Time 2
Completed actions with 了
One use of 了 (le) is to show that you have finished doing something. In other words, 了 is a way you can talk about the past in Chinese! For example, while in English, we might say I ate or She went, in Chinese, you’ll hear 我吃了 (wǒ chīle, I ate) or 她去了 (tā qùle, She went) instead.
他喝了咖啡。
(Tā hēle kāfēi.) He drank coffee.
我昨天见了我的医生。
(Wǒ zuótiān jiànle wǒ de yīshēng.) I saw my doctor yesterday.
Today or tomorrow?
In Chinese, time words such as today, tomorrow, and yesterday always come before the verb or adjective, we never use them at the end of a sentence.
我昨天见了我的医生。
(Wǒ zuótiān jiànle wǒ de yīshēng.) I saw my doctor yesterday. Literal: I yesterday saw my doctor.
明天她会去中国。
(Míngtiān tā huì qù zhōngguó.) She will go to China tomorrow. Literal: Tomorrow, she will go to China.
你今天忙吗？
(Nǐ jīntiān máng ma?) Are you busy today? Literal: Are you today busy?
Talking about the future with 会 (huì)
会 (huì, will) is used to talk about the future in Chinese, much like will is used in English! To say won’t or will not, you can use 不会 (búhuì, will not).
他们下个月会很忙。
(Tāmen xià gè yuè huì hěn máng.) They will be busy next month.
我明天不会去医院。
(Wǒ míngtiān bú huì qù yīyuàn.) I won’t go to the hospital tomorrow.
他今天晚上会来吗？
(Tā jīntiān wǎnshàng huì lái ma?) Will he come tonight?
Measure Words
You’ve already seen the measure word 个 (ge) between a number and a noun (for example, 三个学生) or after words like this or that (for example, 这个孩子 or 那个人).
You also need to use a measure word after 上 (shàng, last), 下 (xià, next) and 每 (měi, every).
You also need to use a measure word after 上 (shàng, last), 下 (xià, next) and 每 (měi, every).
上个星期
(shàng ge xīngqī) last week
下个月
(xià ge yuè) next month
每个人
(měi ge rén) everyone
Exceptions include 天 (tiān, day) and 年 (nián, year), which don’t require measure words.
每天
(měitiān) every day
每年
(měinián) every year
一天
(yī tiān) one day
一年
(yī nián) one year