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Separable verb
==============
[](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/ASG4GVRX)
-
Level
[B1](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/B1_grammar_points)
-
Similar to
Used for
[Describing
actions](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Describing_actions),
[Referring to past
experiences](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Referring_to_past_experiences),
[Referring to changes of
situation](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Referring_to_changes_of_situation),
[Referring to the
past](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Referring_to_the_past),
[Referring to the
present](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Referring_to_the_present)
-
Keywords
[None](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/None)
[{width="300"
height="300"}](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/File:None.jpg)
Contents
--------
[hide]([# "wikilink")\]
- [1 What Are
They](#What_Are_They "wikilink")
- [2 Why Use
Them](#Why_Use_Them "wikilink")
- [3 Basic
Usage](#Basic_Usage "wikilink")
- [3.1 Common
Examples](#Common_Examples "wikilink")
- [4 Where to put
了, 过,
着](#Where_to_put_.E4.BA.86.2C_.E8.BF.87.2C_.E7.9D.80 "wikilink")
- [4.1
Examples](#Examples "wikilink")
- [5 Where to Put
Measure Words](#Where_to_Put_Measure_Words "wikilink")
- [5.1
Examples](#Examples_2 "wikilink")
- [6 How to
Reduplicate](#How_to_Reduplicate "wikilink")
- [6.1
Examples](#Examples_3 "wikilink")
- [7 Academic
debate](#Academic_debate "wikilink")
- [8 Sources and
further reading](#Sources_and_further_reading "wikilink")
- [8.1
Books](#Books "wikilink")
- [8.2
Websites](#Websites "wikilink")
- 我 想 *见面* **你** 。Wǒ xiǎng *jiànmiàn*
**nǐ**.
- 我 想 *见* **你** 。Wǒ xiǎng *jiàn*
**nǐ**.
- 我 想 **跟** 你 *见面* 。the prepositional
phrase, literally "with you," comes before the
verbWǒ xiǎng **gēn** nǐ
*jiànmiàn*.
Perhaps the most common examples of separable verbs that beginners
struggle with are 见面 and 睡觉. For a more complete list, see the [list
of separable
verbs](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/List_of_separable_verbs).
Below we will introduce separable verbs in more detail, provide more
examples, and also offer more specific cases of where separable verbs
can get tricky.
Why Use Them
---------------------------------------------------------------
If separable verbs are simply verb-object phrases, then why the special
name? It's because there are some special features of Chinese
verb-object phrases worth special attention, and the name "separable
verbs" helps call attention to this. Mastering separable verbs can be a
little tricky and is an essential objective of the intermediate
([B1](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/B1)) level
learner of Chinese.
Separable verbs are just one of those things you can't avoid. Many
extremely common verbs, such as "to sleep" (睡觉) or "to meet" (见面)
are separable verbs, and until you understand which verbs are separable
verbs and how they work, you'll forever be making mistakes with these
verbs, even in very basic sentences.
Basic Usage
-------------------------------------------------------------
First, you need to understand the structure of separable verbs. Most
separable verbs are a "Verb + Object" (the object is a noun) construct.
One might wonder, then, why there needs to be a separate category called
"separable verbs" instead of just thinking of them as a verb and an
object. There are several reasons to think of them as special verbs:
1. Many separable verbs can't be easily translated into other languages
in a way that makes both the verb and the object part clear. For
instance, 见面 (to meet) and 结婚 (to get married) are
such examples. In these examples, it's just not easy to think of the
objects as an object.
2. The relationship between the verb and the object in a separable verb
pair is very close; adding the object to the verb is sort of the
"default form" of the verb, even if the verb part can be used
without the object.
3. Separable verbs are a source of frequent errors from learners
of Chinese. No matter how you think of them, it's good to give these
"words" or "phrases" extra attention to make your Chinese
more natural.
**The key to using separable verbs correctly is to remember that they
are "Verb + Object" constructs.** The verb alone must be treated as a
verb, and the object cannot be treated as a verb. It's from this
essential relationship that the following principles flow:
### Common Examples
- 帮忙 (bāngmáng) to help; to do a favor
帮 is the verb; 忙 is the object, meaning "a favor."
