Result complements
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Used for
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Keywords
Result complements or one of the most common and useful types of complements. Often the complement is simply an adjective like 好 (hǎo) or a single syllable like 完 (). They indicate that an action has led to a certain result and make that result clear to the listener.
Contents
Using Adjectives
好 (hǎo) implies that something is done to completion or done well. Forming a result complement with 好 has a very similar meaning to forming one with 完. It expresses that the action has been completed successfully.
错 (cuò) is used to express that an action has been performed incorrectly in some way, resulting in a mistake (错). This pattern covers what is often expressed with the adverb "incorrectly" in English.
Other adjectives commonly used as result complements include: 清楚 (qīngchu), 明白 (míngbai), 干净 (gānjìng), 晚 (wǎn), 饱 (bǎo), 坏 (huài), 破 (pò).
Structure
For the basic structure, you'll almost always see a 了 after the complement:
Subj. + Verb + Adj. + 了
Examples
- 我们 吃 好 了 。We finished eating.
- 对不起 ，我 记 错 了 。Sorry, I remember it wrong.
- 你们 听 清楚 了 吗 ？Did you hear clearly?
- 他 玩 坏 了 哥哥 的 玩具 。He broke his older brother's toy.
To negate a result complement, use 没 instead of 不 (and no 了):
Subj. + 没 + Verb + Adj.
- 你 没 吃 饱 吗 ？Are you not full?
- 他 没 修 好 我 的 电脑 。He didn't fix my computer.
- 我 还没 想 好 。I haven't thought it through yet.
- 我 没 看 清楚 那个 人 的 脸 。I didn't see the guy's face clearly.
When using result complements, it's very common to make the object a topic. This means the object is moved to the beginning of the sentence and the subject is often omitted:
Topic + Verb + Adj. + 了
- 这 个 字 写 错 了。You wrote this character wrong.
- 你 的 鞋 已经 穿 坏 了 。Your shoes are worn out.
- 杯子 摔 坏 了 。The cup is broken.
- 房间 打扫 干净 了 吗 ？Is your room all cleaned up?
Using One-syllable Verbs
Besides adjectives, there are a few single-syllable verbs which an also be used as result complements. Some examples include 到 (dào), 见 (jiàn), 懂 (dǒng), 走 (zǒu), 掉 (diào). There really aren't a lot of these.
Structure
For the basic structure, you'll almost always see a 了 after the complement:
Subj. + Verb + [One-syllable Verb] + Obj. +了
Examples
- 女儿 已经 学 会 了 游泳 。My daughter has learned how to swim.
- 这个 学生 还没 学 会 写 汉字 。This student hasn't learned how to write Chinese characters.
- 老师 拿 走 了 我 的 iPad 。 The teacher took away my iPad.
- 小偷 偷 走 了 我 的钱包 。The thief stole my wallet.
- 奶奶 不小心 摔 倒 了 。Grandma had a fall by accident.
- 你 撞 倒 了 我 的 自行车 。You knocked over my bike.
- 谁 扔掉 了 我 的 袜子 ？Who threw away my socks?
- 太 热 了 ，外套 脱 掉 吧 。It‘s too hot. Let's take off our jackets.
- 我 刚刚 卖 掉 了 我 的 旧 手机 。I just sold my old cell phone.
Compared with Potential Complements
| Result Complement | Aff. Potential Complement | Neg. Potential Complement |
|---|---|---|
| 做 完 | 做 得 完 | 做 不 完 |
| 听 懂 | 听 得 懂 | 听 不 懂 |
| 看 清楚 | 看 得 清楚 | 看 不 清楚 |
| 洗 干净 | 洗 得 干净 | 洗 不 干净 |
Result Complement in 把 Sentences
You might have noticed that quite a few of the example sentences in this article are 把 sentences. This is because 把 sentences and result complements work particularly well together, as they both deal with the result of an action or the disposal of an object.
Apart from result complements involving perception and psychological verbs, most result compounds work nicely in 把 sentences.
| Subject | 把 | Object | RC compound verb | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 我 | 把 | 杯子 | 摔 坏 了 | 。 |
| 他 | 把 | 我 的 电脑 | 修 好 了 | 。 |
| 小偷 | 把 | 我 的 钱包 | 偷 走 了 | 。 |
| 我们 | 把 | 房间 | 打扫 干净 了 | 。 |
See also
All result complements work particularly well in a 把 sentence.
Sources and further reading
Books
- Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (3rd ed) (pp. 43- 4) →buy
- Integrated Chinese: Level 2, Part 1 (pp. 233-4) →buy
