Grammar Bank

是 links a subject to its identity, classification, or role. Unlike English 'to be', 是 is not used to describe states or qualities — those use adjectives directly. Use 是 when equating A with B (A is a type of B, or A = B).

有 has two main uses: possession ('I have X') and existence ('There is X at location'). In the existential use, the location comes first, followed by 有, then the thing that exists there. Negate with 没有, never 不有.

不 is used to negate present habits, future intentions, and general truths — it expresses choice or ongoing state. 没 (short for 没有) negates completed past actions and possession. Think: 不 = 'don't / won't', 没 = 'didn't / don't have'.

Adding 吗 to the end of any statement turns it into a yes/no question — no word order change needed. This is one of the simplest question forms in Mandarin. Answer by repeating the verb (positive or negative), not with 'yes' or 'no' directly.

的 connects a modifier to the noun it describes. For possession, place the owner before 的 and the owned thing after. It also links any descriptive phrase to a noun. Between close family/relationships, 的 is often dropped in speech.

呢 returns a question back to someone or something, building on what was just said. It's the equivalent of 'What about you?' or 'And you?' in context. Unlike 吗, it does not form a yes/no question on its own — it relies on shared context.

Mandarin requires a measure word (量词) between a number and a noun. The measure word depends on the noun's category: 个 for people/generic objects, 本 for books, 张 for flat things, 只 for animals, 条 for long flexible things. You cannot say 'three book' — you need 'three measure-word book'.

In Mandarin, time expressions come before the main verb (and optionally before the subject for emphasis). This is the opposite of English, which typically places time at the end. A helpful rule: context narrows to action — big time words (year, month) come before smaller ones (day, hour).

在 has two distinct uses: (1) as a verb meaning 'to be at/in' a location, and (2) as an aspect marker before a verb to indicate an ongoing action (like English '-ing'). Context and sentence structure make the meaning clear.

了 after a verb marks completion of an action. It does not automatically mean 'past' — it marks that something is done. At the end of a sentence, 了 signals a change of state (something is now different). Do not overuse: stative verbs, habitual actions, and future completions all have different patterns.

过 indicates that an experience has occurred at some point in one's lifetime — think 'have ever done'. It does not specify when, only that it happened before. Negate with 没(有): 没吃过. This contrasts with 了 (specific completed event).

着 attached to a verb indicates that the action or position is maintained — an ongoing, continuous state. It often describes how something is positioned (开着/lying, 坐着/sitting) or a background state while another action happens. It is different from the 在+verb progressive.

比 creates direct comparisons: 'A is more [adjective] than B'. Place 比 between the two things being compared, followed by the adjective. Do not add 更 or 非常 — the 比 structure itself already implies 'more'. Add a degree complement (…得多, 一点) after the adjective for degree.

也 means 'also' and applies to one additional thing joining what was said. 都 means 'all/both' and refers to a group (all members do something). 也 modifies what follows; 都 quantifies the subject. They can be combined: 也都 (also, all of them).

The 把 construction moves the object before the verb to emphasize what is done to it (disposal). It requires a result or complement after the verb — you cannot just say '把书看' alone. Use 把 when the verb has an effect on the object: you've read the book all the way through, moved it somewhere, or changed its state.

被 marks the passive voice, highlighting the receiver of an action. In natural Mandarin, the passive is used less often than English — mainly when the event has a negative, undesirable or notable outcome for the subject. The agent (doer) can be omitted: 苹果被吃了.

Insert 得 or 不 between a verb and its result complement to indicate whether the result is achievable (得) or not achievable (不). This is the potential complement construction: 做得到 (can manage to do) vs 做不到 (cannot manage). Different from degree complements (verb+得+adj).

Mandarin sentences are often organized as topic + comment rather than strict subject + verb + object. The topic sets the frame; the comment says something about it. The topic is often an old or shared reference, and the comment provides new information.

This pattern expresses concession followed by contrast — acknowledging one truth while highlighting another. Both clauses can share a subject (mentioned once) or have different subjects. 可是 is more informal than 但是; 然而 is more literary.

This pair expresses causation. In Chinese, both 因为 and 所以 can appear together (unlike English where 'because' and 'so/therefore' cannot both appear in the same sentence). Either can be used alone — 因为 alone introduces a reason, 所以 alone introduces a consequence.

This conditional pattern states a hypothetical and its result. 如果 (or 要是 in colloquial speech) introduces the condition; 就 introduces the consequence. The subject can appear before or after 如果. 就 cannot be omitted when the consequence has a different subject than the condition.

越来越 (yuè lái yuè) expresses gradual increase in degree — 'more and more' or 'increasingly'. It is always followed by a positive adjective or verb phrase. To express a decrease, use 越来越 with the negative adjective (越来越少, not 越来越不多).

The 是…的 construction is used to emphasize how, when, where, or by whom an already-known action was performed. It focuses on one element of a past event rather than the event itself. The action must be established fact — not unknown.

连…都/也 highlights an extreme or unexpected case to imply that all less extreme cases are also true (or untrue). 连 draws attention to the surprising element; 都 or 也 delivers the conclusion. It is often used for emphasis in negative or affirmative statements.

Resultative complements are attached directly to the main verb to show the result of the action. They are single-syllable verbs or adjectives: 写完 (finish writing), 听懂 (understand by listening), 做错 (do wrong), 学会 (learn/master). No space or particle — they merge directly.

既然…就 is used when accepting an already-known fact and drawing a logical conclusion from it. Unlike 如果…就 (hypothetical), 既然 takes the condition as established truth. It carries a tone of 'since it's already the case, we might as well…'

越…越 expresses a proportional relationship: as one thing increases, another thing increases (or decreases) in proportion. It can describe a single subject doing something more intensely, or two correlated conditions. Different from 越来越 (which has no first verb).

非…不可 expresses absolute necessity or insistence — 'must, without exception'. It is a double negative that creates a strong affirmative: 非去不可 = 'must go' (cannot not-go). Often carries emotional insistence or strong obligation.

对…来说 introduces a perspective — 'from the point of view of X' or 'for X'. It establishes whose standpoint the following comment is made from. Similar in function to 'for X' or 'as far as X is concerned' in English.