Difference between revisions of "Actions in a row"

Revision as of 01:30, 17 January 2017

Level

A2 / HSK2
Level

A2
Level

HSK2
Similar to
- Basic sentence order (A1)
- Events in quick succession with "yi... jiu..." (B1)
Similar to
- Basic sentence order (HSK1)
- Events in quick succession with "yi... jiu..." (HSK4)
Used for

Sequencing events in time
Keywords

None

Linking actions together in a sentence is very straightforward and to the point. Because of this, 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:

Subj. + [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 (hé). This is incorrect - 和 (hé) can only link nouns. Just place one verb after another.

Examples

我要回家吃饭。 Wǒ yào huí jiā chī fàn. I want to go home and eat.
你要去超市买东西吗？Nǐ yào qù chāoshì mǎi dōngxi ma? Are you going to the supermarket to buy things?
他不想去图书馆看书。Tā bù xiǎng qù túshūguǎn kàn shū. He doesn't want to go to the library and read.
你打电话告诉他了吗？Nǐ dǎ diànhuà gàosù tā le ma? Did you call and tell him?
我们要坐飞机去美国。Wǒmen yào zuò fēijī qù Měiguó. We are going to take an airplane to go to America.
你们可以上网买机票吗？Nǐmen kěyǐ shàng wǎng mǎi jīpiào ma? Can you use the internet to buy airplane tickets?
老板下周去北京开会。Lǎobǎn xià zhōu qù Běijīng kāi huì. Next week the boss will go to Beijing to have a meeting.
中国人都要回家过年。Zhōngguórén dōu yào huí jiā guò nián. Chinese people all go back home and spend Chinese New Year.
周末我喜欢自己买菜做饭。Zhōumò wǒ xǐhuan zìjǐ mǎi cài zuò fàn. I like to buy food to cook for myself on the weekend.
早上我先刷牙洗脸，再吃早饭。Zǎoshang wǒ xiān shuā yá xǐ liǎn, zài chī zǎofàn. In the morning, I first brush my teeth and wash my face, and then I eat breakfast.

Note that the English translations of these sentences use the word "and," but there is no equivalent to it in Chinese.

Sources and further reading

Books

A Practical Chinese Grammar For Foreigners (外国人实用汉语语法) （pp. 477-484) →buy
Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 207-8) →buy
40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课下册） (pp. 384-5)→buy
40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课上册） (p. 125)→buy

@@ Line 22: / Line 22: @@
 * 你 要 <em>去</em> 超市 <em>买</em> 东西 吗？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ yào <em>qù</em> chāoshì <em>mǎi</em> dōngxi ma? </span> <span class="trans">Are you going to the supermarket to buy things? </span>
 * 他 不 想 <em>去</em> 图书馆 <em>看</em> 书。<span class="pinyin">Tā bù xiǎng <em>qù</em> túshūguǎn <em>kàn</em> shū. </span> <span class="trans">He doesn't want to go to the library and read. </span>
-* 你 <em>打</em> 电话 <em>告诉</em> 他 了 吗？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ <em>dǎ</em> diànhuà <em>gàosu</em> tā le ma? </span> <span class="trans">Did you call and tell him? </span>
+* 你 <em>打</em> 电话 <em>告诉</em> 他 了 吗？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ <em>dǎ</em> diànhuà <em>gàosù</em> tā le ma? </span> <span class="trans">Did you call and tell him? </span>
 * 我们 要 <em>坐</em> 飞机 <em>去</em> 美国。<span class="pinyin">Wǒmen yào <em>zuò</em>  fēijī  <em>qù</em> Měiguó. </span> <span class="trans">We are going to take an airplane to go to America.  </span>
 * 你们 可以 <em>上</em> 网 <em>买</em> 机票 吗？<span class="pinyin">Nǐmen kěyǐ <em>shàng</em> wǎng <em>mǎi</em> jīpiào ma? </span> <span class="trans">Can you use the internet to buy airplane tickets? </span>