- 我们 可以 *帮忙* 你 。Wǒmen kěyǐ *bāngmáng*
nǐ.
- 我们 可以 *帮 你* 。Wǒmen kěyǐ *bāng
nǐ*.We can help you.
- 我们 可以 *帮忙* 。Wǒmen kěyǐ
*bāngmáng*.We can do (you) this
favor.
If you want to ask someone to do you a favor, check this out:
- 你 可以 帮 *我* **一个 忙** 吗 ？Nǐ kěyǐ bāng
*wǒ* **yī gè máng** ma?Can you do me a
favor?
- 结婚 (jiéhūn) to get married
结 is the verb; 婚 acts as the object, meaning "marriage." However, 婚
cannot be used as a noun very much.
- 我 想 *结婚* 她 。Wǒ xiǎng *jiéhūn* tā.
- 我 想 **跟** 她 *结婚* 。the prepositional
phrase, literally "with her," comes before the
verbWǒ xiǎng **gēn** tā
*jiéhūn*.I want to get married to
her.
- 聊天 (liáotiān) to chat; to talk (about things in general)
聊 is the verb; 天 acts as the object.
- 他 很 喜欢 *聊天* 女生 。Tā hěn xǐhuan
*liáotiān* nǚshēng.
- 上班 时间 不要 *聊天* 。Shàngbān shíjiān bùyào
*liáotiān*.
- 他 很 喜欢 **跟** 女生 *聊天* 。the prepositional
phrase, literally "with you," comes before the
verbTā hěn xǐhuan **gēn** nǚshēng
*liáotiān*.He loves talking with
girls.
Literally, 天 doesn't mean anything. The object needs to be something
specific if you mean to be clear. An important note to keep in mind is
that you don't need to translate "about" into 关于 in this scenario.
- 爸爸 不 喜欢 *聊天* 他 的 工作 。Bàba bù xǐhuan
*liáotiān* tā de gōngzuò.
- 爸爸 不 喜欢 *聊* **关于** 他 的 工作 。Bàba bù
xǐhuan *liáo* **guānyú** tā de gōngzuò.
- 爸爸 不 喜欢 *聊* 他 的 工作 。Bàba bù xǐhuan
*liáo* tā de gōngzuò.My father doesn't
like to talk about his work.
- 创业 (chuàngyè) to start up one's business
创 is the verb; 业 is the object.
- 我 想 *创业* 自己 的 公司 。Wǒ xiǎng *chuàngyè*
zìjǐ de gōngsī.
- 我 想 *创业* 。Wǒ xiǎng
*chuàngyè*.I want to start up my own
business.
If you mean to say "to launch a company" or "to set up your business,"
use this sentence below:
- 我 想 *开* **公司** 。Wǒ xiǎng *kāi*
**gōngsī**''''.I want to lunch my
business.
Where to put 了, 过, 着
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
### Examples
见面 (jiànmiàn)
- 我们 昨天 *见* **了** *面* 。separated, 了
insertedWǒmen zuótiān *jiàn* **le**
*miàn*.We've met yesterday.
- 我们 *见* **过** *面* 。separated, 过
insertedWǒmen *jiàn* **guo**
*miàn*.We've met.
开会 (kāihuì)
- 我们 早上 *开* **了** *会* 。Wǒmen zǎoshang
*kāi* **le** *huì*.We had a meeting this
morning.
- 你们 *开* **过** *会* 了 吗 ？Nǐmen *kāi*
**guo** *huì* le ma?Have you had the
meeting yet?
- 我们 *开* **着** *会* 呢 。Wǒmen *kāi* **zhe**
*huì* ne.We're having a meeting right
now.
吃饭 (chīfàn)
- 他 昨天 来 我 家 了 ，还 *吃* **了** *饭* 。Tā
zuótiān lái wǒ jiā le, hái *chī* **le**
*fàn*.He came to my house yesterday and
he ate a meal with us.
- 他 *吃* **过** *饭* 了 吗 ？Tā *chī* **guo**
*fàn* le ma?Has he eaten yet?
- 他 *吃* **着** *饭* 呢 。Tā *chī* **zhe** *fàn*
ne.He's eating a meal right now.
