Change of state with "le"
- Also known as: sentence 了 and modal 了.
了 (le) has a lot of uses. You probably first learned 了 as a particle that tells you an action is completed. It's 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.
Contents
General Change of State
When used in this way, 了 is placed at the end of the sentence to mark that the whole statement describes a new situation.
Some examples:
- 他 会 开车 了。"He can now drive." (he couldn't before)
So if the English translation would make sense with "now" or "any more", chances are it needs a 了 sticking on the end in Chinese.
Expressing "Now"
- 吃饭 了。"Time to eat."
- 我 来 了。"I'm coming over now. / I'm on the way"
- 我 知道 了。"Now I know. (I didn't before)"
Expressing "Already"
- 我已经告诉他了。"He can now drive." (he couldn't before)
- 我吃过饭了。"I don't drink anymore." (but I used to)
- 你 早就 知道 了。"Now you know. (you didn't before)"
Expressing "Not Anymore"
- 他 不会 开车 了。"He doesn't know how to drive anymore." (but he could before)
- 我 不能 喝酒 了。"I can't drink anymore."
- 你 不喜 欢 我 了？"You don't like me anymore?"
Telling Someone to "Stop" Doing Something
- 你 不要 去 了。"Don't go." (I hope you'll change your mind.)
- 别 烦 她 了。"Stop pestering her."
- 别 问 我 了。"Stop asking me."
Expressing "has become..."
- 他 的 衣服 脏 了。"He can now drive." (he couldn't before)
- 我 胖 了。"I've gotten fat(ter)."
- 你 现在 是 老师 了。"You're a teacher now." (but you weren't before)
Sources and further reading
Books
- Mandarin Chinese: A Functional Reference Grammar (pp. 238 - 299)
Websites
- East Asia Student: 了 grammar: four kinds of 了 in Mandarin
