Learning Chinese: grammar Unit 10

Verb-object compounds

In Unit 4 we saw the verb 说 shuō "to speak". If this verb is followed by a direct object, it is used on its own:
我说汉语。 Wǒ shuō Hànyǔ. I speak Chinese.

But if you simply want to say "to speak", you must add a "standard object" to it: 话 huà "speech". To say "He speaks.", the required form is 他说话。 and not 他说。

This kind of verb that always needs an object is called "verb-object compounds". They are also called "married verbs".

In this unit, we discover several verb-object compounds:

  • 说话 shuōhuà — to speak (说 to speak + 话 speech)
    我和同学说话。 Wǒ hé tóngxué shuōhuà. I am talking with a classmate.
    我说汉语。 Wǒ shuō Hànyǔ. I speak Chinese. (we drop 话)
  • 上课 shàngkè — to have class / to go to class (上 to go up + 课 class)
    我上午上课。 Wǒ shàngwǔ shàngkè. I have class in the morning.
    我上中文课。 Wǒ shàng zhōngwén kè. I have a Chinese class. (we replace 课 with 中文课)
  • 下课 xiàkè — to finish class (下 to go down + 课 class)
    中午十二点下课。 Zhōngwǔ shí'èr diǎn xiàkè. Classes finish at noon.
  • 上学 shàngxué — to attend school (上 to go up + 学 studies)
    我星期一上学。 Wǒ xīngqī yī shàngxué. I go to school on Monday.
  • 写字 xiězì — to write (already seen)
    我写字。 Wǒ xiězì. I write.
    我写汉字。 Wǒ xiě Hànzì. I write Chinese characters. (we replace 字 with 汉字)

The days of the week: 星期

In Chinese, the word for week is 星期 xīngqī (literally "period of stars"). The day of the week is formed by adding the number after the word 星期 :

  • Monday: 星期一 xīngqī yī
  • Tuesday: 星期二 xīngqī èr
  • Wednesday: 星期三 xīngqī sān
  • Thursday: 星期四 xīngqī sì
  • Friday: 星期五 xīngqī wǔ
  • Saturday: 星期六 xīngqī liù

The word "Sunday" is special and is said either 星期天 xīngqī tiān (day of heaven), or 星期日 xīngqī rì (day of the sun).

Examples:
今天是星期五。 Jīntiān shì xīngqī wǔ. Today is Friday.
明天是星期六。 Míngtiān shì xīngqī liù. Tomorrow is Saturday.
昨天是星期四。 Zuótiān shì xīngqī sì. Yesterday was Thursday.

The auxiliary verb 要

要 yào is an auxiliary verb that is placed before the main verb. It has two main meanings:

1. To want (firm decision)

要 expresses a will, a firm decision. It is more categorical than "to feel like".
我要学汉语。 Wǒ yào xué Hànyǔ. I want to learn Chinese.
他要来北京。 Tā yào lái Běijīng. He wants to come to Beijing.

2. To have to, must (necessity)

要 can also express necessity, obligation: "must", "to have to".
今天要学习。 Jīntiān yào xuéxí. Today, one must study.
学中文，要多说，多写。 Xué zhōngwén, yào duō shuō, duō xiě. To learn Chinese, you must speak a lot and write a lot.

The negation of 要 in the sense of "not to want" is 不要 bú yào :
我不要去。 Wǒ bú yào qù. I don't want to go there.

The aspect particle 了 (verbal 了)

In Unit 8 we saw the 了 final (at the end of the sentence), which indicates a change of situation :
我二十岁了。 Wǒ èrshí suì le. I am (now) twenty years old.

In this unit another very common use of 了 : the 了 verbal, also called particle of completed aspect. It is placed just after the verb and indicates that the action is completed, carried out.

