| Also known as: 把字句 ("bǎ"zìjù), 把 construction, preposition 把, disposal construction and pre-transitive 把. The 把 (bǎ) sentence is a useful structure for constructing longer sentences which focus on the result or influence of an action. One of its key features is that it brings the object of the verb closer to the front of the sentence and precedes it with a 把. It's really common in Mandarin but can feel a bit awkward at first for English speakers. What is a 把 sentence ? A basic sentence in Mandarin is formed with a subject-verb-object (SVO) word order as in English: Subj. + [Verb Phrase] + Obj. A 把 sentence shakes things up a bit, and you get this structure: Subj. + 把 + Obj. + [Verb Phrase] Note that the object has moved, and is preceded by 把. You now have SOV word order. This is all well and good, but most students of Chinese, on learning about 把 sentences for the first time, have the same reaction: "Why the heck would I ever use this structure? The SVO word order always works just fine, right?" The answer is: well, no... not always. It's true that 把 sentences are often used to achieve somewhat subtle differences in emphasis, but there are also very good reasons to use 把 sentences when a regular sentence just won't do. Take this sentence for example: · 把 书 放 在 桌子 上 。Bǎ shū fàng zài zhuōzi shàng.Put the book on the table. How would you say this without the 把 construction? You might try this: · 放 书 在 桌子 上 。Fàng shū zài zhuōzi shàng. The problem is that the above Chinese sentence is not grammatical. You can't put an object right after a verb, and then put other modifiers of the verb after the object. Here are other examples of how to successfully use 把 and 放 in the same sentence. · 她 把 我 的 手机 放 在 她 的 包 里 了 。Tā bǎ wǒ de shǒujī fàng zài tā de bāo lǐ le.She put my cell phone in her bag. · 他 把 脏 衣服 放 在 床 下面 了 。Tā bǎ zāng yīfu fàng zài chuáng xiàmiàn le.He put his dirty laundry under the bed. · 你 是 不 是 把 护照 放 在 行李箱 里 了 ？Nǐ shì bu shì bǎ hùzhào fàng zài xínglixiāng lǐ le?Did you put your passport in your suitcase? For each of these, the sentence would be ungrammatical if you tried to do away with the 把 and put the object right after the verb. Negating 把 SentencesTo negate a 把 sentence, insert 不要 or 别 (present or future) or 没有 (past) directly in front of 把. You can't put it after 把, 'inside' the 把 construction, as this would break the rule about describing what actually happened to the object. It would be like saying "What happened to... was nothing." It doesn't sound natural.
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