Actions in a row

Linking actions together in a sentence is very straightforward. There is no new word or phrase needed!

Structure

In Chinese it's very easy to describe two actions in a row. Simply place one verb phrase after another, in this structure:

Subject + Verb Phrase 1 + Verb Phrase 2

No connecting word is needed. A common mistake in the early stages of learning Chinese is to try and link verbs with 和. This is incorrect - 和 can only link nouns. Just place one verb after another.

Examples

• 我们 去 咖啡店 喝 咖啡 吧。Let's go to the cafe and drink coffee.
• 我 要 回 家 吃 饭。I want to go home and eat.
• 他 不 去 图书馆 看 书。He does not go to the library and read.
• 我 想 去 海南 看 海。I want to go to Hainan and see the sea.
• 你 要 去 超市 买 东西 吗？Do you want to go to the supermarket to buy things?
• 你 打 电话 告诉 他 了 吗？Did you call him and tell him?
• 我 要 打 电话 订 位子。I want to call to make the reservation.
• 我 要 上网 买 机票。I use the internet to buy airplane tickets.
• 我 下周 去 美国 旅行。Next week I go to U.S. to travel.
• 周末 我 需要 买 菜 做 饭。 I need to buy food and cook on the weekend.

Note that the English translations of these sentences use the word "and", but there is no equivalent to it in Chinese.

See also

• Events in quick succession with "yi... jiu"
• Sequencing with "xian" and "zai"

Sources and further reading

Books

• A Practical Chinese Grammar For Foreigners (外国人实用汉语语法) （pp. 477-484) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 207-8) →buy
• 40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课下册） (pp. 384-5)→buy
• 40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课上册） (p. 125)→buy