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ChineseGrammarWiki


			
				
					
						
						
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<p>A simple and direct way to indicate that you or someone is going
to a specific place or has arrived at a specific place is to use
the verb 到 (dào).</p>
<h2 id="到-dào-for-arriving-in-a-place">到 (dào) for Arriving in a
Place</h2>
<h3 id="structure">Structure</h3>
<p>The verb 到 (dào) is used to talk about arriving in places.</p>
<div class="jiegou">
<p>Subj. + 到 + Place</p>
</div>
<h3 id="examples">Examples</h3>
<p>For these examples, it's straightforward to think of 到 (dào) as
simply meaning "to arrive."</p>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>他们 已经 <em>到</em> 酒吧 了。 <span class="pinyin">Tāmen yǐjīng
<em>dào</em> jiǔbā le.</span><span class="trans">They have already
arrived at the bar.</span></li>
<li>我 刚 <em>到</em> 家。 <span class="pinyin">Wǒ gāng <em>dào</em>
jiā.</span><span class="trans">I just got home.</span></li>
<li>你 <em>到</em> 机场 了 吗？ <span class="pinyin">Nǐ <em>dào</em>
jīchǎng le ma?</span><span class="trans">Have you arrived at the
airport?</span></li>
<li>我 已经 <em>到</em> 火车站 了。 <span class="pinyin">Wǒ yǐjīng
<em>dào</em> huǒchēzhàn le.</span><span class="trans">I've already
arrived at the train station.</span></li>
<li>我们 先 <em>到</em> 北京 ， 然后 <em>到</em> 香港。 <span class=
"pinyin">Wǒmen xiān <em>dào</em> Běijīng, ránhòu <em>dào</em>
Xiānggǎng.</span><span class="trans">First we'll arrive in Beijing,
then in Hong Kong.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p>In some examples translating 到 (dào) as "to arrive" doesn't work
as well and you might need to expand your understanding of exactly
what 到 (dào) means. That's what we'll examine below.</p>
<h2 id="going-to-a-place-and-performing-an-action">Going to a Place
and Performing an Action</h2>
<h3 id="structure-1">Structure</h3>
<p>If you are going to a place to do something else, you can first
use 到 (dào) to indicate where you're going, then add another verb
after that. This has the meaning of "going to the place to do
something," and it's one case where the "arrive" translation
doesn't really work anymore.</p>
<div class="jiegou">
<p>Subj. + 到 + Place + Verb Phrase</p>
</div>
<h3 id="examples-1">Examples</h3>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>明天 我 要 <em>到</em> 南京 路 买 衣服。 <span class="pinyin">Míngtiān wǒ
yào <em>dào</em> Nánjīng Lù mǎi yīfu.</span><span class=
"trans">Tomorrow I'll go to Nanjing Road to buy
clothes.</span></li>
<li>你们 晚上 <em>到</em> 哪儿 吃饭 啊？<span class="pinyin">Nǐmen wǎnshang
<em>dào</em> nǎr chīfàn a?</span><span class="trans">Where will you
all go to eat food this evening?</span></li>
<li>我 跟 朋友 经常 <em>到</em> KTV 唱歌 。 <span class="pinyin">Wǒ gēn
péngyou jīngcháng <em>dào</em> KTV chànggē.</span><span class=
"trans">I often go to Karaoke to sing songs with
friends.</span></li>
<li>今年 春节 我 要 <em>到</em> 女朋友 家 见 她 的 父母 。 <span class=
"pinyin">Jīnnián Chūnjié wǒ yào <em>dào</em> nǚpéngyou jiā jiàn tā
de fùmǔ.</span><span class="trans">This Spring Festival I am going
to my girlfriend's house to meet her parents.</span></li>
<li>下 个 月 我 要 <em>到</em> 美国 出差。 <span class="pinyin">Xià gè yuè wǒ
yào <em>dào</em> Měiguó chūchāi.</span><span class="trans">Next
month I need to go to the USA on a business trip.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p>You might be wondering: <em>can I just use 去 (qù) instead of 到
(dào)?</em> For sentences like this, <em>yes, you can.</em> But
native speakers will frequently use 到 (dào) in this way, so it's
still good to be familiar with this pattern. If you want to sound
more native, you should use it too!</p>
<h2 id="到-dào-去-qù-and-走-zǒu">到 (dào), 去 (qù), and 走 (zǒu)</h2>
<p>Sometimes it can be hard to figure out exactly which word to use
in Chinese to mean "go." 到 (dào) is used when you talk about
<em>arriving</em> at a place, emphasizing the destination. 去 (qù)
is used when you are <em>going to</em> a place. The exact meaning
is "to go," and it emphasizes <em>getting to</em> somewhere. 走
(zǒu) is used when talking about "leaving." The emphasis is on
getting <em>away</em> from a particular place.</p>
<h2 id="see-also">See also</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="Using_&quot;zai&quot;_with_verbs" title=
"wikilink">Using "zai" with verbs</a></li>
<li><a href=
"Complements_with_&quot;dao,&quot;_&quot;gei,&quot;_and_&quot;zai&quot;"
title="wikilink">Complements with "dao," "gei," and "zai"</a></li>
<li><a href=
"&quot;From%E2%80%A6_To%E2%80%A6&quot;_with_&quot;cong%E2%80%A6_dao%E2%80%A6&quot;"
title="wikilink">"From… To…" with "cong… dao…"</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="sources-and-further-reading">Sources and further
reading</h2>
<h3 id="books">Books</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href=
"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"
title="wikilink">40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course
(基础汉语40课上册）</a> (p. 200)</li>
<li><a href="Integrated_Chinese:_Level_1,_Part_2_(3rd_ed)" title=
"wikilink">Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (3rd ed)</a> (p. 72)
<a href=
"http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887276709/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=allset-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369&amp;creativeASIN=0887276709">
→buy</a></li>
</ul>
<p><a href="Category:A2_grammar_points" title=
"wikilink">Category:A2 grammar points</a></p>
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