Difference between revisions of "Expressing "now" with "le""

Revision as of 06:37, 16 February 2016

现在 (xiànzài) isn't the only way to express "now." You'll notice that in many common expressions, 了 (le) is used in place of the word for "now."

知道了。Zhīdao le. Got it now. / I see now. / Now I know. (I didn't before)
懂了。Dǒng le. Now I understand.
吃饭了！Chī fàn le! Time to eat!
我走了。Wǒ zǒu le. I'm leaving now.
他来了。This can also mean "He's here now." Be careful! Tā lái le. He's coming over now. /He's on the way.
上课了！ Shàng kè le! Class begins now!
我去睡觉了。 Wǒ qù shuìjiào le. I'm going to bed now.
快点儿，开会了！Kuài diǎnr, kāihuì le! Hurry up, it's time for the meeting now!
该你了。Gāi nǐ le. It's your turn now.
电影开始了！Diànyǐng kāishǐ le! The movie is starting now!

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Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition (pp. 126-9) →buy
Mandarin Chinese: A Functional Reference Grammar (pp. 238-99) →buy
New Practical Chinese Reader 2 (新实用汉语课本2) (pp. 217-8) →buy
New Practical Chinese Reader 3 (新实用汉语课本3) (pp. 64-5) →buy
Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (3rd ed) (p. 8) →buy
40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课上册） (p. 239)→buy

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 * 我 走 <em>了</em> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ zǒu <em>le</em>.</span> <span class="trans">I'm leaving now.</span>
 * 他 来 <em>了</em> 。<span class="expl">This can also mean "He's here now." Be careful! </span><span class="pinyin">Tā lái <em>le</em>. </span> <span class="trans">He's coming over now. /He's on the way. </span>
-* 上课 <em>了</em> ！ <span class="pinyin">Shàng kè <em>le</em>! </span> <span class="trans">Class begin now! </span>
+* 上课 <em>了</em> ！ <span class="pinyin">Shàng kè <em>le</em>! </span> <span class="trans">Class begins now! </span>
 * 我 去 睡觉 <em>了</em> 。 <span class="pinyin">Wǒ qù shuìjiào <em>le</em>. </span> <span class="trans">I'm going to bed now. </span>
 * 快 点儿 ， 开会 <em>了</em> ！<span class="pinyin">Kuài diǎnr, kāihuì <em>le</em>! </span> <span class="trans">Hurry up, it's time for the meeting now! </span>