Difference between revisions of "Actions in a row"
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==See also== | ==See also== | ||
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| + | *[[Events in quick succession with "yi... jiu"]] | ||
| + | *[[Sequencing with "xian" and "zai"]] | ||
== Sources and further reading == | == Sources and further reading == | ||
Revision as of 07:23, 3 June 2013
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Keywords
Linking actions together in a sentence is very straightforward. There is no new word or phrase needed!
Structure
In Chinese it's very easy to describe two actions in a row. Simply place one verb phrase after another, in this structure:
Subject + Verb Phrase 1 + Verb Phrase 2
No connecting word is needed. A common mistake in the early stages of learning Chinese is to try and link verbs with 和. This is incorrect - 和 can only link nouns. Just place one verb after another.
Examples
- 我们 去 咖啡店 喝 咖啡 了。Let's go to the cafe and drink coffee.
- 我 要 回家 吃饭。I want to go home and eat.
- 他 不 去 图书馆 看书。He does not go to the library and read.
Note that the English translations of these sentences use the word "and", but there is no equivalent to it in Chinese.
See also
Sources and further reading
Books
- A Practical Chinese Grammar For Foreigners (外国人实用汉语语法) （pp. 477-484) →buy
