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Mandarin Chinese · HSK 3.0 Band 2 · Chapter 1

你去过中国吗 Have you ever been to China

Nǐ qù guo Zhōngguó ma

Using 过 to talk about past experiences, asking how long since you last did something, meeting new traveling companions.

在北京见面 — Meeting in Beijing

  1. 张天 wèi, hǎo! guòzhōngguóma? David, hi! Have you ever been to China?
  2. 大卫 ? xiànzàijiùzàizhōngguó! Me? I AM in China right now!
  3. 张天 shìbushì. shìshuō, zhèshìláizhōngguóma? No no — I mean, is this your first time in China?
  4. 大卫 shì, zhèshì. Yes, this is my first time.
  5. 张天 láiduōjiǔle? So how long have you been here?
  6. 大卫 liùyuèle. Six months.

北京人都不去 — Beijing people just don't go

  1. 周雨 gāowén, guòběijīngma? Gao Wen, have you been to Beijing?
  2. 高文 guò. zàiérzhùguòliǎngnián. Yes — I lived there for two years.
  3. 周雨 dìngguòxiēyǒumíngdefāngba? Then you must have been to all the famous places, right?
  4. 高文 méiguò. Never been.
  5. 周雨 a?! zhùguòliǎngniándōuméiguò? What?! You lived there two years and never went?
  6. 高文 běijīngréndōuxiēfāng. Beijing people just don't go to those places.

你去过那个店吗 — Have you been to that shop

  1. 大卫 zhāngtiān, zhùzàiběijīngma? Zhang Tian, do you live in Beijing?
  2. 张天 shìde, zhùběijīngniánle. jīngchángchūmén, biérénguòde, dōuguò. Yes, I've lived in Beijing for eight years. I go out often — wherever other people have been, I've been.
  3. 大卫 zhēndema? Really?
  4. 周雨 guòjiāpángbiāndegediànma? Then have you been to that shop next to my place?
  5. 张天 méiguò. ...Never been.
  6. 周雨 běijīngrénzhīdàoběijīng. Beijingers don't really know Beijing either.
汉字พินอินชนิดคำความหมาย
guo aux. (experiential aspect particle — "have ever")
jiǔ adj. (for) a long time
多久 duō jiǔ adv. how long (asking duration)
出国 chū//guó v. go abroad; leave the country
出门 chū//mén v. leave home; go out
一直 yìzhí adv. all along; the whole time
经常 jīngcháng adv. often; frequently
旅行 lǚxíng n./v. travel; trip
别人 biéren pron. other people; others
大家 dàjiā pron. everyone
自己 zìjǐ pron. self; oneself
不过 búguò conj. however; but (softer than 但是)
一定 yídìng adv. definitely; surely; for sure
á / a interj. (interjection — "ah!", "huh?!", surprise)
张天 Zhāng Tiān pn. Zhang Tian (persona — confident, well-traveled marketing manager)
周雨 Zhōu Yǔ pn. Zhou Yu (persona — anxious-but-excited UI designer, first international trip)
高文 Gāo Wén pn. Gao Wen (persona — calm freelance translator, lived abroad, the host figure)
大卫 Dàwèi pn. David / Dawei (persona — American Chinese learner, the "literal foreigner" archetype)
汉字พินอินชนิดคำความหมาย
wèi (in 大卫 = David; also "guard, defend") 大卫 Dàwèi — David / Dawei (persona — American Chinese learner, the "literal foreigner" archetype)卫东 Wèi Dōng — Wei Dong (persona — 42, university lecturer)
(ordinal prefix); also "younger brother" (rare)
jiǔ long (in time) 多久 duō jiǔ — how long (asking duration)
zhù to live (later) 记住 jì zhù — memorise; remember firmly
dìng set; settled (in 决定, 一定) 一定 yídìng — definitely; surely; for sure不一定 bùyídìng — not necessarily; not for sure决定 juédìng — decide; decision
á / a (interjection — "ah!", "huh?!", surprise)
zhāng (common surname; also m.w. for flat objects) 张天 Zhāng Tiān — Zhang Tian (persona — confident, well-traveled marketing manager)一张 yì zhāng — one (paper-like item — pairs with 两张 / 三张)紧张 jǐnzhāng — nervous; tense
zhí straight; (in 一直 = all along) 一直 yìzhí — all along; the whole time
(in 旅行 = travel) 旅行 lǚxíng — travel; trip旅游 lǚyóu — tourism; sightseeing
self; from 自己 zìjǐ — self; oneself自然 zìrán — nature; natural
self (in 自己) 自己 zìjǐ — self; oneself
zhōu (common surname; also "week") 周雨 Zhōu Yǔ — Zhou Yu (persona — anxious-but-excited UI designer, first international trip)周末 zhōumò — weekend周月 Zhōu Yuè — Zhou Yue (persona — 24, recent grad)

