Lesson 273: Expressing Tenses in Mandarin Chinese

Lesson 273
Expressing Tenses in Mandarin Chinese
Transcript
In this lesson, we will return to our basics and

learn about expressing tenses in Mandarin Chinese.
As you all know, Chinese is an amorphous language,
it means that there is no clearly defined shape or
form. There are no explicit grammar rules that
would be used to indicate tenses, like it is with
European languages. Instead, in Chinese, we have to
mainly rely on the context, e.g. by using time
words j<inti<an(今天)-today, m>ingti<an(明天)-tomorrow,
zu>oti<an(昨天)-yesterday etc. However, it’s not
always like that. Actually, there are different
ways to indicate whether the action took place in
the past, taking place right now or will take place
in the future. Let’s start with a very basic,
neutral sentence that can also indicate present:
E.g. w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(我去超市)-I go (to) supermarket.
*ch<aosh]i(超市) or ch<aoj>i sh]ich[ang(超级市场)-

supermarket.
As I just mentioned, by putting it in different

contexts, we can achieve different meaning.
E.g. zu>oti<an w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(我昨天去超市)-I went to a

supermarket yesterday.
*By the way, please make sure that you always put
“time expressions” either in the very beginning of
the sentence, just like this one, or right after
the subject: w[o zu>oti<an q]u ch<aosh]i(我昨天去超市).
Never say “w[o q]u ch<aosh]i zu>oti<an”.
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E.g.m>ingti<an w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(明天我去超市)-I will go to
a supermarket tomorrow.
E.g.xi]anz]ai w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(现在我去超市)-I’m going to

a supermarket now.
The “w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(我去超市)” part never changed. We

relied on the time expressions zu>oti<an(昨天)-
yesterday, xi]anz]ai(现在)-now, m>ingti<an(明天)-
tomorrow and the context.
To help you express your meaning better, there are

several “markers”-words you can use. Let’s use them
in the same basic sentence. Even without time
expressions and context, we will still be able to
express the correct tense:
E.g.w[o q]u le ch<aosh]i(我去了超市)-I went to a

supermarket. The particle le(了) here indicates the
completion of the action. It’s not really about it
happening in the past, but more about emphasizing
that your action of going to a supermarket was
completed. At the same time, it often helps you
with expressing when something has recently been
done.You can think of it as the “recent past
tense”. The particle “le” helps you to express past
tense, although, it’s emphasis is on the
completion.
Then, there is what we call a “distant” past tense,

used to indicate that something has been previously
done and now is a part of your experience. A
particle gu]o(过) is used.
E.g.w[o q]u gu]o ch<aosh]i(我去过超市)-I have been to a

supermarket.-basically to say that I have visited
supermarkets before. It’s called “distant” because
this could have happened many years ago.
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E.g.t<a xi[ao sh>ihou q]u gu]o zh<onggu>o(他小时候去过中国)-
He has been (went) to China when he was a little
child.
*xi[ao sh>ihou(小时候)-in childhood, when (I was) a

little child.
E.g.b<a ni>an qi>an w[omen qu>anji<a d]ao gu]o B[eij<ing(八年

前我们全家到过北京)-8 years ago, our whole family
visited Beijing.
*b<a ni>an qi>an(八年前)-8 years ago.
*qu>anji<a(全家)-whole family.
*d]ao(到)to arrive, to visit.
Now the future:
We will use h]ui(会) to indicate future tense and

translate it as “will”.
E.g. w[o h]ui q]u ch<aosh]i(我会去超市) or m>ingti<an w[o h]ui

q]u ch<aosh]i(明天我会去超市)-I will go to a supermarket
or I will go to a supermarket tomorrow.
We can also use y]ao(要) for expressing future

tense:
m>ingti<an w[o y]ao q]u ch<aosh]i(明天我要去超市)-I’m going

to go to a supermarket tomorrow. You can translate
y]ao(要) as “to be going to do something”.
Both h]ui(会) and y]ao(要) are “markers” of the future

tense.
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To express the present tense, especially if
something is going on right now, you will need to
use z]ai(在) or zh]engz]ai(正在) before the action
verb.
E.g. w[o zh]engz]ai q]u ch<aosh]i(我正在去超市) or xi]anz]ai

w[o zh]engz]ai q]u ch<aosh]i(现在我正在去超市)-I’m going to
a supermarket right now.
More examples: t<a z]ai k<aich<e(他在开车)-he is

driving.
d]uib]uq[i, w[o z]ai ji[ang di]anhu]a(对不起，我在讲电话)-

sorry, I’m talking on the phone.
*ji[ang(讲)=shu<o(说)-to talk, to speak.
Alright, now let’s take a break and listen to a

song in Mandarin Chinese. It’s called d]uimi]an de
n[`h>ai k]angu]ol>ai(对面的女孩看过来)-“Girl across, look
this way!” by R]en Xi>an Q>i(任贤齐).
Here we go, after the song we will have a little

