Difference between revisions of "Expressing completion with "le""
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In some cases, 了 and the position of the object are fixed. If anything is misplaced, the sentence won't make sense.  
 
In some cases, 了 and the position of the object are fixed. If anything is misplaced, the sentence won't make sense.  
  
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1. 了 must go directly after the verb if the object is preceded by a number and measure word.  
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=== Objects of Fixed Quantity ===
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了 must go directly after the verb if the object is preceded by a number and measure word.  
  
 
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2. If the preposition includes 来 or 去, 了 should be placed behind the second verb or verb phrase, marking the completion of the main event.  
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=== When 来 (lái) or 去 (qù) Also Appear ===
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If the preposition includes 来 (lái) or 去 (qù), 了 (le) should be placed after the second verb or verb phrase, marking the completion of the main event.  
  
 
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*昨天 她 <strong>来</strong> 我家 <strong>吃饭</strong> <em>了</em> 。<span class="pinyin">Zuótiān tā <strong>lái</strong> wǒ jiā <strong>chīfàn</strong> <em>le</em>.</span><span class="trans">She came to my place to eat dinner yesterday.</span>
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* 昨天 她 <strong>来</strong> 我 家 <strong>吃饭</strong> <em>了</em> 。<span class="pinyin">Zuótiān tā <strong>lái</strong> wǒ jiā <strong>chīfàn</strong> <em>le</em>.</span><span class="trans">She came to my place and ate dinner yesterday.</span>
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*我们 上周 <strong>去</strong> 北京 <strong>开会</strong> <em>了</em> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒmen shàngzhōu <strong>qù</strong> Běijīng <strong>kāihuì</strong> <em>le</em>.</span><span class="trans">We went to Beijing and had a meeting there last week.</span>
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* 我们 上周 <strong>去</strong> 北京 <strong>开会</strong> <em>了</em> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒmen shàng zhōu <strong>qù</strong> Běijīng <strong>kāihuì</strong> <em>le</em>.</span><span class="trans">We went to Beijing and had a meeting there last week.</span>
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*我 和 朋友 <strong>去</strong> 商场 <strong>买衣服</strong> <em>了</em> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ hé péngyou <strong>qù</strong> shāngchǎng <strong>mǎi yīfu</strong> <em>le</em>.</span><span class="trans">I went to the mall with my friend and we bought some clothes.</span>
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* 我 和 朋友 <strong>去</strong> 商场 <strong>买 衣服</strong> <em>了</em> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ hé péngyou <strong>qù</strong> shāngchǎng <strong>mǎi yīfu</strong> <em>le</em>.</span><span class="trans">I went to the mall with my friend and bought some clothes.</span>
  
 
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Revision as of 07:49, 28 April 2018

Also known as: 了1, verb 了, completed action 了 and perfective aspect 了.

The particle 了 (le) has a lot of uses. One of the most common is to express the completion of an action. This is called aspect, which is not the same as tense. Tense is about when an action happens: past, present or future. With regards to 了 (le), aspect is about whether the action is complete in a certain time frame.

Basic Usage

Structure

To indicate completion, 了 goes directly after the verb. If there is an object right after the verb, 了 is frequently placed after the object instead of right after the verb.

Subj. + Verb (+ Obj.) + 了

Examples

  • 他们 来 了 。Tāmen lái le.They arrived.
  • 我 买 了 。Wǒ mǎi le.I bought it.
  • 我 吃 早饭 了 。Wǒ chī zǎofàn le.I ate breakfast.
  • 他 买 新 手机 了 。 Tā mǎi xīn shǒujī le.He bought a new cell phone.
  • 我 找到 工作 了 。Wǒ zhǎodào gōngzuò le.I found a job.
  • 上个月 我 去 台湾 了 。Shàng gè yuè wǒ qù Táiwān le.I went to Taiwan last month.
  • 昨天 晚上 我 看见 UFO 了 。 Zuótiān wǎnshang wǒ kànjiàn UFO le.I saw a UFO last night.

Note that 了 can also come before the object. For example:

  • 他 买 了 新 手机 。Tā mǎi le xīn shǒujī .He bought a new cell phone.
  • 上个 月 我 去 了 台湾 。Shàng gè yuè wǒ qù le Táiwān.I went to Taiwan last month.

In these cases, the position of 了 (le) doesn't really matter.

Special Usage

The examples above indicate a completed action, but they might also seem very similar to a "past tense" in English. To illustrate that 了 (le) can also indicate that one action is completed before another, see the following examples:

  • 我 下课 了 以后 去 找 你 。future actionWǒ xiàkè le yǐhòu qù zhǎo nǐ .I will go find you after I finish class.
  • 你 下班 了 以后 给 我 打 电话 。future actionNǐ ​xiàbān le yǐhòu gěi wǒ dǎ diànhuà.After you get off work, give me a call.
  • 你 到 了 以后 告诉 我 。future actionNǐ dào le yǐhòu gàosu wǒ.After you have arrived, tell me.

As you can see, 了 (le) can appear in sentences about the future as well as the past. What's important is whether or not the action has been completed, no matter what time frame we're talking about. This also means that this 了 (le) isn't used with habitual or continuous actions.

Where to put 了

In some cases, 了 and the position of the object are fixed. If anything is misplaced, the sentence won't make sense.

Objects of Fixed Quantity

了 must go directly after the verb if the object is preceded by a number and measure word.

Verb + 了 + Number + Measure Word + Obj.

A few examples:

  • 老师 问 了 五 个 问题 。Lǎoshī wèn le wǔ gè wèntí.The teacher asked five questions.
  • 我 买 了 三 本 书 。Wǒ mǎi le sān běn shū.I bought three books.
  • 我 喝 了 两杯 咖啡 。Wǒ hē le liǎng bēi kāfēi.I drank two cups of coffee.

When 来 (lái) or 去 (qù) Also Appear

If the preposition includes 来 (lái) or 去 (qù), 了 (le) should be placed after the second verb or verb phrase, marking the completion of the main event.

Subj. + 来 / 去 + Place + Verb / [Verb Phrase] + 了

A few examples:

  • 昨天 她 来 我 家 吃饭 了 。Zuótiān tā lái wǒ jiā chīfàn le.She came to my place and ate dinner yesterday.
  • 我们 上周 去 北京 开会 了 。Wǒmen shàng zhōu qù Běijīng kāihuì le.We went to Beijing and had a meeting there last week.
  • 我 和 朋友 去 商场 买 衣服 了 。Wǒ hé péngyou qù shāngchǎng mǎi yīfu le.I went to the mall with my friend and bought some clothes.

See also

Sources and further reading

Books

Websites

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