Learning to use "le"

Everyone thinks at first that 了 (le) is best learned as a series of hard and fast rules, similar to how you know what tense to use in Spanish. In reality, though, it's much easier to use 了 as a group of patterns. If you learn all of these patterns progressively, you will naturally start to get a feel for 了.

Expressing Completion

Grammar Point (English) Pattern Examples
Expressing completion with "le" Subj. + Verb + 了 + Obj. 我 吃 两 个 苹果。
Result complement "-wan" for finishing Verb + 完 (+ 了) 我 说 了。
Expressing "already" with just "le" Subj. + Verb Phrase + 了 你 应该 问 老师 。我 问
Questions with "le ma" Verb + 了 + 吗? 你 吃饭 了 吗
Using "guo" with "le" Verb + 过 + 了 她 吃
Expressing "again" in the past with "you" 又 + Verb + 了 迟到

了 as "already"

Grammar Point (English) Pattern Examples
Expressing "already" with just "le" Subj. + Verb Phrase + 了 你 应该 问 老师 。我 问
Expressing "already" with "yijing" 已经⋯⋯了 已经
Expressing "not anymore" with "le" 不 / 没(有) + Verb Phrase + 了 想 吃
Expressing "already" with "dou" 都 + Time + 了 九点 ,快点 起床 !

了 as "about to"

Grammar Point (English) Pattern Examples
Expressing duration with "le" Verb + 了 + Duration 他 在 北京 住 了 两 年
Expressing "about to happen" with "le" 快 + Verb / Adj. + 了 下雨
Expressing "about to" with "jiuyao" 还有 + Time Period + 就要 + Verb Phrase + 了 还有 五 天 就要 放假

Common Patterns

Grammar Point (English) Pattern Examples
Expressing "excessively" with "tai" 太 + Adj. + 了  !
Negative adjectives with "-si le" Adj. + 死了 我 今天 累 死了
Expressing ongoing duration with double "le" Verb + 了 + Duration + 了 他 在 北京 住 了 两 年 了
Expressing "stop doing" with "bie… le" 别 + Verb + 了 ,烦 死了 。
Expressing "more and more" with "yuelaiyue" Subj. + 越来越 + Adj. + 了 天气 越来越 冷 了。
Superlative "zui" 最 + Adj. (+ 了) 有钱 ?
Expressing earliness with "jiu" Subj. + Time + 就 + Verb + 了 我 昨晚 八 点 半 睡觉
Expressing duration of inaction Duration + 没 + Verb + 了 已经 一 个 星期 洗澡
Expressing "much more" in comparisons Noun 1 + 比 + Noun 2 + Adj. + 多了 拼音 汉字 容易 多了
Expressing "finally" with "zhongyu" Subj. + 终于 + Predicate + 了 终于
Expressing "all at once" with "yixiazi" Subj. + 一下子 + Verb + 了 天气 一下子 变 冷
Adjectives with "-ji le" Adj. + 极了 这个 主意 好 极了

Indicating Change of State

Grammar Point (English) Pattern Examples
Change of state with "le" ⋯⋯了 我 25 岁
Expressing "now" with "le" New Situation + 了 吃饭