test.
Song
D]uimi]an de n[`h>ai k]angu]ol>ai(对面的女孩看过来)-the girl

across, look this way.
*d]uimi]an de(对面的)-across.
*k]angu]ol>ai(看过来)-look here, look this way.
k]angu]ol>ai, k]angu]ol>ai(看过来，看过来)
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zh]el[i de bi[aoy[an h[en j<ingc[ai(这里的表演很精彩)-the
performance here is very spectacular.
*bi[aoy[an(表演)-performance.
*j<ingc[ai(精彩)-spectacular.
q[ing b>uy]ao ji[azhu<ang b]ul[i b]uc[ai(请不要假装不理不睬)-

please don’t pretend that you are ignoring (me).
*ji[azhu<ang(假装)-to pretend.
*b]ul[i b]uc[ai(不理不睬)-to ignore someone.
***
***
b>uy]ao b]ei w[ode y]angzi xi]ahu]ai(不要被我的样子吓坏)-

don’t be scared by my appearance.
*b]ei(被)-passive partice.
*y]angzi(样子)-look, appearance.
*xi]ahu]ai(吓坏)-to be scared.
q>ish>i w[o h[en k[e]ai(其实我很可爱)-actually, I’m very

cute.
*q>ish>i(其实)-in fact, actually.
*k[e]ai(可爱)-to b cute.
j]im]o n>anh>ai de b<ei <ai(寂寞男孩的悲哀)-lonely boy’s

sorrow.
*j]im]o(寂寞)-lonely.
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*b<ei <ai(悲哀)-sorrow.
shu<och<ul>ai, sh>ei m>ingb>ai?(说出来，谁明白？)-(if) I

speak out, who will understand?
*shu<ochu<ul>ai(说出来)-to speak out.
*m>ingb>ai(明白)-to understand.
qi>uqi>u n[i, p<ao ge m]eiy[an gu]ol>ai!(求求你，抛个媚眼过

来)-please, please could you just give me a glance?
*qi>uqi>u n[i(求求你)-to be begging, please…
*p<ao m]eiy[an(抛媚眼)- to give the glad eye.
h>ongh>ong w[o!(哄哄我)-come on!
*h>ong(哄)-to coax.
d]ou w[o l]e k<ai hu>ai(逗我乐开怀)-make me happy.
(hei,hei,hei, m>ei r>en l[i w[o(没人理我)-no one pays

attention to me)
w[o zu[o k]an y]ou k]an, sh]ang k]an xi]a k]an(我左看右看，上看

下看)-I look left and I look right, I look up and I
look down.
*zu[o(左)-left.
*y]ou(右)-right.
*sh]ang(上)-up.
*xi]a(下)-down.
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yu>anl>ai m[eige n[`h>ai d<ou b]u ji[and<an(原来每个女孩都不简
单)-it turns out every girl is not simple.
*yu>anl>ai(原来)-it turns out that…….
*ji[and<an(简单)-simple.
w[o xi[ang le y]ou xi[ang, w[o c<ai le y]ou c<ai(我想了又想，

我猜了又猜)-I thought and then thought again, I
guessed and then guessed again.
*c<ai(猜)-to guess.
n[`h>aimen de x<insh]i h>ai zh<en q>igu]ai(女孩们的心事还真奇

怪)-what the girls have on their mind is really
strange.
*x<insh]i(心事)-thoughts, things on someone’s mind.
*q>igu]ai(奇怪)-strange.
*h>ai zh<en(还真)-really….
j]im]o n>anh>ai de c<angyingp<ai(寂寞男孩的苍蝇拍)-

flyswatter of a lonely boy.
*c<angyingp<ai(苍蝇拍)-flyswatter.
zu[o p<aip<ai, y]ou p<aip<ai(左拍拍，右拍拍)-left flap

flap, right flap flap.
w]ei sh>enme h>aish]i m>ei r>en l>ai ]ai(为什么还是没人来爱)-

why still no one comes to love?
w>u r>en w]enj<in na, zh<en w>un]ai(无人问津啊，真无奈)-

nobody shows any interest, what a bummer.
***
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***
j]im]o n>anh>ai q>ingd]ou ch<uk<ai(寂寞男孩情窦初开)-lonely

boy’s first crush.
x<uy]ao n[i g[ei w[o y]idi[an ]ai(需要你给我一点爱)-need you

to give me a little love.
***
***
***
***
***
***
***
***
]ai zh<en q>igu]ai(爱真奇怪)-love is really strange.
su]anle, h>uiji<a ba(算了，回家吧)-alright, I give up

Let’s go home!
***
Now let me quickly test you:
Which tense does this sentence belong to?
t<a h]ui l>ai(他会来)
Correct, t<a h]ui l>ai(他会来) means “he will come”.
h]ui(会) is the “marker” of the future tense.
***
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t<a l>ai le!(他来了)
Good job! t<a l>ai le(他来了) means “he came”, he is

here now!
“le” indicates the completion of the action, a

change in the situation. It’s the “recent” past
tense.
Now what about t<a l>ai gu]o(他来过)
He has been here, he was here. He had experience of

coming here. This is the “distant” past tense.
t<a zh]engz]ai l>ai(他正在来)
Right! He is coming here (right now).
Excellent job everyone! Please stay tuned and I

will talk to you next week!
z]aiji]an!(再见)-Bye!
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Lesson 273

Expressing Tenses in Mandarin Chinese

In this lesson, we will return to our basics and

E.g. w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(我去超市)-I go (to) supermarket.

