Expressing "be going to" with "yao"
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The auxiliary verb 要 (yào) has a lot of meanings, and here we'll tackle the "be going to" meaning. This can be confusing at first, dealing with the multiple meanings of 要 (yào), but stick with it!
Contents
Structure
The idea behind this usage of 要 (yào) is that someone is "planning to" or "going to" or "preparing to" do something. It's not that they just want to, or have to, it's that they fully expect to do it. It's in their plan. Because of the time indication, the following examples show that the subject wants and plans to do the action stated.
Subject + 要 + Verb
Examples
- 我 今 年 要 学 中文 。 I am planning to learn Chinese this year.
- 我 下 个 月 要 去 中国 工作 。 I am going to China to work next month.
- 星期天 我 要 去 北京 。 I am going to Beijing on Sunday.
- 我 等会儿要 给 妈妈 打电话 。 I am going to call my mom in a little bit.
- 不好意思 ， 我 要 出去 一 下 。 Pardon me, I am going out real quick.
- 我 明天 要 买 一 个 iPhone 。 I am going to buy an iPhone tomorrow.
- 下班 以后 你 要 去 哪里 ？ Where are you planning to go after work?
- 我 要 去 吃饭 ， 你 去 吗 ？ I am going to go eat. Do you want to go?
- 我 要 做 咖啡 ， 你 喝 吗 ？ I am going to make coffee, do you want to drink some?
In the following examples, although no time period is specified, because the question is out of courtesy, it shows that the speaker is already planning on doing that action. Thus, here 要 (yào) is used to show that the subject is going/planning to do something.
- 我 要 去 吃饭 ， 你 去 吗 ？ I am going to go eat. Do you want to go?
- 我 要 做 咖啡 ， 你 喝 吗 ？ I am going to make coffee, do you want to drink some?
要 and 想
Instead of using 要 (yào) it is also possible to use the word 想 (xiǎng). These two words are both modal verbs and are largely interchangeable, and both generally mean "to want." The only difference worth mentioning is that 要 (yào) is often used when it is something you want to/need to do, and plan to take action on. It can sound a bit more demanding (and less polite). 想 (xiǎng) is often used as an idea of one's mind, that you may or may not take action on. You can think of it as meaning "would like to."
For more about 想 (xiǎng), see "Would like to" with "xiang".
Examples
- 我 要 喝 咖啡 。 (I am going to get my hands on some coffee)I want to drink coffee.
- 我 想 喝 咖啡 。 (I want to drink a cup of coffee, but may or may not act on that)I'd like to drink coffee.
- 你 要 吃 什么 ？ What do you want to eat?
- 你 想 吃 什么 ？ What would you like to eat?
See also
Sources and further reading
Books
- 现代汉语八百词（增订本） (p. ) →buy
Dictionaries
- 现代汉语词典（第5版） (p. ) →buy
