Mississauga Mandarin School
  • Home
  • Class
    • Adult Private Lessons >
      • Book Free Demo Class
    • Adult Group Class >
      • Class Registration
      • Adult class payment
    • Children for Non-Native >
      • Children's Class Payment
    • Children for Native Speakers
  • Events
    • Chinese Dumpling Making Seminar
    • Graduation Party
    • Chinese Poetry Competition >
      • Chinese Poetry Competition Submission Form
  • Blog
    • Subscribe to My Blog
  • Contact Us
  • About us

Mandarin Past Tense - Difference Between "de" and "le"

11/14/2015

0 Comments

 
wǒ    chī    le     
我吃了  (I ate)
vs.
wǒ    chī   de 
我吃的 (I ate) 

I have been asked in my class what's the difference between past tense form "le" and "de". Thanks to many other great Chinese teachers on the internet, I now know the difference! Here‘s my two cents.


The first sentence  我吃了 (wǒ chī le)is the simple past tense form meaning the action is complete. The second sentence 我吃的(wǒ chī de)is the modifying form emphasizing another part of speech in the sentence. In this case, it means "I
ate."  The emphasis is on "I" to mean "I am the person who ate it."

If someone ask you, "Did you eat?" (你吃了吗?) you will say 我吃了(wǒ chī le).
If someone ask you, "Who ate the cake?" (谁吃的蛋糕?)you will say, 我吃的 (
wǒ chī de)

Let's look at a more complicated one:
我昨天看了 (wǒ zuótiān kàn le)( I saw yesterday) 
vs.
我昨天看的 (w
ǒ zuótiān kàn de)(I saw yesterday) 

In a more complex sentence like above, "de" ending can be used to emphasize any part of the speech other than the verb. 

Question: 
Did you see it yesterday? (你昨天看了吗?Nǐ zuótiān kànle ma)
Answer:
I saw it yesterday. (
我昨天看了。 wǒ zuótiān kàn le)

Question: 
Who saw it yesterday? (谁昨天看的?shuí zuótiān kàn de)
Answer:
​I saw it yesterday.  (我昨天看的。wǒ zuótiān kàn de)

Question:
Which day did you see it? (你哪天看的? Nǐ nǎ tiān kàn de)  
Answer:
I saw it yesterday. (我昨天看的。wǒ zuótiān kàn de)

Another example: 
我去了(wǒ qù le) I went. 

​我走路去的 (wǒ zǒu lù qù de) I went by walking.

The second emphasize on the "how," not the verb "go" itself. 
I hope this helps! Here are some exercise: 
Choose the correct answer based on question.

1. When did he do it? 
 a) 他昨天做的。Tā zuótiān zuò de  ("zuò“ means "do"
 b) 他昨天做了。
Tā zuótiān zuò le

2. How did he do it?
a) 我教他了。Wǒ jiāo tā le     ("jiāo" means "teach")
b) 我教他的。Wǒ jiāo tā de

3. Did he do it?
 a) 他昨天做的。Tā zuótiān zuò de
 b) 他昨天做了。
Tā zuótiān zuò le

4. Who did it yesterday?
a) 他昨天做的。Tā zuótiān zuò de
 b) 他昨天做了。
Tā zuótiān zuò le

0 Comments

Weather 天气不错

9/18/2013

0 Comments

 

Describe Weather in Chinese 

Hi~ Sorry that I haven't posted for quite long time.  Here is a lesson on weather. Enjoy!
 First, let's learn these new words. 

My Chinese Level 1 Lesson 7 weather flashcards from goldenkey

Conversation 1: How is the weather like in Beijing?

      Běi jīng dōng tiān lěng bǔ lěng?
A: 北京 冬 天 冷 不冷?
Is winter in Beijing cold?


         Lěng jí le.         Yǒu shí hou xià xuě.

B: 冷极了。有 时 候 下 雪。
Super cold. It snows sometimes.


        Xià tiān rè ma? Jīng cháng xià yǔ ma?

A: 夏 天热吗?经 常 下雨吗?
Is summer hot? Does it always rain?


       Hěn rè,        qī         bā yuè cháng cháng xià dà yǔ.

B: 很热,7、8月 常 常 下大雨
Very hot, it rains frequently in July and August.



     Chūn tiān hé qiū tiān zěn me yàng?
A: 春 天 和秋天怎么样?
How’s spring and fall?


     Chūn tiān cháng guā dà fēng, ér qiě kōng qì gān zào.

B: 春 天 常 刮大风,而且空气干燥。
Spring is often windy and (the air) also very dry.


Qiū tiān liáng kuài, bù lěng yě bú rè.

秋天凉快,不冷也不热。 

The fall is nice and cool, neither cold nor hot.
Picture
冬天冷
Picture
夏天热
Picture
Picture
Picture
Conversation 2:

      Xià yǔ le, Míng tiān tiān qì zěn me yàng?
A: 下雨了, 明 天 天 气 怎 么 样?
It’s raining, how’s the weather tomorrow?

   Tiān qì yù bào shuō:míng tiān shì qíng tiān.
B: 天 气预 报说: 明天 是 晴天。
The weather forecast say tomorrow is sunny

    Míng tiān yǒu fēng ma? Lěng bù lěng?
A: 明 天 有 风 吗?冷不冷?
Will there be wind tomorrow? Is it cold?

    Yǒu fēng.  Zǎo shang yǒu diǎnr liáng
B: 有风。 早上 有 点儿凉。
there will be wind, a little bit cool in the morning.
0 Comments

Change in tones for "一" and "不"

7/20/2013

0 Comments

 
Most Chinese characters has one unique pinyin for itself. However, some characters has more than one pinyin. The character 一 and 不 change their tones depends on what follows behind them. 

The basic tone of numeral "一” is 1st tone (yī).When read alone, or in counting or in numbers, its basic tone is used. 

The tone of "一“ may vary with the tone of the syllable that comes after it: if followed by the 1st, 2nd or 3rd tone, "一” is pronounced as the 4th tone; if it is followed by a "4th" tone, it is pronounced as the 2nd tone. 


Example: 
yī ,   èr,  sān
一, 二, 三 (one, two, three) 
yì   tiān  
 一  天     (one day)
yì   nián
一    年    (one year)
yì   běn
一   本     ( one [measure word for books])
yí   gè
一  个     ( one [measure word ge])


Similar rule applies to the character "不"
bù zhī dào
不  知   道     (don't know) 
bù míng bai
不  明     白      (don't understand)
bù hǎo
不  好   (not good)
bú shì
不  是   (no)
0 Comments

Expressing Dates and Birthdays in Mandarin Chinese

6/20/2013

0 Comments

 

Conversation One

       nǐ de  shēng rì shì  shén me shí hòu? 
A: 你的生日是 什么 时候?
        When is your birthday? 

       
wǒ de  shēng rì shì wu yuè ershi rì。 
B: 我的生日 是 5月20日。
         My birthday is May 20th.

       
xià gè yuè  jiù shì  nǐ de  shēng rì le。
A: 下个月就是你的生日了。 
            Next month will be your birthday

         duì ya, xià gè yuè wǒ jiù ershiwu suì le。
B: 对呀,下个月我就25岁了。 
           Yes, next month, I will be 25 years old. 

Picture
______年_____月____日
          Year      Month  Day
Conversation Two         

          Míngtiān shì zhōu liù,     nǐ hé Tom    yǒu shíjiān ma?      Zánmen yīqǐ    qù dǎ    gāo'ěrfū ba
A: 明天是周六,你和Tom有时间吗?咱们一起去打高尔夫吧。
        Tomorrow is Saturday, do you and Tom have time? Let's go play golf. 
  
         Duìbùqǐ,         míngtiān wǒmen dōu yǒu gōngzuò.       Xià xīngqí xíng ma?
B: 对不起,明天  我们 都 有 工作。下星期行吗?
     Sorry, tomorrow we both have work. How about next week?

            Méi wèn tí
A: 没问题!
        No problem!

Days of the week

                             xīng qí yī  (zhōu yī)
 Monday               星期一 (周一)

                                                xīng qí'èr (zhōu'èr)
Tuesday              星期二 (周二)

                                                xīng qí sān (zhōu sān)
Wednesday         星期三 (周三)

                                                xīng qí sì (zhōu sì) 
Thursday             星期四 (周四)

                                  xīng qí wǔ (zhōu wǔ)
Friday                  星期五 (周五)


                                 xīng qí liù (zhōu liù)
Saturday             星期六 (周六)


                                  xīng qí rì (xīng qí tiān/ zhōu rì)
Sunday               星期日 (星期天 /  周日) 

My Chinese Level 1 Lesson 6 Days of the week flashcards from goldenkey on FlashcardDB.

0 Comments

Inviting People to Dinner in Mandarin

4/13/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
Picture
Learn the vocabulary for this lesson from the flashcard below, and then view the lesson notes. 
 
wǒ  xiǎng qǐng nǐ  chī wǎn fàn
我 想  请你 吃晚饭


Ways of Asking for Availability 

      nǐ  yǒu shí jiān ma 
1.  你有 时间吗?
       Do you have time? 


       nǐ  yǒu kòng er ma
2.   你有 空儿 吗?
         Are you free?


       nǐ  yǒu shì ma
3.   你有事吗?
        Do you have things to do? 

Conversation 1

              chén  xiǎo jiě, jīn tiān wǎn shàng nǐ  yǒu kòng er ma?wǒ xiǎng qǐng nǐ  chī wǎn fàn。
Nancy : 陈小姐,   今天    晚 上   你有  空儿 吗?我  想   请 你 吃 晚饭。
                    Miss Chen, are you free tonight? I want to invite you to eat dinner. 

                             jīn tiān wǎn shàng wǒ  yǒu shì er。zhēn  duì bù qǐ。
Miss Chen: 今天   晚上    我   有 事儿。真对不起。
                             Tonight, I have something to do. I'm really sorry.

                  méi guān xì
Nancy: 没关系。
               No problem.  

Conversation 2

        nǐ  zhōu mò zuò  shén mē? wǒ men  yì qǐ qù  hē chá, hǎo ma?
A: 你周末    做什么?     我们  一起去喝茶, 好吗?
      what are you doing for weekend? Let's drink tea together, okay?

        hǎo à.    zài  nǎ er jiàn miàn?
B: 好啊。 在哪儿见面?
       Sure. Where should we meet?

My Chinese Level 1 Lesson 5 invitation to dinner flashcards from goldenkey on FlashcardDB.

0 Comments

How to say this in Chinese

3/13/2013

0 Comments

 
Lesson: 这个用汉语怎么说?

There are several ways to ask someone, "how to say this in Chinese?" Let's learn some basic ones and some other useful sentences


Examples:
Looking for translation
      "water“    yòng  hàn yǔ  zěn me shuō?
1. "Water“ 用    汉 语  怎么  说?    How to say "Water" in Chinese?


     “Water”, hàn yǔ shì  shén mē?
2. "Water”, 汉语是  什么?    What is “water" in Chinese?

      nǐ men  zěn me shuō “I love you?"
3. 你 们    怎 么 说   "I love you?"   How do you say "I love you?"


Asking for meanings
       "fàn guǎn”shì  shén me yì si
 1.  "饭馆” 是   什么    意思? What does "fan guan" mean?

     “ fàn guǎn” gēn “ fàn diàn” yī yàng ma?
2.  “饭馆”     跟   “饭店” 一样  吗? Does "fan guan" and "fan dian" mean the same?

Other useful sentences
       nǐ  shuō huà tài  kuài  le
1. 你  说话     太 快 了。 You speak too fast. 

     qǐng  zài shuō yī biàn
2. 请   再  说  一遍。 Please say it again. 

My Chinese Level 1 Lesson 4 say this in Chinese flashcards from goldenkey on FlashcardDB.

0 Comments

Lesson 3 Time & Time Difference

3/1/2013

0 Comments

 
Express time in Mandarin Chinese
~diǎn ~~fēn is used to express time.


8:00   八点 (bā diǎn)
8:05   八点零五(分) (bā diān líng wǔ fēn)
8:15   八点十五 (分)(bā diǎn shí wǔ fēn)    / 八点一刻(bā diǎn yí kè) (eight and a quarter)
8:30   八点三十 (分)   (bā diǎn sān shí fēn) / 八点半 (bā diǎn bàn) (eight and half)
8:55   八点五十五 (分)(bā diǎn wǔ shí wǔ fēn) / 差五分九点(chà wǔ fēn jǐu diǎn) (five to nine o'clock)


(Check lessons on numbers below) 

My Chinese Level 1 Lesson 3 Time Differences flashcards from goldenkey on FlashcardDB.

Numbers

My Chinese Level 1 Lesson 3 Numbers flashcards from goldenkey on FlashcardDB.

0 Comments

Pronouns in Chinese Mandarin

2/28/2013

0 Comments

 
Here is an easy chart listing all the pronouns in Chinese

I, me


wǒ
我

You


nǐ
你

He, him


tā
他

She,her


tā
她

Who, whom


shéi / shuí
谁
Possessive Pronouns

My


wǒ de
我的

Your


nǐ de
你的

His


tā de
他的

Her


tā de 
她的

Whose


shéi/ shuí de 
谁的
Plural Pronouns

We


wǒ mén
我  们

You


nǐ mén
你们

They 


tā mén
他们

They


tā mén
她们

0 Comments

My Chinese Beginner Lesson 2

1/23/2013

0 Comments

 
Grammar:
  "的" ("de") is used after an adjectival, to show possessive. For example: "wǒ"   means "I". "wǒ de" means "my". Adding "de" at the end of a noun shows possessive.


“们” ("mén") is used after a pronoun to indicate the plural form. For example: "wǒ"   means "I" . "wǒ mén" means "we".

My Chinese Level 1 Lesson 2 Self-introduction flashcards from goldenkey on FlashcardDB.

0 Comments

Essential Beginner Mandarin for Business Purposes

1/14/2013

0 Comments

 
1. Hello !                                 Nǐ hǎo 
                                                    你 好!
2. Hello!                              Nin hao  
                                                     您    好- formal
3. Nice to meet you!      
Hěn gāoxìng jiàn dào nǐ 
                                                      很     高  兴     见    到  你。
4. Good morning .            
Zǎoshang hǎo  
                                                      
早     上       好。
5. Good afternoon.          
Xiàwǔ hǎo     
                                                       下 午   好 。
6. Good evening.               
Wǎnshàng hǎo           
                                                       
晚     上       好。

My Chinese Level 1 Lesson 1 Nihao flashcards from goldenkey on FlashcardDB.

0 Comments

    Joanna

    Experienced Mandarin Teacher for 13 years.

    Subscribe to our mailing list

    * indicates required

    Archives

    April 2022
    March 2022
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012

    Categories

    All
    Beginner
    Business Usage
    Casual Conversation
    Conjunctions
    Grammar
    Greetings
    Intermediate
    Kids
    Numbers
    Pinyin
    Smart Stories

    RSS Feed

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

Class

Children - non-native speakers
Children - Chinese speakers
Children - Summer Camp

Adults - Big Group Deal
Adults - Business & Travel
​Adults- Corporate Class

Register for Classes

Read Blog

About Us

Contact Us

Tel:  (647) 335 - 8848 
[email protected]



​
  • Home
  • Class
    • Adult Private Lessons >
      • Book Free Demo Class
    • Adult Group Class >
      • Class Registration
      • Adult class payment
    • Children for Non-Native >
      • Children's Class Payment
    • Children for Native Speakers
  • Events
    • Chinese Dumpling Making Seminar
    • Graduation Party
    • Chinese Poetry Competition >
      • Chinese Poetry Competition Submission Form
  • Blog
    • Subscribe to My Blog
  • Contact Us
  • About us