Expressing "once" with "cengjing"

曾经 (céngjīng) is an adverb, and as such comes before verb phrases in a sentence. It adds the sense of "once" having happened (the "once upon a time" meaning of "once"), sometimes translated as "ever." It frequently pairs with 过.

Used with 过

When used with action verbs, 曾经 comes before the verb, which is then followed by 过. For psychological verbs, the 过 is optional.

Structure

Subj. + 曾经 + Verb + 过 (+ Obj.)

Examples

• 我们 曾经 一起 去 过 。Wǒmen céngjīng yīqǐ qù guò.We once went there together.
• 他 说 他 曾经 做 过 很多 傻事 。Tā shuō tā céngjīng zuò guò hěn duō shǎ shì.He said that he once did a lot of stupid things.
• 我 曾经 喜欢 过 你 。Wǒ céngjīng xǐhuān guò nǐ.I once liked you.
• 她 曾经 想 当 演员 ，后来 成 了 全职太太 。Tā céngjīng xiǎng dāng yǎnyuán, hòulái chéng le quánzhí tàitài.She once wanted to become an actress. She later became a stay-at-home mom.

Sometimes 曾经 is used with 了 rather than 过.

• 为了 找 亲生 父母 ，她 曾经 花 了 很 多 钱 。Wèile zhǎo qīnshēng fùmǔ, tā céngjīng huā le hěn duō qián.In order to find her biological parents, she once spent a lot of money.

曾经 can also be used with some adjectives. In these cases, 过 is usually also used.

• 我们 都 曾经 年轻 过 。Wǒmen dōu céngjīng niánqīng guò.We were all young once.
• 他 的 音乐 曾经 流行 过 。Tā de yīnyuè céngjīng liúxíng guò.His music was once popular.

Used without 过

When used with the verbs 是, 在, and 有 (all related to existence rather than actions), 过 is generally not used.

Structure

曾经 + 是 / 在 / 有 ⋯⋯

Examples

• 他 曾经 是 我 老板 。Tā céngjīng shì wǒ lǎobǎn.He was once my boss.
• 这里 曾经 是 一个 学校 。Zhèlǐ céngjīng shì yī gè xuéxiào.There was once a school here.
• 市政府 曾经 在 我们 家 旁边 。Shì zhèngfǔ céngjīng zài wǒmen jiā pángbiān.The municipal government [building] was once next to our house.
• 他 的 墓 曾经 在 国外 。Tā de mù céngjīng zài guówài.His tomb was once overseas.
• 她 曾经 有 一个 西班牙 男朋友 。Tā céngjīng yǒu yī gè Xībānyá nán péngyou.She once had a Spanish boyfriend.
• 他们 家 曾经 有 很 多 钱 。Tāmen jiā céngjīng yǒu hěn duō qián.Their family once had lots of money.

Negative Form

Because 过 is used to talk about past actions, it should be negated with 没 (méi). When you mean to say "I haven't ever (done something)" or "(something) hasn't happened ever," just say 没⋯⋯过. It is incorrect to use 没 or 不 to negate 曾经.

Try not to say:

• 我们 不 曾经 吵 过 架 。 Wǒmen bù céngjīng chǎo guò jià.We've never argued.
• 他们 一直 写信 ，没 曾经 见 过 面 。 Tāmen yīzhí xiěxìn, méi céngjīng jiàn guò miàn.They've been writing letters to each other, but they've never met.

不曾 (bùcéng) and 未曾 (wèicéng), however, can also be used to express the above meaning, but they're more formal and thus used only in written language.

不曾 / 未曾 + Verb + 过 + Obj.

A few examples:

• 他们 一直 写信 ，不曾 见 过 面 。Tāmen yīzhí xiě xìn, bùcéng jiàn guò miàn.They've been writing letters to each other, but they've never met.
• 他 从小 就 没有 父母 ，未曾 感受 过 家庭 的 温暖 。Tā cóngxiǎo jiù méiyǒu fùmǔ, wèicéng gǎnshòu guò jiātíng de wēnnuǎn.He's had no parents since he was very young. He's never experienced the warmth of a family.

See also

• Taiwanese "you"
• Expressing experiences with "guo"
• Before a specific time with "yiqian"
• Expressing "before" in general with "yiqian"

Sources and further reading

Books

• HSK Standard Course 5上 (pp. 75) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy

HSK5