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Mandarin Chinese · HSK 3.0 Band 2 · Chapter 18

我睡不着 I can't sleep

Wǒ shuì bu zháo

Sleep vocab (睡 / 睡觉 / 起床) + time expressions (小时 / 分钟 / 半小时). Introduces time-duration complement: V + duration, e.g. 睡三个小时 ("sleep for three hours"). Sets up ch4 clinic visit.

Dialogue

我睡不着 — I can't sleep

马山王wáng月yuè, 这zhè么me晚wǎn还hái不bú睡shuì? 你nǐ怎zěn么me了le? Wang Yue, you're still up this late? What's wrong?
王月我wǒ睡shuì不bù着zhe. 一yì直zhí在zài床chuáng上shàng. I can't fall asleep. I've been in bed.
马山已yǐ经jīng多duō久jiǔ了le? How long has it been?
王月两liǎng个gè小xiǎo时shí. 头tóu疼téng, 还hái很hěn困kùn. Two hours. My head aches, and I'm sleepy.
马山那nà不bù行xíng. 你nǐ应yīng该gāi看kàn医yī生shēng. That's not OK. You should see a doctor.

Dialogue

昨天晚上睡了三个小时 — I slept three hours last night

马山早zǎo上shàng好hǎo. 你nǐ昨zuó天tiān晚wǎn上shàng睡shuì了le多duō久jiǔ? Morning. How long did you sleep last night?
王月只zhī睡shuì了le三sān个gè小xiǎo时shí. 半bàn夜yè起qǐ来lái好hǎo几jǐ次cì. Only three hours. Got up several times in the middle of the night.
马山你nǐ几jǐ点diǎn起qǐ床chuáng的de? What time did you get up?
王月六liù点diǎn半bàn. 但dàn是shì觉jué得de很hěn累lèi. Six thirty. But I still feel really tired.
马山睡shuì三sān个gè小xiǎo时shí太tài少shǎo了le. 你nǐ要yào多duō休xiū息xi. Three hours is too little. You need rest time.

Dialogue

我去看医生 — I'll go see the doctor

王月你nǐ说shuō得dé对duì. 我wǒ去qù看kàn医yī生shēng. You're right. I'll go see a doctor.
马山我wǒ家jiā旁páng边biān有yǒu一yí个gè小xiǎo医yī院yuàn. 高gāo医yī生shēng很hěn好hǎo. There's a little clinic next to my place. Dr Lin is great.
王月好hǎo. 明míng天tiān上shàng午wǔ去qù吧ba. OK. Let's go tomorrow morning.
马山九jiǔ点diǎn半bàn? 我wǒ等děng你nǐ. 9:30? I'll wait for you.
王月太tài好hǎo了le. 我wǒ一yí定dìng去qù. Perfect. I'll be there for sure.

Vocabulary

汉字	Pinyin	POS	Meaning
睡	shuì	v.	sleep (transitive — takes duration)
睡觉	shuì jiào	v.	sleep; go to sleep (separable verb)
起床	qǐ chuáng	v.	get up (out of bed) — separable verb
床	chuáng	n.	bed
早上	zǎoshang	n.	morning (Level 1 revisit)
晚上	wǎnshang	n.	evening; night
半	bàn	n.	half (in 半小时, 半夜)
时间	shíjiān	n.	time
小时	xiǎoshí	n.	hour
分钟	fēnzhōng	n.	minute
一直	yìzhí	adv.	continuously; all along (Bk1 ch1 revisit)

New characters

汉字	Pinyin	Meaning
只	zhǐ	only (Level 2; in 只要) 只要 zhǐyào — as long as (二67)
夜	yè	(in 年夜饭 = New Year's Eve dinner) 年夜饭 niányèfàn — New Year's Eve dinner夜里 yè lǐ — at night; late night
够	òu

Hanzi — writing & recognition

睡

shuì sleep (chapter anchor verb) Writing

13 strokes left-right radical 目

Phono-semantic compound: 目 (eye) + 垂 (chuí, "drooping" — phonetic-semantic). Original sense: "eyelids drooping = sleep". The 目 radical clusters 睡 with 眼 (ch2) and 看 (Level 1) — the sight / eye-related cluster.

床

chuáng bed Writing

7 strokes enclosure radical 广

Compound: 广 (roof / shelter — buildings radical) + 木 (wood). Original sense: "the wooden frame under a roof = bed". Modern: bed. The 广 radical heads building / shelter characters: 床 / 房 (ch11) / 店 / 应.

时

shí time; hour (in 时间, 小时) Writing

7 strokes left-right radical 日

间

jiān interval; between; room (in 时间, 房间) Writing

7 strokes enclosure radical 门

Compound: 门 (door / gate) + 日 (sun) — sunlight through a doorway = "the space between / interval". Bk1 ch7 introduced it (中间). This chapter places it formally: 时间 (time-interval), 小时 (hour), and forwards to 房间 (ch11 — room).

起

qǐ rise; get up (in 起床) Recognition

10 strokes left-right radical 走

早

zǎo early; morning (Level 1 revisit) Recognition

6 strokes top-bottom radical 日

晚

wǎn late; evening (Level 1 revisit) Recognition

11 strokes left-right radical 日

半

bàn half Recognition

5 strokes standalone

分

fēn minute; divide (in 分钟) Recognition

4 strokes top-bottom

Grammar

时量补语 — V + 时间 (动作持续了多久) 时量补语 — time-duration after a verb (V + duration)

中文里, 表达"做某事多久"的句式是 "主语 + V + 时间". 时间放在动词后面, 不是前面. 例: "我睡了三个小时"= "I slept for 3 hours". 不能说"我三个小时睡". 关键: (1) 时量补语放在 V 后. (2) 如果有宾语, 一般是"V + 时间 + 的 + 宾语"或"V + O + V + 时间", 比如"睡了三个小时的觉". (3) 离合词如"睡觉"可以拆开: "睡了三个小时的觉".

In Mandarin, "how long an action lasted" is expressed as Subject + V + duration. The time-duration phrase comes AFTER the verb, not before. Pattern: 我睡了三个小时 ("I slept for 3 hours"). Wrong: *我三个小时睡. CRITICAL: (1) Duration follows V. (2) If there's an object: V + duration + 的 + O (e.g. 睡了三小时的觉) OR repeat the verb (V + O + V + duration). (3) Separable verbs like 睡觉 split: 睡了三个小时的觉. (4) Compare to time-WHEN expressions (我三点睡 "I sleep at 3"): time-WHEN comes before V, time-DURATION comes after V.

我昨天晚上睡了三个小时. Wǒ zuótiān wǎnshang shuì le sān ge xiǎoshí. I slept three hours last night.
半个小时不够. Bàn ge xiǎoshí bú gòu. Half an hour is not enough.
我常常早上六点起床. Wǒ chángcháng zǎoshang liù diǎn qǐ chuáng. I usually get up at 6 in the morning. (time-WHEN, before V)
马山一直走了三十分钟. Mǎ Shān yìzhí zǒu le sānshí fēnzhōng. Ma Shan walked continuously for 30 minutes. (duration after V)

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