*Note: unlike the particles 过 and 着, the particle 了 is especially
tricky, and it can also appear after the object. So it can be correct in
multiple places.*
Where to Put Measure Words
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
### Examples
- 见面 (jiànmiàn)
- 我们 *见* **个** *面* 吧 。Wǒmen *jiàn* **gè**
*miàn* ba.Let's meet.
- 我们 *见* 过 **几 次** *面*。Wǒmen *jiàn* guo
**jǐ cì** *miàn*.We've met a few
times.
- 吃饭 (chīfàn)
- 我们 一起 *吃* 过 **几 次** *饭* 。Wǒmen yīqǐ
*chī* guo **jǐ cì** *fàn*.We've had
several meals together.
- 老板 请 大家 *吃* 了 **一 顿** *饭* 。Lǎobǎn
qǐng dàjiā *chī* le **yī dùn** *fàn*.The
boss invited everyone to dinner.
- 睡觉 (shuìjiào)
- 晚安！*睡* **个** *好 觉* 。Wǎn'ān! *Shuì*
**gè** *hǎo jiào*.Good night! I hope you
can have some good sleep.
- 昨晚 我 只 *睡* 了 **两 个 小时** *觉* 。Zuówǎn
wǒ zhǐ *shuì* le **liǎng gè xiǎoshí**
*jiào*.I only slept two hours last
night.
How to Reduplicate
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Reduplication](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Verb_reduplication)
is a way to express the casual nature of a verb or that it happens only
briefly. When it comes to separable verbs, *only the verb part
reduplicates.*
### Examples
- 见 *见* 面jiàn *jiàn* miàn
- 吃 *吃* 饭chī *chī* fàn
- 聊 *聊* 天liáo *liáo* tiān
- 吃 **饭** 吃饭饭 is the object; it should not be
repeated.)chī **fàn** chīfàn
- 聊 **天** 聊天天 is the object; it should not be
repeated.liáo **tiān** liáotiān
Note that separable verbs can't used with 一下 to express it happens
briefly.
- 见面 **一下**jiànmiàn **yīxià**
Academic debate
---------------------------------------------------------------------
There is some debate as to how useful the concept of separable verbs
really is. For our purposes, we're only concerned with whether or not
separable verbs are a useful concept *for the student of Mandarin
Chinese*. Many learners do, in fact, find the concept to be quite useful
in helping them speak more natural Chinese.
Sources and further reading
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
### Books
- [Chinese Grammar Without
Tears (简明汉语语法学习手册)](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Chinese_Grammar_Without_Tears_(%E7%AE%80%E6%98%8E%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%E8%AF%AD%E6%B3%95%E5%AD%A6%E4%B9%A0%E6%89%8B%E5%86%8C)) (pp.
208) \[ →buy\]
- [New Practical Chinese Reader
3 (新实用汉语课本3)](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/New_Practical_Chinese_Reader_3_(%E6%96%B0%E5%AE%9E%E7%94%A8%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%E8%AF%BE%E6%9C%AC3)) (pp.
16-7)
[→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/756191251X/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=756191251X)
- [Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1
(3rd ed)](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Integrated_Chinese:_Level_1,_Part_1_(3rd_ed)) (pp.
113) [→buy](http://amzn.to/2xe9H5W)
- [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.
111)
[→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
- The Canadian TCSL Association:
[离合词教学的理论与实践](http://www.canadiantcslassociation.ca/PDF/jor0852037.pdf)
- 北京语言大学网络教育学院:
[离合词及其教学](http://media.eblcu.cn/cls/demo/401053/course/1/1/sid003.htm)
- 百度百科: [离合词](http://baike.baidu.com/view/165257.htm)
- Sinosplice.com: [Syntactic Anguish of the Verb-Object-Modifier
Variety](http://www.sinosplice.com/life/archives/2008/10/13/syntactic-anguish-of-the-verb-object-modifier-variety)
- ChinesePod (free content): [Qing Wen - Separable
Verbs](http://chinesepod.com/lessons/separable-verbs)
- Chinesegrammar.info: [A look into the seperable verb 帮忙 by
comparing it
to 帮.](http://chinesegrammar.info/vocabulary/bang-and-bang-mang/)
- