Clear explanations of Mandarin grammar for learners: sentence structure, particles such as 了, 过, 吗 and 呢, and common word pairs like 再 and 又, with examples and pinyin.
Chinese Vocabulary
东西 (dōngxi) is the everyday Chinese word for 'thing'. This guide shows how to use it for objects, food, shopping and 'lots of things', explains why east + west came to mean 'thing', and warns when 东西 sounds insulting about people.
Chinese Grammar
Chinese has no single word that replaces English 'no'. This guide explains 不, 不是, 不对, 不好, 不要, 不会, 不行, 没有 and related patterns with examples, then shows how polite refusals add explanation or softening.
Chinese Grammar
吗 (ma), 呢 (ne) and 吧 (ba) all come at the end of a Chinese sentence but do different jobs: 吗 forms neutral yes–no questions, 呢 follows up on a topic, and 吧 asks for confirmation or makes a suggestion. Includes example sentences with pinyin.
Chinese Grammar
Basic Chinese statements follow subject–verb–object order, but time and place expressions usually come before the verb, and Chinese is topic-prominent. This guide covers sentence components, word order in statements and questions, and topic–comment sentences.
Chinese Grammar
再 and 又 can both translate as 'again', but they are not interchangeable. 再 usually refers to a repetition that has not happened yet, while 又 refers to one that already happened. This guide covers their basic uses with example sentences.
Chinese Grammar
了 and 过 can both relate an action to the past, but 过 marks something as an experience while 了 marks completion or change. This guide compares their similarities, word order, use with time words, negation and questions such as 你吃过了吗.