| Here are ten basic Chinese grammar points that everyone interested in the language should know. If you’ve recently started learning Chinese, it’s a good idea to make sure you’re familiar with these points. Talk about locations with 在 (zài) To talk about things being in places, use the word 在 (zài). This is actually a verb, so you don’t need to use any other words to talk about something being somewhere. The structure is: [something] 在 [place] Have a look at some example: 我在这里。 Wǒ zài zhèlǐ. I am here. 你在那里。 Nǐ zài nàlǐ. You are there. 上海在中国。 Shànghǎi zài Zhōngguó. Shanghai is in China. 猫在沙发上。 Māo zài shāfā shàng. The cat is on the sofa. Notice how English uses the verb “to be” where Chinese uses 在. English also uses prepositions - “to be in” - whereas Chinese often just uses 在. Use measure words with nouns Measure words are used whenever you talk about quantities in Chinese. You can’t attach numbers directly to nouns - you have to put a measure word in between. There are different measure words for different categories of things. For example, the measure word for books is 本 (běn), whilst the measure word for flat things is 张 (zhāng). Luckily, there is also a general purpose measure word: 个 (ge). This can be used for pretty much everything, but it’s better to use more specific measure words when you can. Talk about having things with 有 (yǒu) You can talk about having things with the word 有 (yǒu) - “to have”. Remember that you don’t need to conjugate (change) verbs in Chinese, so 有 is always 有 no matter whom you’re talking about. The structure is simply: [subject] 有 [object] Let’s have a look at some example sentences. Notice that the nouns in the sentences have measure words before them: 个 (ge), 本 (běn) and 把 (bǎ). 我有一个妹妹。 Wǒ yǒu yī gè mèimei. I have a younger sister. 我有一本书。 Wǒ yǒu yī běn shū. I have a book. 他有一把枪！ Tā yǒu yī bǎ qiāng! He has a gun! Hopefully you won’t ever have to use the last example sentence there. 是 (shì) is not exactly the same as “to be” The closest equivalent of the English word “to be” in Chinese is 是 (shì). This is used to link nouns to other nouns. The structure is: [noun] 是 [noun] Let’s have a look at some examples: 我是学生。 Wǒ shì xuéshēng. I am a student. 他是老师。 Tā shì lǎoshī. He is a teacher. 她是医生。 Tā shì yīshēng. She is a doctor. 这是书。 Zhè shì shū. This is a book. Notice how 是 is used to talk about one noun being another. You can’t use 是 to link adjectives to nouns, though, as in “this book is heavy”. To do that, you have to use 很 (hěn). The basic structure for 很 (hěn) is the same as for 是, but 很 is used with adjectives. Have a look at some example sentences: 这本书很重。 Zhè běn shū hěn zhòng. This book is heavy. 她很高。 Tā hěn gāo. She is tall. 我们很高兴。 Wǒmen hěn gāoxìng. We are happy. Sometimes 很 is translated as “very”, but opinions vary on how accurate this is. We think it’s simply used to link adjectives to nouns, whilst others think it also intensifies the adjectives. Talk about wanting things with 要 (yào) You can talk about directly wanting something with the word 要 (yào). This word is also used to talk about the future, as in “I’m going to do” something. 要 is quite versatile and can be used with nouns or verbs: [subject] 要 [noun] or [subject] 要 [action] Have a look at some examples: 我要一个三明治。 Wǒ yào yīgè sānmíngzhì. I want a sandwich. 我要吃三明治。 |
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