Actions in a row

Revision as of 08:33, 24 September 2014 by Nataliek (talk | contribs) (→‎Structure)

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

Sources and further reading

Books