Expressing experiences with "guo"

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The aspect particle 过 (guò) is used to indicate that an action has been experienced in the past.

Basic Pattern

Structure

Subject + Verb + 过 + Object

What this expresses is that the verb has been done at least once before, without specifying a particular time. 过 (guò) is used to talk about whether something has ever happened - whether it has been experienced.

Examples

In English, if you're asking a question and really trying to figure out if someone has ever done something before, we tend to use the words "ever" and "before." In Chinese, 过 (guò) alone expresses this, without the need for additional words.

  • 我 去 过 中国 。 Wǒ qù guò Zhōngguó. I have been to China.
  • 他 吃 过 小笼包 。 Tā chī guò xiǎolóngbāo. He has eaten steamed dumplings.
  • 你 见 过 那 个 人 吗 ？ Nǐ jiàn guò nà gè rén ma? Have you seen that person before?
  • 我 做 过 这样 的 工作 。 Wǒ zuò guò zhèyàng de gōngzuò. I have done work like this before.
  • 你 自己 做 过 饭 吗 ？ Nǐ zìjǐ zuò guò fàn ma? Have you ever cooked for yourself?
  • 你 学 过 中文 吗 ？ Nǐ xué guò Zhōngwén ma? Have you ever studied Chinese?
  • 你 看 过 这 个 电影 吗 ？ Nǐ kàn guò zhè gè diànyǐng ma? Have you seen this movie?
  • 我 学 过 这 个 词 。 Wǒ xué guò zhè gè cí. I have studied this word.
  • 我 用 过 电脑 ， 我 会 用 。 Wǒ yòng guò diànnǎo, wǒ huì yòng. I have used a computer before, I can use it.
  • 我 买 过 这里 的 巧克力 ， 不 好吃 。 Wǒ mǎi guò zhèlǐ de qiǎokèlì, bù hǎochī. I have bought chocolate here before, it's not good.

Negating a 过 sentence

Because 过 (guò) is used to talk about past actions, it should be negated with 没 (méi).

Structure

Subject + 没 + Verb + 过 + Object

Examples

Note that when you translate these examples into English, "have never" [done something] is often more natural, indicating that someone lacks the experience of having done something, rather than just "have not" [done something].

  • 我 没 去 过 中国 。 Wǒ méi qù guò Zhōngguó. I have never been to China.
  • 他 没 听 过 他 的 歌 。 Tā méi tīng guò tā de gē. He has not heard his song.
  • 我 没 喝 过 这 种 啤酒 。 Wǒ méi hē guò zhè zhǒng píjiǔ. I have not had this kind of beer before.
  • 我 妈妈 没 用 过 电脑 。 Wǒ māma méi yòng guò diànnǎo. My mom has never used a computer before.
  • 他 没 吃 过 小笼包 。 Tā méi chī guò xiǎolóngbāo. He has never eaten steamed dumplings before.
  • 你 没 学 过 中文 ？ Nǐ méi xué guò Zhōngwén? Have you not ever studied Chinese?
  • 你 没 看 过 电影 吗 ？ Nǐ méi kàn guò diànyǐng ma? Have you seen movie?
  • 我 没 学 过 这 个 词 。 Wǒ méi xué guò zhè gè cí. I haven't studied this word.
  • 你 没 见 过 那 个 人 吗 ？ Nǐ méi jiàn guò nà gè rén ma? Haven't you seen that person?
  • 我 没 做 过 这样 的 工作 。 Wǒ méi zuò guò zhèyàng de gōngzuò. I have never done this kind of work.

Using 过 with 了

You'll sometimes see 过 (guò) used together with 了 (le). This can be a little confusing, as it doesn't seeing to be following the rules laid out above. For more on this special usage of 过 (guò), see the article on using 过 (guò) with 了 (le).

See Also

Sources and further reading

Books

Websites

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