Difference between revisions of "Simple "noun + adjective" sentences"
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== How can 很 (hěn) do this to me?! ==
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== 很 (hěn), what's your problem?! ==
  
 
If you're like most learners, when you first learn this pattern, you're thinking, ''"how can 很 (hěn) mean "very" one minute, but then nothing but a "link" the next? How do I know if anything means anything in this language?"'' That's a reasonable response.  But in the case of these "Noun + Adj." sentences, you just have to think of this usage of 很 (hěn) as an exception. It's just part of the structure.
 
If you're like most learners, when you first learn this pattern, you're thinking, ''"how can 很 (hěn) mean "very" one minute, but then nothing but a "link" the next? How do I know if anything means anything in this language?"'' That's a reasonable response.  But in the case of these "Noun + Adj." sentences, you just have to think of this usage of 很 (hěn) as an exception. It's just part of the structure.
  
 
If you actually want to add the meaning of "very" into the sentence, you could use another adverb instead of 很 (hěn). One good choice is 非常 (fēicháng).
 
If you actually want to add the meaning of "very" into the sentence, you could use another adverb instead of 很 (hěn). One good choice is 非常 (fēicháng).
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<li class="o">他 <strong>很</strong> 高 。 <span class="pinyin">Tā <strong>hěn</strong> gāo.</span> <span class="trans">He is tall.</span></li>
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<li class="o">他 <strong>非常</strong> 高 。<span class="pinyin">Tā <strong>fēicháng</strong> gāo.</span><span class="trans">He is very tall.</span></li>
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==See also==
 
==See also==

Revision as of 09:10, 12 February 2016

In English, nouns can be "linked" to adjectives and other nouns with the verb to be. In Chinese, nouns are linked other nouns in one way, but linked to adjectives in a totally different way. Nouns are linked to other nouns with 是 (shì). Nouns are linked to adjectives with 很 (hěn).

Structure

Noun + 很 + Adj.

The noun in this structure is the subject of the sentence. Sometimes the 很 (hěn) in this structure is translated as "very", but often it is just a way to link a noun to an adjective.

Examples

In the following examples, 很 (hěn) is just a link (you could think of it as a substitute for the verb "to be"), and the sentences could be translated as "(Noun) is (adjective)".

  • 我 很 好。 Wǒ hěn hǎo. I'm good.
  • 你 很 漂亮。 Nǐ hěn piàoliang. You are pretty.
  • 他 很 高兴。 Tā hěn gāoxìng. He is happy.
  • 中文 很 难 。 Zhōngwén hěn nán. Chinese is difficult.
  • 老板 很 生气。 Lǎobǎn hěn shēngqì. The boss is angry.
  • 猪 很 聪明 。 Zhū hěn cōngming. Pigs are smart.
  • 我 哥哥 也 很 高。 Wǒ gēge yě hěn gāo. My elder brother is also tall.
  • 你 家 也 很 远 吗？ Nǐ jiā yě hěn yuǎn ma? Is your house also far away?
  • 爸爸 很 忙，妈妈 也 很 忙。 Bàba hěn máng, māma yě hěn máng. Dad is busy, and mom is also busy.
  • 他 和 他 弟弟 都 很 帅。 Tā hé tā dìdi dōu hěn shuài. His younger brother and him are both handsome.

Remember that 是 (shì) is not used to link adjectives to nouns. This is a classic mistake that almost everyone makes when learning Chinese. Make sure you use 很 (hěn) and not 是 (shì) to link adjectives to nouns, as shown below:

  • 他 是 高 。Tā shì gāo.
  • 他 很 高 。 Tā hěn gāo. He is tall.

很 (hěn), what's your problem?!

If you're like most learners, when you first learn this pattern, you're thinking, "how can 很 (hěn) mean "very" one minute, but then nothing but a "link" the next? How do I know if anything means anything in this language?" That's a reasonable response. But in the case of these "Noun + Adj." sentences, you just have to think of this usage of 很 (hěn) as an exception. It's just part of the structure.

If you actually want to add the meaning of "very" into the sentence, you could use another adverb instead of 很 (hěn). One good choice is 非常 (fēicháng).

  • 他 很 高 。 Tā hěn gāo. He is tall.
  • 他 非常 高 。Tā fēicháng gāo.He is very tall.

See also

Sources and further reading

Videos

Books

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