Chinese Grammar Comparisons

了 (le) marks completion of an action; 过 (guò) marks the experience of having done something at some point. 我吃了饭 means "I ate (the meal is done)." 我吃过北京烤鸭 means …

Three particles all pronounced "de" but written differently: 的 links adjectives or possessives to nouns (我的书, 漂亮的花); 得 links verbs to result/degree complements …

在 (zài) and 正在 (zhèngzài) both mark ongoing action (English "-ing"). 在 is the default; 正在 adds emphasis on the "right now, this very moment" sense. 我在吃饭 (I am e…

Three Chinese "can" verbs: 会 (huì) for learned ability (我会说中文 — I can speak Chinese), 能 (néng) for physical / situational possibility (我今天能来 — I can come today)…

把 (bǎ) marks the object of an action the subject performs deliberately; 被 (bèi) marks the subject receiving an action done to them. 把 is active-with-focus on th…