Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
Chinese 1 Review, 2011-2012 – Grammar & Patterns
We did not learn many patterns because the first year is really focusing
forming the “habit” of learning this language, including pronouncing and writing.
However, if you could master all these basic patterns, you are holding the key to
success because solid foundation always facilitates later learning.
I tried to categorize what we have learned into several patterns and
rewrote most of concepts with examples (using the vocabulary we’ve learned).
1. Basic sentence structure in Chinese
2. The use of “在”
3. The use of “有”
4. The use of experiential marker “过”
5. The use of Auxiliary verbs: 想、会、要
6. [Sub.] + [(Verb) + (Noun)] + [Main Verb]
7. The use of comparative structures: 比、更、最
8. The use of sequence phrase “先… 然后…”
9. The use of “从… 到…”
10. The use of alternative questions with “还是”
11. The use of “同”
The ASSIGNMENTS are pretty easy:
(1) Review all the patterns, make sure you understand all of them completely
(2) Make at least 10 sentences, using the vocabulary you know, for each pattern
 For pattern 1, make 30 sentences (statement, negation and question)
 Pattern 5, also make 30 for each auxiliary verb
 Patterns 2-4 & 8-11, 10 sentences each
 Pattern 6: 10 sentences using “normal” formula; then make additional 10
sentences that use some time adverbs (每天、平时、有时候 =
sometimes). Try to vary sentences by putting these adverbs in
different positions.
 Pattern 7: make 10 sets of comparisons
1
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
(3) Practice reading aloud your results!
DUE: Tuesday 8/28/2012, in class
2
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
1. Basic Sentence Structure in Chinese
(1) Simple statement, declarative sentence
You might have heard many people say that Chinese is the “SVO” language1,
which means that the basic sentence structure can be denoted as follows:
Subject
+
Verb
+
Object
Example
他
是
老师
Example
爱因斯坦
是
科学家
(Einstein)
Example
他
叫
成龙
Example
我
喜欢
我的朋友
Example
她家
有
We have
learned this
pattern
from our very first meeting  - remember?
五口人
(2) Negation
In general, there are only two adverbs used for negation:
不 (most commonly used) and 没 (which only negate 有)
Subject
+
Adv.
+
Verb
+
Object
Example
他
不
是
老师
Example
爱因斯坦
不
是
银行家
Example
他
不
叫
成龙
1
FYI: many Chinese linguists would disagree with this classification, and I am part of them. You don’t need to
worry about the linguistic terms and debates. As long as you can use them, it’ll be great.
3
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
Example
Megan
不
喜欢
狗
Example
她
没
有
弟弟
Remember, it’s WRONG to say for example, 他没是老师 or 她不有弟弟 or 他没叫成龙.
(3) Question
I have repeatedly emphasizing from very beginning and throughout the year, on
the white board and printed in handouts, that in Chinese, unlike English, word
order stays the same in question formation. That is, we don’t move the question
(or “wh”) words to the beginning of the sentence. Instead, we place the question
particle “吗” at the end or put the question words (such as “什么” or “哪”) to
where we inquire the information.
Subject
+
Verb
+
Object
Statement
他
是
老师
Question
他
是
老师
吗？
Note 1: “吗” only applies to form yes/no question. An alternative way to do this is
affirmative-negative question
Subject
+
Verb
+
Object
Question
他
是
老师
吗？
Affirmative-negative Q
他
是不是
老师
？
Affirmative-negative Q
他
有没有
姐姐
？
Note 2: in using affirmative-negative question, it is WRONG to add 吗 at the end.
Other examples of question formation, using “question words”:
Subject
+
Verb
+
4
Q. Word
+
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
Example
他
叫
什么
？
Example
她
是
谁
？
Example
你
住在
哪儿
？
KEY POINT: word order remains the same in Chinese statements & questions!
5
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
2. The Use of “在”
There are at least three ways to use “在”. We learned two in Chinese 1, and
Chinese 3 class learned the third one as well. (So, Chinese 1 kids, you don’t need
to worry about the third usage if you don’t understand.)
