Many followers of this Blog have requested some basic grammar rules with explanation, so today lets focus on the basics of a sentence:<\/p>\n
Who (\u8c01 sh\u00e9i)
\nWhat (\u4ec0\u4e48 sh\u00e9nme)
\nWhen (\u4ec0\u4e48\u65f6\u5019 sh\u00e9nme sh\u00edhou)
\nWhere (\u5728\u54ea\u513f z\u00e0in\u01cer)
\n *Note Why is not among this list, because it is a little more complicated in terms of grammar*<\/p>\n
Let’s start with a basic sentence in English. Someone asks you what you’ve been up to lately and your response is: “Yesterday afternoon, I went to see a movie with my friends at a New York Cinema”.<\/p>\n
Now in English, there are a variety of ways to rephrase this sentence, as you can move the subject, verb and object all throughout. Examples:” I went to see a movie at New York Cinema, yesterday afternoon, with my friends” or “Yesterday, at a New York Cinema, my friends and I saw a movie” etc…<\/p>\n
But in Chinese, the rules of grammar (thankfully) are much more fixed and simplistic, often following a prescribed order.<\/p>\n
The basic order is the following:<\/p>\n
When (this includes sequentially, the Date, part of day (afternoon, everning, morning), and then time respectively), Where (location), Who (Subject), and What (verb).<\/p>\n
To give a Chinglish format: Yesterday afternoon at 7pm, in a New York Cinema, My friends and I, saw a movie.<\/p>\n
Now for the Chinese: \u6628\u5929\u4e0b\u5348\u5728\u7ebd\u7ea6\u7535\u5f71\u9662\u4e0a\uff0c\u6211\u8ddf\u670b\u53cb\u4eec\u770b\u7535\u5f71.<\/p>\n
Here’s the pinyin: zu\u00f3ti\u0101n xi\u00e0w\u01d4\uff0cz\u00e0i ni\u01d4 yu\u0113 di\u00e0ny\u01d0ng yu\u00e0n shang, w\u01d2 g\u0113n p\u00e9ngyoum\u00e9n k\u00e0n di\u00e0ny\u01d0ng<\/p>\n
Here \u6628\u5929\u4e0b\u5348 is the when, \u5728\u7ebd\u7ea6\u7535\u5f71\u9662\u4e0a is the where (\u5728\u3002\u3002\u3002\u4e0a is a pattern for at, in, on the premises\/location), \u6211\u8ddf\u670b\u53cb\u4eec is the who (subject) and lastly \u770b\u7535\u5f71 is the what (verb). <\/p>\n
If you follow this order, you will be grammatically correct in your Chinese. However, I will note that there are some exceptions to the rule (such as the subject \u6211 can precede the when and where). If you are a beginner or intermediate Chinese learner, however, I recommend sticking to this pattern until you are fully comfortable with it. Please feel free to make your own sentences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Many followers of this Blog have requested some basic grammar rules with explanation, so today lets focus on the basics of a sentence: Who (\u8c01 sh\u00e9i) What (\u4ec0\u4e48 sh\u00e9nme) When (\u4ec0\u4e48\u65f6\u5019 sh\u00e9nme sh\u00edhou) Where (\u5728\u54ea\u513f z\u00e0in\u01cer) *Note Why is not among this list, because it is a little more complicated in terms of grammar* Let’s…<\/p>\n