Difference between revisions of "Adjective"

Latest revision as of 04:05, 25 April 2017

Also known as: 形容词 (xíngróngcí).

Adjectives are the "describing" words of a language. In Chinese, they have some characteristics that they don't have in English.

Characteristics

The majority of adjectives can be modified by both the adverb "不" and the adverb "很".
In sentences, adjectives are generally predicates, attributes, or complements.
Adjectives do not take objects.
Adjectives can be reduplicated.

Notes

Reduplication

Adjective reduplication is a common phenomenon in Chinese, usually used to emphasize the quality of the adjective. There are many different patterns for reduplicating adjectives, including AABB (e.g. 干干净净), ABB (e.g. 红通通) or BABA (e.g. 雪白雪白). When adjectives are reduplicated, they must be followed by a "的."

Predicates

Adjectives can function as predicates. However, 是 is not used with adjectives. Instead, you have to use "很". This is another common beginning mistake. In order to connect a noun to its adjective, use 很, not 是. In terms of pronunciation, a neutral 很 just indicates the predicate， but a 很 in third tone adds emphasis to the adjective. Some adjectives are not preceded by 很, but are followed by 了: 饿, 渴, 病. These adjectives often describe a change of state, explaining the different grammar.

If the adjective is only a single character, it can directly modify the noun, (e.g. 新书). 的 can optionally be inserted to emphasize the adjective: 新的书. On the other hand, if the adjective has two characters, and the noun it modifies only has one, the 的 is required, (e.g. 好看的画). If both have two characters, the 的 is optional just as it is with single character adjectives. These rules also apply to 地 when modifying verbs.

Special adjectives 多 and 少

These two adjectives must be combined with 很 or 不 in order to form attributives for nouns. However, 的 is not necessary with 多 and 少.

Further notes

Adjectives can form affirmative-negative questions by placing the adjective and the negated adjective next to each other (e.g. 他高不高?)
Adjectives can be followed by complements such as "budeliao." These complements usually express degree.

Types adjectives

Grammar Patterns for Adjectives

A2 Adjectives

Grammar Point (English)	Pattern	Examples
Negative adjectives with "-si le"	Adj. + 死了	我今天累死了。

B1 Adjectives

Grammar Point (English)	Pattern	Examples
Adjectives with "-ji le"	Adj. + 极了	这个主意好极了。
Expressing "not very" with "bu zenme"	不怎么 + Adj.	这里的菜他不怎么好吃！
Indicating the whole with "quan"	全 + Noun	我们全家都去旅游了。
Reduplication of adjectives	Adj. + Adj.	你应该慢慢地走。
Turning adjectives into adverbs	Adj. + 地 + Verb	你要认真地学习。

B2 Adjectives

Grammar Point (English)	Pattern	Examples
Adjectival complement "de budeliao"	Adj. + 得不得了	爸爸气得不得了，你要倒霉啦。
Adjectival complement "de hen"	Adj. + 得很	这个题目简单得很。
Expressing "a bit too"	Adj. + 了 + (一) 点儿	那个地方离我家远了点儿。
Saying "a lot" with "youdeshi"	Subj. + 有的是 + Noun	川菜上海有的是。

Sources and further reading

Books

外国人实用汉语语法(中英文对照) (pp. 48 - 57)4
Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar (pp. 56 - 64)
实用汉语语法 (pp. 52 - 54)
Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide (pp. 56 - 68)
汉语常用格式330例

Websites

Wikipedia: Chinese adjectives

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 {{AKA|形容词 (xíngróngcí)}}
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 ===Reduplication===
-[[Adjective reduplication]] is a common phenomenon in Chinese, usually used to emphasize the quality of the adjective. There are many different patterns for reduplicating adjectives, including AABB (e.g. 干干净净), ABB (e.g. 红通通) or BABA (e.g. 雪白雪白). When adjectives are reduplicated, they must be followed by a "的".
+[[Adjective reduplication]] is a common phenomenon in Chinese, usually used to emphasize the quality of the adjective. There are many different patterns for reduplicating adjectives, including AABB (e.g. 干干净净), ABB (e.g. 红通通) or BABA (e.g. 雪白雪白). When adjectives are reduplicated, they must be followed by a "的."
 ===Predicates===