Personality and Feelings
Why do you look so nervous?
To describe how someone looks, use 看起来 (kànqǐlái, looks) before the adjective.
你为什么看起来很紧张？
(Nǐ wèishéme kànqǐlái hén jǐnzhāng?) Why do you look (so) nervous?
她今天看起来很奇怪。
(Tā jīntiān kànqǐlái hěn qíguài.) She looks (so) strange today.
她的妹妹看起来很难过。
(Tā de mèimei kànqǐlái hěn nánguò.) Her younger sister looks (so) upset.
He cried sadly
In English, we might say You speak slowly or She quickly walked to describe how someone does something. In Chinese, 地 (de, ‑ly) can be used to describe an action.
Be sure to say 地 after the adjective but before the verb).
她高兴地笑了！
(Tā gāoxìng de xiào le!) She smiled happily!
他难过地哭了。
(Tā nánguò de kū le.) He cried sadly.
我的朋友生气地离开了。
(Wǒ de péngyǒu shēngqì de líkāi le.) My friend left angrily.
的 vs 得 vs 地
What’s the difference between 的, 得 and 地?
的 can show possession or connect adjectives to nouns.
他的朋友
(tā de péngyǒu) his friend
健康的菜
(jiànkāng de cài) healthy dish
得 and 地 can both describe an action, but the sentence order is different for each!
With 得, the verb comes first, then 得, then the adjective.
你说得很快。
(Nǐ shuō de hěn kuài.) You speak quickly.
With 地, the adjective comes first, then 地, and then the verb!
她高兴地笑了！
(Tā gāoxìng de xiào le!) She smiled happily!