(1) 在 as a verb
We learned this in our world country unit. For example,
中国在亚洲。
美国在欧洲吗？
(2) 在 as a preposition (most commonly used)
There are two ways to use the 在 prepositional phrases
First, “住在”
It is commonly used in the context of “where someone lives,” in which it always
comes after the verb “住”. You might see it is used after other verbs (e.g., “出生
在 XX” or “吃在中国”). But I can’t emphasize less that this kind of usage is very
limited and mostly highly contextualized. In fact, for example, the statement “
我长大在中国” is grammatically wrong. Thus, I keep telling you that, other than
stating where one lives, pre. 在 should always be used following the next pattern
Second, [Sub.] + [在 Place] + [Verb]
We learned this pattern mainly in occupation unit (and other places, too). E.g.,
律师在律师行工作。
你爸爸在哪儿上班？
我在 Midvale Middle School 上学。
我在中国出生，可是在美国长大。
(3) 在 as a progressive marker
Progressive = “-ing” in English. For example,
6
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
他在吃饭。
弟弟在玩电脑游戏。
你在做什么？
你们在干嘛？(I am in peace with those who use this expression. )
7
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
3. The Use of “有”
Similar to “在”, there are at least three ways to use “有”. Chinese 1 learned two
of them, whereas Chinese 3 class learned the additional usage in the first
quarter. Therefore again, Chinese 1 kids, you don’t have to know the third usage
because we will encounter that eventually.
(1) “有” = indicate possession, “to have”
This is the simplest and the usage is self-explanatory:
我有两只猫和一只狗。
Ariel 有六个姐姐。
我有三个哥哥，可是我没有弟弟。
(2) “有” = indicate existence, similar to “there are/is”
I considered this usage straightforward when I introduced it and when I
had it on the test question. Well, I was wrong. For me, it is clear that it
indicates possession as well, but perhaps in some more sophisticated way.
Look at the following examples, where most of the classes (including both
Chinese 1 and Chinese 3) failed to provide correct answers:
我家一共有六口人。(Literally, there “have” six people in my family. )
世界上有很多个国家。(Literally, there “have” many countries in the world.)
(3) “有” = express estimation (Chinese 3 only)
Here are the examples I used in our class on Wednesday, 9/28/2011, when
we were learning physical features and the expression “看上去”. They are
funny sentences (read: not true). (I still remember your laughter when I said
them aloud. Do you remember? )
韩成 (Harry) 看上去有两百磅。
8
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
陈杰 (Daniel) 的身高大概有二米一。
赵嘉明 (James) 看上去大概有三十岁。
9
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
4. The Use of Experiential Marker “过”
Although I had been explaining why “过” is not a simple “past tense” marker in
class, I felt that most of you do not really get it (my fault for not getting the
point crossed ). So, at this point, it is perfectly okay to consider it as a past
tense marker (as how you understand what “past tense” means in English).
(1) Basic formula: [Verb] + 过 (to indicate a past experience)
In our world country unit examples:
我去过中国。
奥巴马总统去过世界上很多地方。
你来过盐湖城吗？(Context: you ask a friend or tourist who is visiting SLC)
(2) Negation: 没有 + [Verb] + 过 (Important: NOT negated by 不)
For example:
我没有去过中国。
他没有看过哈利波特。(He did not read Harry Potter)
她没有学过法语。
Note: “有” can be omitted (that is, it’s okay to say “我没去中国。”)
(3) Application:
This particle can be applied basically to all verbs. Since we have not learned
many verbs, here are some limited examples:
我去过墨西哥。
他吃过饺子。
她喝过可口可乐。
(She drank Coca Kola before.)
我学过西班牙语。
10
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
我坐过飞机，可是没有坐过直升机。
Look ahead: we’ll learn more verbs next year in Chinese 2. They will give a lot
of opportunities for more practices and applications!