*ch<aosh]i(超市) or ch<aoj>i sh]ich[ang(超级市场)-

As I just mentioned, by putting it in different

E.g. zu>oti<an w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(我昨天去超市)-I went to a

E.g.xi]anz]ai w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(现在我去超市)-I’m going to

The “w[o q]u ch<aosh]i(我去超市)” part never changed. We

To help you express your meaning better, there are

E.g.w[o q]u le ch<aosh]i(我去了超市)-I went to a

Then, there is what we call a “distant” past tense,

E.g.w[o q]u gu]o ch<aosh]i(我去过超市)-I have been to a

*xi[ao sh>ihou(小时候)-in childhood, when (I was) a

E.g.b<a ni>an qi>an w[omen qu>anji<a d]ao gu]o B[eij<ing(八年

*b<a ni>an qi>an(八年前)-8 years ago.

*d]ao(到)to arrive, to visit.

Now the future:

We will use h]ui(会) to indicate future tense and

E.g. w[o h]ui q]u ch<aosh]i(我会去超市) or m>ingti<an w[o h]ui

We can also use y]ao(要) for expressing future

m>ingti<an w[o y]ao q]u ch<aosh]i(明天我要去超市)-I’m going

Both h]ui(会) and y]ao(要) are “markers” of the future

E.g. w[o zh]engz]ai q]u ch<aosh]i(我正在去超市) or xi]anz]ai

More examples: t<a z]ai k<aich<e(他在开车)-he is

d]uib]uq[i, w[o z]ai ji[ang di]anhu]a(对不起，我在讲电话)-

*ji[ang(讲)=shu<o(说)-to talk, to speak.

Alright, now let’s take a break and listen to a

Here we go, after the song we will have a little

D]uimi]an de n[`h>ai k]angu]ol>ai(对面的女孩看过来)-the girl

*k]angu]ol>ai(看过来)-look here, look this way.

q[ing b>uy]ao ji[azhu<ang b]ul[i b]uc[ai(请不要假装不理不睬)-

*b]ul[i b]uc[ai(不理不睬)-to ignore someone.

b>uy]ao b]ei w[ode y]angzi xi]ahu]ai(不要被我的样子吓坏)-

q>ish>i w[o h[en k[e]ai(其实我很可爱)-actually, I’m very

*q>ish>i(其实)-in fact, actually.

j]im]o n>anh>ai de b<ei <ai(寂寞男孩的悲哀)-lonely boy’s

shu<och<ul>ai, sh>ei m>ingb>ai?(说出来，谁明白？)-(if) I

*shu<ochu<ul>ai(说出来)-to speak out.

qi>uqi>u n[i, p<ao ge m]eiy[an gu]ol>ai!(求求你，抛个媚眼过

*qi>uqi>u n[i(求求你)-to be begging, please…

*p<ao m]eiy[an(抛媚眼)- to give the glad eye.

h>ongh>ong w[o!(哄哄我)-come on!

d]ou w[o l]e k<ai hu>ai(逗我乐开怀)-make me happy.

(hei,hei,hei, m>ei r>en l[i w[o(没人理我)-no one pays

w[o zu[o k]an y]ou k]an, sh]ang k]an xi]a k]an(我左看右看，上看

*yu>anl>ai(原来)-it turns out that…….

w[o xi[ang le y]ou xi[ang, w[o c<ai le y]ou c<ai(我想了又想，

n[`h>aimen de x<insh]i h>ai zh<en q>igu]ai(女孩们的心事还真奇

*x<insh]i(心事)-thoughts, things on someone’s mind.

j]im]o n>anh>ai de c<angyingp<ai(寂寞男孩的苍蝇拍)-

zu[o p<aip<ai, y]ou p<aip<ai(左拍拍，右拍拍)-left flap

w]ei sh>enme h>aish]i m>ei r>en l>ai ]ai(为什么还是没人来爱)-

w>u r>en w]enj<in na, zh<en w>un]ai(无人问津啊，真无奈)-

j]im]o n>anh>ai q>ingd]ou ch<uk<ai(寂寞男孩情窦初开)-lonely

x<uy]ao n[i g[ei w[o y]idi[an ]ai(需要你给我一点爱)-need you

]ai zh<en q>igu]ai(爱真奇怪)-love is really strange.

su]anle, h>uiji<a ba(算了，回家吧)-alright, I give up

Now let me quickly test you: