<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?> <!DOCTYPE html> <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xmlns:epub="http://www.idpf.org/2007/ops"> <head> <title>Complement with "dao"</title> <link href="../Styles/main.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"/> </head> <body> <h1>Complement with "dao" </h1> <p>One kind of complement in Chinese involves putting 到 after the verb. 到 (dào) is used to indicate that the action has obtained a goal or a certain state.</p> <h2>Contents</h2> <div class="contents"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">1 Structure </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">2 Examples </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">3 See also </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">4 Sources and further reading </span></li> <ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">4.1 Books</span></li> </ul> </ul> </div> <h3>Structure</h3> <div class="deux">Verb (+ 一直) + 到 + Time / Event </div> <p>You will sometimes see 一直 (yīzhí) proceeding 到, which serves the purpose of the emphasis on the "ongoing duration." </p> <p>Note that the verbs are mostly single-syllable verb. </p> <h3>Examples</h3> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">你们 要 玩 到 几 点 ？ Nǐmen yào wán dào jǐ diǎn? When will you be done playing? </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我们 在 酒吧 一直 聊 到 半夜 。 Wǒmen zài jiǔbā yīzhí liáo dào bànyè. We were chatting in the bar until midnight. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">你 弟弟 要 在 我们 家 住 到 什么 时候 ？ Nǐ dìdi yào zài wǒmen jiā zhù dào shénme shíhou? How much longer is your younger brother going to stay in our house? </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">昨天 的 会 一直 开 到 晚上 九点 。 Zuótiān de huì yīzhí kāi dào wǎnshang jiǔ diǎn. Yesterday's meeting lasted until 9 pm. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 邻居 今天 吵架 了 ，一直 吵 到 警察 过来 。 Wǒ línjū jīntiān chǎojià le, yīzhí chǎo dào jǐngchá guòlái. My neighbors had a fight today, which lasted until the police came. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我们 晚上 去 吃火锅 了 ，一直 吃 到 火锅店 关门 。 Wǒmen wǎnshang qù chī huǒguō le, yīzhí chī dào huǒguō diàn guānmén. We went to eat hotpot tonight, and we didn't finish until the place was closed. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">他 昨天 一天 都 在 打游戏 ，一直 打 到 他 妈妈 回家 。 Tā zuótiān yī tiān dōu zài dǎ yóuxì, yīzhí dǎ dào tā māma huí jiā. He was playing computer games all day yesterday. He didn't stop until his mother came home.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h2>If the is a verb phrase proceeding 到, use this structure:</h2> <div class="deux">[Verb Phrase] (+ 一直) + Verb + 到 + Time / Event</div> <h3>Some examples:</h3> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">你 知 不 知道 我们 等 你 等 到 半夜 ？ Nǐ zhī bu zhīdào wǒmen děng nǐ děng dào bànyè? Do you know we waited for you until midnight? </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 女儿 昨天 晚上 写作业 写 到 十二 点 半 。 Wǒ nǚ'ér zuótiān wǎnshang xiě zuòyè xiě dào shí'èr diǎn bàn. My daughter didn't finish her homework until 12:30 last night. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">她 给 男朋友 打电话 打 到 手机 没 电 。 Tā gěi nánpéngyou dǎ diànhuà dǎ dào shǒujī méi diàn. She called her boyfriend and they kept talking until her phone was out of battery.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h3>See also</h3> <div class="See-also"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">Verbs with gei </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">Expressing "from… to…" with "cong… dao…" "Zai" following verbs </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">Expressing "when" with "dengdao" </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">Expressing "all the way until" with "zhidao"</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h3>Sources and further reading </h3> <h4>Books</h4> <div class="See-also"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">New Practical Chinese Reader 2 (新实用汉语课本2) (pp. 240) →buy </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">Chinese Grammar Without Tears (简明汉语语法学习手册) (pp. 93-95) [ →buy]</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> </body> </html>