The particle 了 (le) has a [lot of uses](Uses_of_"le" "wikilink"). One
of the most common is to express the completion of an action. This is
called [aspect](Aspect "wikilink"), which is not the same as tense.
Tense is about *when an action happens*: past, present or future. Aspect
is about *whether the action is complete* in a certain time frame.

Basic Pattern
-------------

To indicate completeness with 了 (le), the structure is:

<div class="jiegou">
Subj. + Verb + 了 + Obj.

</div>
Notice that 了 (le) goes directly after the verb. This 了 (le) is called
**verb 了 (le)** or **了1**.

Examples
--------

<div class="liju">
-   你 今天 早上 吃 <em>了</em> 什么？ <span class="pinyin">Nǐ jīntiān
    zǎoshang chī <em>le</em> shénme? </span><span class="trans">What did
    you eat this morning? </span>
-   他 买 <em>了</em> 一个 新 手机。 <span class="pinyin">Tā mǎi
    <em>le</em> yī gè xīn shǒujī.</span><span class="trans">He bought a
    new cell phone.</span>
-   昨天 晚上 我 看见 <em>了</em> UFO。 <span class="pinyin">Zuótiān
    wǎnshang wǒ kànjiàn <em>le</em> UFO.</span><span class="trans">I saw
    a UFO last night.</span>
-   我 学 <em>了</em> 两 年 中文。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ xué
    <em>le</em> liǎng nián Zhōngwén.</span><span class="trans"> I
    studied Chinese for two years.</span>
-   今年 夏天 我 跟 我 男朋友 去 <em>了</em> 台湾。
    <span class="pinyin">Jīnnián xiàtiān wǒ gēn wǒ nánpéngyou qù
    <em>le</em> Táiwān.</span><span class="trans">I went to Taiwan with
    my boyfriend this summer.</span>

</div>
The examples above indicate a completed action, but they might also seem
very similar to a "past tense" in English. To illustrate that 了 (le)
can also indicate that one action is completed before another, see the
following examples:

<div class="liju">
-   你 到 <em>了</em> 告诉 我。<span class="expl pdf-simple-expl">future
    action</span><span class="pinyin">Nǐ dào <em>le</em> gàosu
    wǒ.</span><span class="trans">When you have arrived, tell me.</span>
-   老板 走 <em>了</em> 以后， 你们 可以 走。
    <span class="expl pdf-simple-expl">future
    action</span><span class="pinyin">Lǎobǎn zǒu <em>le</em> yǐhòu,
    nǐmen kěyǐ zǒu.</span><span class="trans">After the boss has left,
    you may leave.</span>
-   你 找到 <em>了</em> 以后 ， 给 我 打
    电话。<span class="expl pdf-simple-expl">future
    action</span><span class="pinyin">Nǐ zhǎodào​ <em>le</em> yǐhòu, gěi
    wǒ dǎ diànhuà.</span><span class="trans">After you have found it,
    give me a call.</span>
-   你们 吃 <em>了</em> 饭 以后 ， 可以 出去 。
    <span class="expl pdf-simple-expl">future
    action</span><span class="pinyin">Nǐmen chī <em>le</em> fàn yǐhòu,
    kěyǐ chūqù.</span><span class="trans">After you have eaten your
    food, you can go out.</span>
-   下 <em>了</em> 课 以后 ，我 要 问 老师 一些
    问题。<span class="expl pdf-simple-expl">future
    action</span><span class="pinyin">Xià <em>le</em> kè yǐhòu, wǒ yào
    wèn lǎoshī yīxiē wèntí.</span><span class="trans">After class is
    over, I need to ask the teacher a few questions.</span>

</div>
As you can see, 了 (le) can appear in sentences about the future as well
as the past. What's important is whether or not the action has been
*completed*, no matter what time frame we're talking about. This also
means that this 了 (le) isn't used with habitual or continuous actions.

See also
--------

-   [Expressing experiences with
    verbs](Expressing_experiences_with_verbs "wikilink")
-   [Uses of "le"](Uses_of_"le" "wikilink")
-   [Using "guo" with "le"](Using_"guo"_with_"le" "wikilink")

Sources and further reading
---------------------------

### Books

-   [Basic Patterns of Chinese
    Grammar](Basic_Patterns_of_Chinese_Grammar "wikilink") (pp. 65-8)
    [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1933330899/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399373&creativeASIN=1933330899)
-   [Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second
    Edition](Chinese:_An_Essential_Grammar,_Second_Edition "wikilink") (pp.
    57-9)
    [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415372615/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0415372615)
-   [Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1
    (3rd ed)](Integrated_Chinese:_Level_1,_Part_1_(3rd_ed) "wikilink") (pp.
    137-9, 208)
    [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887276385/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0887276385)
-   [Integrated Chinese: Level 2, Part
    1](Integrated_Chinese:_Level_2,_Part_1 "wikilink") (pp. 11-4)
    [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887276792/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0887276792)
-   [Mandarin Chinese: A Functional Reference
    Grammar](Mandarin_Chinese:_A_Functional_Reference_Grammar "wikilink") (pp.
    185-217)
    [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0520066103?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0520066103)
-   [New Practical Chinese Reader
    1 (新实用汉语课本1)](New_Practical_Chinese_Reader_1_(新实用汉语课本1) "wikilink") (pp.
    199-200)
    [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561910401/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=7561910401)
-   [New Practical Chinese Reader 1
    (新实用汉语课本1)(2nd ed)](New_Practical_Chinese_Reader_1_(新实用汉语课本1)(2nd_ed) "wikilink") (pp.
    226-8)
    [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561926235/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399373&creativeASIN=7561926235)
-   [New Practical Chinese Reader
    2 (新实用汉语课本2)](New_Practical_Chinese_Reader_2_(新实用汉语课本2) "wikilink") (pp.
    16-8)
    [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561911297/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=7561911297)
-   [40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course
    (基础汉语40课上册）](40_Lessons_for_Basic_Chinese_Course_(基础汉语40课上册） "wikilink") (pp.
    156-7)[→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

-   Yale: [The Perfective –Le了 Versus The Modal Particle
    Le了](http://comet.cls.yale.edu/mandarin/content/Lele/grammar/Lele.htm)

[Category:A2 grammar points](Category:A2_grammar_points "wikilink")