Difference between revisions of "Complement"
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| − | <td rowspan="2" style="font-size:100%">[[Result complement]]</td><td>做</td><td>完</td><td style="font-size: | + | <td rowspan="2" style="font-size:100%">[[Result complement]]</td><td>做</td><td>完</td><td style="font-size:100%">to finish doing</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
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| − | <td>买</td><td>到</td><td style="font-size: | + | <td>买</td><td>到</td><td style="font-size:100%">to buy (successfully)</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
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| − | <td rowspan="2">[[Potential complement]]</td><td>吃</td><td>得完</td><td>can finish eating</td> | + | <td rowspan="2" style="font-size:100%">[[Potential complement]]</td><td>吃</td><td>得完</td><td style="font-size:100%">can finish eating</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td>听</td><td>不懂</td><td>to (listen but) not understand</td> | + | <td>听</td><td>不懂</td><td style="font-size:100%">to (listen but) not understand</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td rowspan="2">[[Direction complement]]</td><td>放</td><td>下</td><td>to put down</td> | + | <td rowspan="2" style="font-size:100%">[[Direction complement]]</td><td>放</td><td>下</td><td style="font-size:100%">to put down</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td>跑</td><td>过来</td><td>to run over (here)</td> | + | <td>跑</td><td>过来</td><td style="font-size:100%">to run over (here)</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td rowspan="2">[[Quantity complement]]</td><td>去</td><td>一次</td><td>to go once</td> | + | <td rowspan="2" style="font-size:100%">[[Quantity complement]]</td><td>去</td><td>一次</td><td style="font-size:100%">to go once</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td>工作</td><td>十个小时</td><td>to work for 10 hours</td> | + | <td>工作</td><td>十个小时</td><td style="font-size:100%">to work for 10 hours</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td rowspan="2">[[Degree complement]]</td><td>说</td><td>得很好</td><td>to speak (very) well</td> | + | <td rowspan="2" style="font-size:100%">[[Degree complement]]</td><td>说</td><td>得很好</td><td style="font-size:100%">to speak (very) well</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td>好</td><td>极了</td><td>great</td> | + | <td>好</td><td>极了</td><td style="font-size:100%">great</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td rowspan="2">[[Location complement]]</td><td>住</td><td>在北京</td><td>to live in Beijing</td> | + | <td rowspan="2" style="font-size:100%">[[Location complement]]</td><td>住</td><td>在北京</td><td style="font-size:100%">to live in Beijing</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
<tr> | <tr> | ||
| − | <td>来</td><td>到中国</td><td>to come to China</td> | + | <td>来</td><td>到中国</td><td style="font-size:100%">to come to China</td> |
</tr> | </tr> | ||
</table> | </table> | ||
Revision as of 10:25, 28 July 2011
Complements are not a form of flattery (those are compliments)[1]; they're a special type of structure found in modern Mandarin and have no exact counterpart in English. The Chinese word for complement is 补语 (bǔyǔ).
Complements are a bit hard to define, but you'll generally find them following verbs (or sometimes adjectives). They can be as short as one character, or practically as long as a sentence. According to A Practical Chinese Grammar for Foreigners, complements "show the duration, quantity, degree, result, direction or possibility of an action; or to illustrate the state, number, degree of a thing"[2]. As is often the case, plentiful examples will help clarify!
Contents
Summary of complements
| Type of Complement | Verb | Complement | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Result complement | 做 | 完 | to finish doing |
| 买 | 到 | to buy (successfully) | |
| Potential complement | 吃 | 得完 | can finish eating |
| 听 | 不懂 | to (listen but) not understand | |
| Direction complement | 放 | 下 | to put down |
| 跑 | 过来 | to run over (here) | |
| Quantity complement | 去 | 一次 | to go once |
| 工作 | 十个小时 | to work for 10 hours | |
| Degree complement | 说 | 得很好 | to speak (very) well |
| 好 | 极了 | great | |
| Location complement | 住 | 在北京 | to live in Beijing |
| 来 | 到中国 | to come to China |
Result complement
Potential complement
Direction complement
(Compound direction complements)
Quantity complement
Degree complement
Location complement
References
- ↑ For more info on this common mistake, see this website.
- ↑ A Practical Chinese Grammar for Foreigners, p. 271
Sources and further reading
- Grammar book: 外国人实用汉语语法(中英文对照) (pp. 242 - 243, pp. 271 - 329)
