Difference between revisions of "Uses of le"

Revision as of 13:52, 8 October 2011

The Chinese particle 了 has been traditionally divided into two broad categories: aspectual particle 了 (AKA 了1) and modal particle 了 (AKA 了2). However, for a word with as many varied grammatical uses, such broad classifications don't seem particularly helpful to learners. This article offers an alternative way to understand 了: by listing out specific uses and patterns.

Beginner (A1) Uses of 了

Grammar Point (English)	Pattern	Examples	了 Type
Expressing "Excessively"	太 + Adj + 了	太好了 !	了2

Elementary (A2) Uses of 了

Grammar Point (English)	Pattern	Examples	了 Type
Expressing Completion with "le"	V + 了	她去了北京。	了1
Questions with "le ma"	V + 了 + 吗？	北京去了吗？	了1
Expressing Duration	[Verb Phrase] + [Duration] (+ 了)	他在北京住了两年。	了2
Expressing Duration of Inaction	[Duration] + 没 + [Verb Phrase] ) (+ 了)	他已经三天没洗澡了。	了2

Intermediate (B1) Uses of 了

Grammar Point (English)	Pattern	Examples	了 Type
Making Negative Adjectives Extreme with "-si le"	Adj + 死了	那个孩子难看死了。	了2
Making Positive Adjectives Extreme with "-ji le"	Adj + 极了	你的中文好极了。	了2
Expressing "Much More" in Comparisons	N1 + 比 + N2 + Adj + 多了	我比你高多了。	了2
Expressing Change of State with "le"	……了	今天我 25 岁了。你的衣服脏了。	了2

Upper Intermediate (B2) Uses of 了

Grammar Point (English)	Pattern	Examples	了 Type
Expressing Completion with "le"	V + 了	她去了北京。	了1

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 |-
 |[[ASGVME5V|Making Positive Adjectives Extreme with "''-ji le''"]] || Adj + 极了 || <span class="liju">你的 中文 好 <em>极了</em>。</span> || 了2
+|-
+|[[ASG6KUS5|Expressing "Much More" in Comparisons]] || N1 + 比 + N2 + Adj + 多了 || <span class="liju">我 <em>比</em> 你 高 <em>多 了</em>。</span> || 了2
+|-
+|[[ASGT185D|Expressing Change of State with "''le''"]] || ……了 || <span class="liju">今天 我 25 岁 <em>了</em>。你的 衣服 脏 <em>了</em>。</span> || 了2
 |-
 |}