11
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
5. The Use of Auxiliary Verbs: 想、会、要
We have learned several auxiliary verbs. The three words here were covered in
all my classes, but Chinese 1, 2 and 3 had slightly different focus.
Meaning-wise, 想 and 要 generally indicate the intention to do something, which
are thus commonly translated as “would like to.” For instance, 长大以后，我想做
工程师；我要去法国。On the other hand, 会 indicates the ability to do something
(such as the ability to play an instrument or to speak a foreign language). For
example, 她会弹钢琴；他会说德语。
To Chinese 1: don’t worry about playing instrument - we haven’t learned it
To Chinese 2: we learned another usage about “会” = “likely” (if you remember)
There are three additional points to remember.
(1) Auxiliary verbs are NOT real verbs. Simple formula: [AUX.] + [Main Verb]
By definition, they are NOT real verbs. They ALWAYS come BEFORE the
main verbs and MUST be so to “qualify” their auxiliary functions.
小鸟会唱歌。(Note: the main verb is “唱歌”)
我想去大洋洲。(Note: the main verb is “去”)
我要吃苹果。(Note: the main verb is “吃”; for Chinese 1: “苹果” means apple, )
(2) Negation: 不 (most of the time, context dependent)
For example:
我不会说法语。
他不想去英国。(He did not read Harry Potter)
她不要吃饺子。
Note: in some very limited situations, “没” might be used to express
different connotations. I don’t want to make it too complicated. At
this point, it is suffice to remember using 不 to indicate the nonintention or the lack of ability to do something.
12
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
(3) The difference between 想 and 要 is a matter of degree and emphasis.
In general, 要 expresses stronger desire or intention than 想 denotes, but
both are translated as “would like to.” (Chinese 2 has learned a bit more on
the “string” use of several aux v. -> will go over that in all classes next year.)
13
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
6. [Sub.] + [(Verb) + (Noun)] + [Main Verb]
“What is that? What does the above “formula” mean? I have no clue!”
Don’t’ worry – your compassionate teacher, me (ha ha ha ), is with you. I put it
that way because I couldn’t decide how to name it. It refers to a generic pattern
we had been using in different units, especially in “transportation.”
The heart of our transportation unit is to answer the question “How does one
get to somewhere?” I put the formula on board many times:
Subject
+
Verb
坐
By means of
Object
校车、公交车、地
铁、飞机、船， etc.
骑
马、自行车、摩托车
开
车**
Main verb*
+
工作
上学
上班
去 somewhere
(e.g., 医院、英
走
国、纽约、学
路
校、etc.)
* The main verb can be either simple verb or VO compound
** In fact, all kinds of vehicles are applicable here (except for those associated with 骑).
But you need to differentiate between the subjects who are operating the vehicles.
By extension, actually we could use a similar pattern to convey meanings like:
卫斯理一家人去埃及旅行。(The Weasleys go/went to Egypt to travel.)
我哥哥想去伦敦上大学。(My older brother would like to go to college in London.)
我爸爸明年要去巴黎工作。(My dad will go to work at Paris next year.)
Another thing to remember:
14
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
Q: Where to place the time adverbs?
A: Always before the verb, but either before or after subject is fine.
我每天走路上学 = 每天我走路上学。
我平时坐公交车上学 = 平时我坐公交车上学。
15
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
7. The Use of Comparative Structures: 比、更、最
The three words are not hard to use.
(1) 最 is probably the easiest and we learned it before the transportation unit
我最喜欢白色。我爸爸最不喜欢红色。
In these two sentences, the comparison is implicit – comparing to other
colors, my favorite is white, and my father’s least favorite color is red.
In the transportation unit, the comparison is also implied.
电车最快。 (We’d infer that for example, airplane is not in the comparison.)
自行车最慢。(We’d infer that walking is probably not in the comparison.)
(2) 比 Simple formula: A 比 B + Adj.
