What is a (grammatical) particle?
A particle is a word that serves a grammatical function and has no intrinsic meaning or definition. In English, words such as “the”, “and”, “because” are particles. In Chinese, there are particles with no English equivalents, so it is important for a person studying Chinese to understand the context in which Chinese particles are used.
What is the function of:
了
le
1. To indicate an action occured in the past (and has been completed).
我吃了饭。
wǒ chī le fàn
I ate.
2. To indicate a change of state
天气不冷了。
tiān qì bù lěng le
The weather is not cold anymore.
How would you change this sentence to indicate a past event?
我吃饭。
wǒ chī fàn
I eat.
我吃了饭。
wǒ chī le fàn
I ate.
Remember: adding le after a verb indicates a completed action that occured in the past.
How would you change this sentence to indicate a change of state?
天气很冷。
tiān qì hěn lěng
The weather is cold.
天气不冷了。
tiān qì bù lěng le
The weather is not cold anymore.
Remember: adding le after a statement indicates a change of state.
What is the function of:
的
de
1. To indicate possession
我的手机
wǒ de shǒu jī
I (de) cellphone
my cellphone
2. To describe objects or people when it follows the adjective
橙色的衬衫
chéng sè de chèn shān
orange (de) shirt
orange shirt
Translate to Chinese:
his cellphone
他的手机
tā de shǒu jī
his cellphone
Remember: 的 precedes the noun that is possessed.
Translate to Chinese:
blue jeans
蓝色的牛仔裤
lán sè de niú zǎi kù
blue jeans
Remember: 的 follows the adjective describing the noun.
What is the function of:
吗
ma
To turn a statement into a question
你吃饭了吗？
nǐ chī fàn le ma?
Have you eaten?
How would you change this statement into a question?
你喜欢他。
nǐ xǐ huān tā
You like him.
你喜欢他吗？
nǐ xǐ huān tā ma?
Do you like him?
Remember: adding ma at the end of a statement turns it into a question.
What is the function of:
和
hé
Conjunction, “and”
我和他是同学。
wǒ hé tā shì tóng xué
He and I are classmates.
Translate to Chinese:
apples and oranges
苹果和橙子
píng guǒ hé chéng zi
apples and oranges
Remember: hé functions as the word “and”.
What is the function of:
也
yě
Functions as the word “also”
我喜欢吃饼干。我也喜欢吃蛋糕。
Wǒ xǐ huan chī bǐng gān. Wǒ yě xǐ huan chī dàn gāo.
I like to eat cookies. I also like to eat cake.
Translate the missing sentence:
Person A:
我喜欢吃饼干。
Wǒ xǐ huan chī bǐng gān.
I like to eat cookies.
Person B:
___________________。
I also like to eat cookies.
我也喜欢吃饼干。
Wǒ yě xǐ huan chī bǐng gān.
I also like to eat cookies.
Remember: yě precedes the verb to mean “also”.
What is the function of:
还
hái
Functions as the word “still”
我还住在加州。
Wǒ hái zhù zài jiā zhōu.
I still live in California.
Translate the missing sentence:
Person A:
他喜欢Lady Gaga。
Tā xǐ huan Lady Gaga.
He likes Lady Gaga.
Person B:
__________________？
He still likes Lady Gaga?
他还喜欢Lady Gaga?
Tā hái xǐ huan Lady Gaga?
He still likes Lady Gaga?
Remember: hái is used before a verb and functions like the word “still” does in English.
What is the function of:
只
zhǐ
Functions as the word “only”
我只有一辆车。
Wǒ zhǐ yǒu yī liàng chē.
I only have one car.
Translate the missing sentence:
Person A:
我有一条裤子。
Wǒ yǒu yī tiáo kù zi.
I have one pair of pants.
Person B:
________________？
You only have one pair of pants?
你只有一条裤子？
Nǐ zhǐ yǒu yī tiáo kù zi?
You only have one pair of pants?
Remember: zhǐ is used before a verb and functions like the word “only” in English.
What is the function of:
得
de
It is a potential complement that is used to show the outcome of an action. The word(s) that follow de describe the result of the action before de.
她画得很好。
tā huà de hěn hǎo
She paints very well.
作业我做得完。
zuò yè wǒ zuò de wán
Homework, I finished.
I finished the homework assignment.
Translate to Chinese:
Do you understand what I am saying?
你听得懂我说的话吗？
nǐ tīng de dǒng wǒ shuō de huà ma
Do you understand what I am saying?
Remember: 得 is used as a potential complement to show the outcome of an action. In this case, the outcome of the verb listen (听) is understand (懂).
What is the function of:
吧
ba
When added at the end of a sentence, it indicates a suggestion; similar to the tag question “aren’t you?”; can also mean “let’s”.
我们走吧。
wǒ men zǒu ba
Let’s go.
吃饭吧。
chī fàn ba
(You) should eat.
Change this statement into a suggestion:
我们回家。
wǒ men huí jiā
We return home.
我们回家吧。
wǒ men huí jiā ba
Let’s go back home.
We should go back home.
Remember: Adding ba at the end of a statement turns it into a suggestion.
What is the function of:
过
guò
To indicate one has already experienced something.
我去过中国。
wǒ qù guò zhōng guó
I have been to China.
Change this sentence to indicate one has experienced this before:
我看了这部电影。
wǒ kàn le zhè bù diàn yǐng
I watched this movie.
我看过这部电影。
wǒ kàn guò zhè bù diàn yǐng
I have seen this movie.
Remember: When guò is used after the verb, it indicates one has already experienced the action.
What is the function of:
地
de
It is an adverbial particle that is used after an adjective to change it into an adverb.
他慢慢地跑步。
tā màn man de pǎo bù
He slow (adverbial particle) run.
He slowly runs.
Translate to Chinese:
He studied intently.
他认真地学习。
tā rèn zhēn de xué xí
He studied intently.
Remember: 地 is used after an adjective to change it into an adverb, similar to how the suffix -ly can be added to adjectives in English.
What is the function of:
着
zhe
To indicate a continued action or state when placed after a verb or adjective.
那个小孩看着你。
nà gè xiǎo hái kàn zhe nǐ
That child is watching you.
Change this sentence to describe a continuous state:
她穿新的衣服。
tā chuān xīn de yī fú
She wears new clothes.
她穿着新的衣服。
tā chuān zhe xīn de yī fú
She is wearing new clothes.
Remember: zhe is added after a verb or adjective to indicate a continuous state. It can be seen as the equivalent to the English suffix -ing.
What is the function of:
比
bǐ
To compare two different objects or people.
我比你高。
wǒ bǐ nǐ gāo
I (more) you tall.
I am taller than you.
你比我高。
nǐ bǐ wǒ gāo
You (more) me tall.
You are taller than me.
Translate to Chinese:
I am younger than her.
我比她年轻。
wǒ bǐ tā nián qīng
I (more) her young.
I am younger than her.
Remember: bǐ is used to compare two different objects or people. You can interpret it to mean “more”, but there is no actual meaning to the word because it is a particle.