guo / guò (experiential aspect particle); to pass / cross เขียน

6 strokes left-right radical 辶

Phono-semantic compound: 辶 (walking radical, semantic) + 寸 (cùn, phonetic hint). Original meaning: "to pass / to cross over". Later extended to mean "have once experienced", which is the modern aspect particle. The walking radical is your hint that this character is about *traversing* something — including time.

jīng (in 经常 = often; 经过 = pass through) เขียน

8 strokes left-right radical 纟

The 纟 (silk thread radical) on the left signals an origin in textiles: 经 originally meant "the warp threads of a loom" — the long, vertical, *enduring* threads. From there: "to pass through, to undergo, to have experienced". This is why 经常 ("often / regularly") uses this character.

bié other; do not เขียน

7 strokes left-right radical 刂

A compound: left = 另 (other, semantic) + 刂 (knife radical, also semantic — "to cut/separate"). Original meaning: "to separate with a knife". Modern meanings: (1) "other; another" (in 别人 = other people); (2) "do not" as a soft imperative (别去! = don't go!). The "knife" hint is preserved in the small 刂 on the right.

self; from เขียน

6 strokes single-component

自 is a pictograph — the ancient form depicted a human nose (which is what Chinese people point to when indicating "me"). The modern character preserves a stylized nose shape. Most commonly seen in 自己 (self) — paired with 己 (jǐ, also "self").

jiǔ long (in time) จดจำ

3 strokes single-component

mén door; gate จดจำ

3 strokes single-component

门 is a pictograph — the ancient form depicted two open door-leaves hanging from a top beam. The modern character preserves the symmetry. Used in 出门 (leave home), 大门 (front gate), 门口 (doorway).

zhí straight; (in 一直 = all along) จดจำ

8 strokes top-bottom

cháng often; usually; constant จดจำ

11 strokes top-bottom

(in 旅行 = travel) จดจำ

10 strokes left-right

zhāng (common surname; also m.w. for flat objects) จดจำ

7 strokes left-right

动态助词 "过" The Experiential Aspect Particle 过

"过"放在动词后面, 表示曾经有过这个经历。否定用"没"+动词+"过"。注意: "过"不是"了"。"了"表示动作完成, "过"表示有经历。

过 goes after the verb to mean "have ever had this experience". To negate, use 没 + verb + 过 ("have never..."). DO NOT confuse 过 with 了: 了 marks completion ("I went"), 过 marks experience ("I have been"). 我去了北京 = I went to Beijing (specific past trip). 我去过北京 = I have been to Beijing (at some point in my life).

  • 你去过中国吗? Nǐ qù guo Zhōngguó ma? Have you ever been to China?
  • 没去过. 这是我第一次. Méi qù guo. Zhè shì wǒ dì-yī cì. Never been. This is my first time.
  • 我在那儿住过两年. Wǒ zài nàr zhù guo liǎng nián. I lived there for two years.
  • 北京人都不去那些地方. Běijīng rén dōu bú qù nà xiē dìfang. Beijing people just don't go to those places.

疑问词 "多久" The Question Word 多久 ("how long")

"多久"用来问时间长短。"多"+"久"= "多么长的时间"。可以放在动词后(住多久), 也可以加"了"问到现在为止的时间长度(来多久了)。

多久 asks about a duration. Literally "how" + "long-time". Place it after the verb to ask "for how long" (你住多久 = how long will you stay). Add 了 at the end to ask how long an action has been ongoing up to now (你来多久了 = how long have you been here).

  • 你来多久了? Nǐ lái duō jiǔ le? How long have you been here?
  • 六个月了. Liù gè yuè le. Six months.
  • 你想在中国住多久? Nǐ xiǎng zài Zhōngguó zhù duō jiǔ? How long do you want to live in China?

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