It would be helpful to introduce some pairs of contrasting adjectives:
快/慢 (fast/slow)
大/小 (big/small)
热/冷 (hot/cold)
高/矮 (tall/short)
For example,
骑车比走路快。
A 比 B 大。 (Usually, this refers to age)
今天比昨天冷。
他比她高。 (This refers to heights)
(3) 更
In general, no adverb is needed in the comparison structure “A 比 B + Adj.”
However, adverb 更 is sometimes placed before an adjective or verb to
emphasize that B already has the characteristic, but A is more so than B. Thus,
更 is often translated as “even more” in English. For example,
自行车比摩托车慢。 (Bikes are slower than motorcycles - a simple general statement)
人力车比自行车更慢 。 (Bikes are slow, but rickshaws are even slower than bikes)
16
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
Two examples of three-way comparison, using 比、更、最:
成龙比 Mr. Hellwig 高。
摩托车比火车慢。
＝》姚明比成龙更高。 ＝》 姚明最高。
＝》自行车比摩托车更慢。 ＝》 自行车最慢。
17
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
8. The Use of Sequence Phrase: “先… 然后…”
The pattern is pretty straightforward.
我先坐公交车，然后走路去学校。
王医生先坐渡轮，然后开车去医院上班。
Note:
Because this pattern is generally used to connect two actions in sequence,
verb phrases must follow “先” and “然后” . However, in some specific
situations, noun phrases can be used as well. But for our current studying, it
is best to remember that verbs (actions) are used in this pattern.
Supplementary:
“先… 然后 …”: [first + action 1], [then + action 2]
“先… 然后 … 最后”: [first + action 1], [then + action 2], [last + action 3]
E.g., 李律师先坐地铁，然后坐公交车，最后走路去律师行。
E.g., 张先生先骑自行车，然后坐渡轮，最后坐直升机去他外婆家。
9. The Use of “从… 到…”
The pattern is pretty also straightforward, which simply means “from A to B”.
(1) What can A and B be?
 Question: Are A & B nouns? Verbs? Adjectives? Or what?
 Answer: NOUNS, all kinds of nouns. They can be for example, places (e.g., 从
上海到北京，从这儿到那儿), time (e.g., 从上午到下午，从星期一到星期五), etc.
(2) Extension and Practice
从犹他州到加州(California), 我开车，从加州到日本，我坐飞机。
从星期一到星期五，爸爸开车上班，但是周末他不工作。
我从东京坐飞机到上海。(Note that we may insert the verb in between)
18
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
(3) Useful Phrases:
从小到大 (since I was a child, literally: from childhood to adulthood)
从早到晚 (from morning to evening)
19
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
10. The Use of Alternative Question with “还是”
General Usage:
(1) “还是” is a conjunction that is used to connect 2 choices in an alternative
question. The choices can be nouns, verbs, or adjectives.
他是学生还是老师？
你上学，是走路还是开车？
是飞机快还是船快？
他喜欢白色的还是绿色的？(The object is omitted here, but it is clear that
the question is about the color preference of that thing, and here X 色的 is adj.)
(2) It is NOT Y/N question.
In this kind of question pattern, two or more situations/alternatives are
presented and the person is to choose one for the answer.
(3) Common pattern: “是 [alternative 1] 还是 [alternative 2]?”
For example:
你是开车还是走路上学？
是骑马快还是骑摩托车快？
(4) It is translated as “or” in English, but only used in question.
Chinese has different words for “or” in statements, which is “或” (huò) or “或
者” (huò zhě). We will learn this next year (in making answers or statements).
11. The Use of “同”
It has two general meanings. Fist means “together” – for example:
同学 (classmates, you study together) 同事 (colleagues, you work together)
Second, it means “the same” – for example:
20
 黄老师 ©
Chinese 1 Review -- Grammar & Patterns
中文一复习 -- 文
法和句型
A 和 B 在同一家医院出生。(A & B were born in the same hospital.)
C 和 D 在同一所学校工作。(C & D work at the same school.)
他们说同一种语言。(They speak the same language.)
Note: in using this pattern, classifier is important! 同 + 一 [classifier] + [noun]
21
 黄老师 ©