Examples in the unit's text:
我们说了一个小时的汉语。 Wǒmen shuō le yí ge xiǎoshí de Hànyǔ.
⇒ We spoke Chinese for one hour. (completed action)

我们写了三十分钟的汉字。 Wǒmen xiě le sānshí fēnzhōng de Hànzì.
⇒ We wrote Chinese characters for thirty minutes.

Other examples:
我看了。 Wǒ kàn le. I looked. (completed action)
她去了中国。 Tā qù le Zhōngguó. She went to China.

Negation of 了 verbal

When the action has not been completed, we use 没 méi, and we drop 了 :
我昨天没有来上课。 Wǒ zuótiān méiyǒu lái shàngkè. Yesterday, I did not come to class.
她没去中国。 Tā méi qù Zhōngguó. She did not go to China.

Thus:
❌ 没去了 (incorrect)
✔️ 没去 (correct)

Comparison: 了 verbal and 了 final

了 verbal (after the verb) 了 final (end of sentence)
Position Just after the verb At the end of the sentence
Meaning Completed action Change of situation
Example 我看了。
I looked. 		我二十岁了。
I am (now) 20 years old.
Negation 没 (+ dropping 了) 不……了 = no longer
Negative ex. 我没看。
I did not look. 		他不学汉语了。
He no longer studies Chinese.

Time: specific time and duration

In Chinese, it is very important to distinguish specific time (at what time?) from duration (how long?). The words used are not the same.

Specific time: 点 and 分

Specific time is built with 点 diǎn (o'clock) and 分 fēn (minute):
一点 yì diǎn — one o'clock
两点 liǎng diǎn — two o'clock
三点 sān diǎn — three o'clock
八点十五分 bā diǎn shíwǔ fēn — 8:15
十二点半 shí'èr diǎn bàn — 12:30

We place 上午 shàngwǔ (morning) or 下午 xiàwǔ (afternoon) or 中午 zhōngwǔ (noon) before the time:
上午八点十五分 shàngwǔ bā diǎn shíwǔ fēn — 8:15 a.m.
中午十二点 zhōngwǔ shí'èr diǎn — noon (12:00)
下午三点 xiàwǔ sān diǎn — 3:00 p.m. (3 o'clock in the afternoon)

The question to ask the time is:
现在几点了？ Xiànzài jǐ diǎn le ? What time is it?
You can also say: 现在几点？ Xiànzài jǐ diǎn ? (without the 了)

Answer:
现在三点。 Xiànzài sān diǎn. It is three o'clock.

Duration: 小时 and 分钟

To express a duration (how long), we use different words:

Specific (at what time?) Duration (how long?)
Hour 点 diǎn 小时 xiǎoshí
Minute 分 fēn 分钟 fēnzhōng

Examples:
我上午八点上课。 Wǒ shàngwǔ bā diǎn shàngkè. I have class at 8 a.m. (specific)
我们说了一个小时的汉语。 Wǒmen shuō le yí ge xiǎoshí de Hànyǔ. We spoke Chinese for one hour. (duration)

上午八点十五分上课。 Shàngwǔ bā diǎn shíwǔ fēn shàngkè. Classes start at 8:15. (specific)
我们写了三十分钟的汉字。 Wǒmen xiě le sānshí fēnzhōng de Hànzì. We wrote characters for 30 minutes. (duration)

Specific time in the sentence

In Unit 9 we saw that adverbials are placed before the action verb. Specific time follows this rule:

Examples:
我上午八点十五分上课。 Wǒ shàngwǔ bā diǎn shíwǔ fēn shàngkè. I have class at 8:15 a.m.
我星期五在北京大学学习。 Wǒ xīngqī wǔ zài Běijīng Dàxué xuéxí. I study at Beijing University on Fridays.
我明天上午来。 Wǒ míngtiān shàngwǔ lái. I am coming tomorrow morning.

When there are several time expressions, we go from the largest to the smallest:
我星期五上午八点上课。 Wǒ xīngqī wǔ shàngwǔ bā diǎn shàngkè. I have class on Friday morning at 8 o'clock.