*Also known as: 程度补语 (chéngdù bǔyǔ) and complement of degree.* While most [complements](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Complement) follow [verbs](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Verb), degree complements very often follow [adjectives](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Adjective). They intensify, or in some other way, modify the degree of expression of the adjective (or verb). When to use it ------------------------------------------------------------------- Until now, you may have probably been getting by just fine modifying your verbs with adverbs. You can use 非常 to say "very" and all that. Great. But once you learn to use degree complements, a whole new layer of expressiveness is infused into your language. You will be able to express **degree** of verbs and adjectives with much more precision and color. But how do you know *when to use* the degree complement? Here are the main reasons to use it: 1. To express **how** a [verb](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Verbs) happened or assess its quality 2. To express **to what extent** (or degree) an [adjective](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Adjectives) is true For the first case, the most typical examples would be describing *how well* an action is done, or in *asking* how well an action is done, which are sometimes also classified as [descriptive complements](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Descriptive_complement) and [state complements](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/State_complement). Basic Pattern ----------------------------------------------------------------- Instead of using the good old standby adverbs 很 and 非常, we can use all kinds of degree complements to spice up our adjective. ### Structure ### Examples Descriptive and State Complements --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Not every aspect of Chinese grammar is agreed upon in the world of academia, and this is the case with degree complements, [descriptive complements](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Descriptive_complement), and [state complements](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/State_complement). Some scholars hold that the three are distinct, while others posit they're all just types of degree complements. Still, others maintain that degree complements are one, and descriptive complements and state complements are also one. Here's how a professor of Chinese at Yale puts it^[\[1](#cite_note-1 "wikilink")\]^: > Generally speaking, the complement of degree is a grammatical unit > that describes the main verb of the sentence. Specifically, the > complement of degree is an assessment of an action or a description of > the consequential state of an action. It may also be a description of > the degree of a state. Okayyy, so it sounds like descriptions and states are all degree complements? That's one of the views on the issue. None of these classifications truly matters though: the key is *understanding* them and *using* complements correctly to express yourself in Chinese. (This is already difficult without adding in unnecessary academic distinctions!) Degree Complements with Objects ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Both adding a complement to a verb with an object and adding an objective to a verb with a complement complicate a sentence in Mandarin, because *a single verb cannot be followed by both an object and a complement*. In order to get all three pieces of information into a grammatically correct Chinese sentence, there are two approaches to take: Approach \#1: Repeat the Verb Make sure that the object comes after the first instance of the verb, and the complement after the second. Approach \#2: Move the Object to the Front Just to be completely clear, the following sentences are both *incorrect*: A few more examples: Degree Complements Following Adjectives --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ### Common Patterns There are three especially common degree complements which can follow adjectives immediately and are *not* preceded by a 得: 1. [极了](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Adjectives_with_%22-ji_le%22) (like 好), indicating an extremely high degree. 2. [死了](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Negative_adjectives_with_%22-si_le%22) usually comes after adjectives with negative connotations (like 忙, 累, 臭, 难看) and are commonly used to exaggerate the degree of how bad something is. In recent years, however, 死了 also comes after adjectives with positive connotations. 3. Figuratively, [坏了](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%E5%9D%8F%E4%BA%86) is a bit like the complement [死了](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Negative_adjectives_with_%22-si_le%22) and can be used to mean "extremely" in either a positive or a negative sense. ### Examples Note that 死 can also act as a [result complement](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Result_complement). In the examples above, however, it merely indicates an extreme degree (no actual deaths involved!). Compared with Potential Complements ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Some sentences that contain adjective complements may be indistinguishable as degree or potential complements when they are taken out of context. The following table explains different meanings that one complement phrase could have as either a degree or potential. Degree complements commonly are directly preceded by an adverb (她说得很清楚) distinguishing them from potential complements which are never directly preceded by an adverb. References ----------------------------------------------------------- 1. [Jump up ↑](#cite_ref-1 "wikilink") See the article [What is the complement of degree?](http://comet.cls.yale.edu/mandarin/content/degree/grammar/Degree-1.htm) by Ling Mu, Rongzhen Li, and Peisong Xu. See also ------------------------------------------------------- - [Advanced degree complements](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Advanced_degree_complements) - [Complement "-huai le"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Complement_%22-huai_le%22) - [Adjectives with "-ji le"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Adjectives_with_%22-ji_le%22) Sources and further reading --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ### Books - [A Practical Chinese Grammar For Foreigners (外国人实用汉语语法)](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/A_Practical_Chinese_Grammar_For_Foreigners_(%E5%A4%96%E5%9B%BD%E4%BA%BA%E5%AE%9E%E7%94%A8%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%E8%AF%AD%E6%B3%95)) (pp. 284-292) [→buy](http://www.amazon.cn/mn/detailApp?_encoding=UTF8&tag=allset-23&linkCode=as2&asin=B001J0ADWA&camp=536&creative=3132&creativeASIN=B001J0ADWA) - [Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Chinese:_An_Essential_Grammar,_Second_Edition) (pp. 105-6) [→buy](http://amzn.to/2h67UYa) - [Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (3rd ed)](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Integrated_Chinese:_Level_1,_Part_2_(3rd_ed)) (pp. 139) [→buy](http://amzn.to/2femBuy) - [40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课上册）](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/40_Lessons_for_Basic_Chinese_Course_(%E5%9F%BA%E7%A1%80%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD40%E8%AF%BE%E4%B8%8A%E5%86%8C%EF%BC%89) (pp. 141) [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001FTL8D8/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001FTL8D8&linkCode=as2&tag=allset-20) ### Websites - Oxford University website: [Complement of degree 得](http://www.ctcfl.ox.ac.uk/Lang%20work/Grammar%20database/grammar_database1.htm#Complement%20of%20degree%20%E5%BE%97) - Yale University website: [The Complement Of Degree](http://comet.cls.yale.edu/mandarin/content/degree/grammar/Degree.htm) - [现代汉语中程度补语的范围及类别](http://www.doc88.com/p-9069095291857.html) - [带“得”字程度补语和状态补语的比较分析](http://www.docin.com/p-1196439776.html)