Difference between revisions of "Aspectual particle "le""

(Created page with "{{AKA|了2|change-of-state 了|sentence 了|modal 了}} 了 (le) has a lot of uses. You probably first learned 了 as a particle that tells you an action is completed, whic...")
 
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{{AKA|了2|change-of-state 了|sentence 了|modal 了}}
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了 (le) has a lot of uses.  You probably first learned 了 as a [[particle]] that tells you an action is completed, which is also known as [[了1]].  This article is not about that use of 了; it's about indicating a ''change of state'' ([[了2]]).  In other words, there is now a new situation, or there is about to be a new situation.  This whole "change of state" idea can take numerous forms, so it's helpful to view them individually, alongside some English translations.
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{{AKA|了1|verb 了|completed action 了|perfective 了}}
  
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== General Change of State ==
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==See also==
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*[[Expressing experiences with verbs]]
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When used in this way, 了 is placed at the end of the sentence to mark that the whole statement describes a new situation.
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*[[Uses of le]]
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Some examples:
 
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<div class="liju">
 
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* 他 会 开车 <em>了</em>。 <span class="expl">"He can ''now'' drive." (he couldn't before)</span>
 
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* 我 有 女朋友 <em>了</em>。 <span class="expl">"I have a girlfriend now." (I didn't have one before)</span>
 
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* 情况 跟 以前 不 一样 <em>了</em> 。 <span class="expl">"The situation isn't the same as before." (obviously, it's a change of situation!)</span>
 
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== Expressing "Now" ==
 
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The word "now" doesn't always need to be translated as 现在.  You'll notice that in many common expressions, 了 is used in place of the explicit word for "now."
 
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* 吃饭 <em>了</em>！ <span class="expl">"Time to eat!"</span>
 
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* 我 来 <em>了</em>。 <span class="expl">"I'm coming over now. / I'm on the way"</span>
 
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* 我 知道 <em>了</em>。 <span class="expl">"I get it now. / I see now. / Now I know. (I didn't before)"</span>
 
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</div>
 
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== Expressing "Already" ==
 
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You can expect to see the word 已经 (meaning "already") in these sentences, which frequently pairs up with 了, but note that sometimes that feeling of "already" can also be expressed with 了 alone.
 
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* 我 已经 告诉 他 <em>了</em>。 <span class="expl">"I already told him."</span>
 
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* 我 吃 过 饭 <em>了</em> 。 <span class="expl">"I've (already) eaten."</span>
 
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* 你 早就 知道 <em>了</em>。 <span class="expl">"I knew (that) a long time ago."</span>
 
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</div>
 
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== Expressing "Not Anymore" ==
 
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In a negative sentence, the sentence-final 了 can taken on the meaning of "(not) anymore" or "no longer."
 
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<div class="liju">
 
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* 他 不会 开车 <em>了</em>。<span class="expl">"He doesn't know how to drive anymore." (but he could before)</span>
 
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* 我 不能 喝酒 <em>了</em>。<span class="expl">"I can't drink ''anymore''."</span>
 
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* 你 不喜 欢 我 <em>了</em>？<span class="expl">"You don't like me anymore?"</span>
 
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</div>
 
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== Telling Someone to "Stop" Doing Something ==
 
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If someone is doing something and you want them to stop, you're actually demanding a change of state.  So you put the 了 in the command to indicate that desired change of state (even though it hasn't actually happened, and the person given the command may or may not cooperate).
 
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* 你 不要 去 <em>了</em> 。<span class="expl">"Don't go." (I hope you'll change your mind.)</span>
 
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* 别 烦 她 <em>了</em> 。<span class="expl">"Stop pestering her."</span>
 
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* 别 问 我 <em>了</em> 。<span class="expl">"Stop asking me."</span>
 
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</div>
 
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== Expressing "has become..." ==
 
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Especially for adjectives, you can often skip special verbs altogether and just use 了 to indicate that something has changed in quality.
 
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<div class="liju">
 
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* 他 的 衣服 脏 <em>了</em>。<span class="expl">"His clothes have gotten dirty."</span>
 
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* 我 胖 <em>了</em>。<span class="expl">"I've gotten fat(ter)."</span>
 
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* 你 现在 是 老师 <em>了</em>。<span class="expl">"You're a teacher now." (but you weren't before)</span>
 
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== See also ==
 
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* [[Uses of le]]
 
  
 
== Sources and further reading ==
 
== Sources and further reading ==
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=== Books ===
 
=== Books ===
  
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* [[Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar]] (pp. 68) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1933330899/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399373&creativeASIN=1933330899 →buy]
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* [[Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar]] (pp. 65 - 68) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1933330899/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399373&creativeASIN=1933330899 →buy]
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* [[Mandarin Chinese: A Functional Reference Grammar]] (pp. 238 - 299) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0520066103?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0520066103 →buy]  
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* [[Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed)]] (pp. 137 - 139)　[http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887276385/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0887276385 →buy]
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* [[New Practical Chinese Reader 2 (新实用汉语课本2)]] (pp. 217 - 218) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561911297/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=7561911297 →buy]
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* [[Integrated Chinese: Level 2, Part 1]] (pp. 11 - 14) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887276792/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0887276792 →buy]
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* [[New Practical Chinese Reader 3 (新实用汉语课本3)]] (pp. 64 - 65) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/756191251X/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=756191251X →buy]
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* [[Mandarin Chinese: A Functional Reference Grammar]] (pp. 185 - 217) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0520066103?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0520066103 →buy]  
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* [[New Practical Chinese Reader 1 (新实用汉语课本1)]] (pp. 199 - 200) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561910401/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=7561910401 →buy]
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* [[New Practical Chinese Reader 1 (新实用汉语课本1)(2nd ed)]] (pp. 226 - 228) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561926235/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399373&creativeASIN=7561926235 →buy]
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* [[New Practical Chinese Reader 2 (新实用汉语课本2)]] (pp. 16 - 18) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561911297/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=7561911297 →buy]
  
 
=== Websites ===
 
=== Websites ===
  
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* Yale: [http://comet.cls.yale.edu/mandarin/content/Lele/grammar/Lele.htm The Perfective –Le了 Versus The Modal Particle Le了]
 
* East Asia Student: [http://eastasiastudent.net/2630/china/mandarin/cmn-grammar/four-kinds-le/ 了 grammar: four kinds of 了 in Mandarin]
 
* East Asia Student: [http://eastasiastudent.net/2630/china/mandarin/cmn-grammar/four-kinds-le/ 了 grammar: four kinds of 了 in Mandarin]
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[[Category:Particles]]

Revision as of 17:19, 21 January 2012

This article is a stub. Editors can help the Chinese Grammar Wiki by expanding it.
Also known as: 了1, verb 了, completed action 了 and perfective 了.

See also

Sources and further reading

Books

Websites

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