Separable Verbs

"Separable verbs" get their name from their ability to "separate" into two parts, with other words in between. Separable verbs are an important concept to master in Chinese, and are also the source of many beginner mistakes. Mastering separable verbs is an essential objective of the intermediate-level learner of Chinese.

What they are

Mandarin's separable verbs have a counterpart in English: phrasal verbs (also called two-word verbs). While the structure of English's phrasal verbs is different, the "separable"quality works in a very similar way. Take the phrasal verb "check out" for example:

• Check out my new computer.
• Check my new computer out.

You see what happened there? The verb "check out" can split into two parts, and other words can go in between those two parts. Separable verbs work much the same way in Chinese.

Let's look at a typical example in Chinese, using the verb 见面, meaning "to meet."

• 我们 明天 见面 。 (no separating)
• 我们 昨天 见 了 面 。 (separated, 了 inserted)
• 我们 见 过三次 面 。 (separated, 过, 三次 inserted)

Below we will introduce separable verbs in more detail, provide more examples, and also offer more specific cases of where separable verbs can get tricky.

Why use them?

Separable verbs are just one of those things you can't avoid. Many extremely common verbs, such as "to sleep" (睡觉) or "to meet" (见面) are separable verbs, and until you understand which verbs are separable verbs and how they work, you'll forever be making mistakes with these verbs, even in very basic sentences.

How to use them

First, you need to understand the structure of separable verbs. Most separable verbs are a "Verb + Noun" construct.

Common examples

Many of the words below come from Chinese Grammar Without Tears, which provides a very useful list (albeit without any categorization).

For the Beginner: (A2)

C：吃饭 出差

D：打的 担心 读书

G：干杯 过年

J：加油 见面 讲话

K：开车 开会 看病

L：聊天

M：没空 没事

Q：起床

S：生气

T：谈话

X：吸烟 洗澡 想家

Y：游泳 有名

For the Intermediate Student: (B1)

B：办公 帮忙 报名 毕业

C：吵架 出口 吹牛 成交

D：打架 道歉 得意

F：发财 犯罪 放心 分手

G：干活 挂号 过关 过节 过瘾

H：换钱 回信

J：结果 结婚 介意 救命

L：理发 离婚

M：迷路

P：排队 跑步

Q：签名 请假 缺勤

S：散步 上当 随便 说谎

T：停火 投票 退休

W：完蛋

X：吓人

Y：用心

Z：在意 着急

For the More Advanced Student: (B2)

A：碍事 安家 安神

B：拔尖 把关 摆手 变心 播音

C：操心 插话 插手

D：动身 断交

F：发愁 翻脸 付款 犯法

G：鼓掌

H：灰心 混饭

J：就业

K：开头 夸口 坑人 看病

L：领情 留神 落后

M：冒险 免税 没戏

P：赔钱 碰头 拼命 破产

Q：缺勤

R：让步 入门 入境 如意

S：散心 扫兴

T：抬杠 探亲

W：握手 误点

X：下海 泄气 休假 行凶

Y：摇头

Z：涨价 招手 助兴 撞车 转账

Academic debate

There is some debate as to how useful the concept of separable verbs really is. For our purposes, we're only concerned with whether or not separable verbs are a useful concept for the student of Mandarin Chinese. Many learners do, in fact, find the concept to be quite useful in helping them speak more natural Chinese.

External links

• ChinesePod (free content): Qing Wen - Separable Verbs