrases, it seems that the latter form is prevalent.
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transitive verb in Mandarin:外遇李小姐
Is 外遇 used correctly as a transitive verb in the following sentence?
王先生外遇李小姐。
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What does 冲 in 大老鼠冲着胆小先生嚷嚷 mean?
大老鼠冲着胆小先生嚷嚷
What does 冲 mean here? It comes before 着, so it's a verb.
I asked a Chinese person about this sentence, they said "这种文字没有然后意义阿". Why? And why to you this sentence does make ...
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In a 还是 question, do I need to repeat the verb?
I'm learning Chinese from a book, and there are some examples regarding the use of 还是. In some cases, the verb is repeated, like in 你喝茶还是喝咖啡？ (note the two 喝 here). In other places, the second ...
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How do you know when will the verb be paired with 对?
For example:
我对父母很体贴（✓）
我很体贴我的父母（x）
我很关心我的父母（✓）
(The example is given by my teacher but i don't know the reason)
Hope you understand my question 🥺
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What are the parts of speech of the words in 车外的阳光格外的刺眼, and why is this 的 correct?
车外的阳光格外的刺眼.
That's a complete sentence. I've got troubles understanding what parts of speech are. According to my dictionaries:
阳光 - sunshine,
格外 - especially,
刺眼 - to dazzle.
So the sentence would ...
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Why is 指 repeated twice in 他指了指墙上的画?
I found a sentence from a short story which goes:
"他指了指墙上的画。“
I know that 指 means to point, by why is it repeated twice in the sentence? Any help would be appreciated.
Thank you
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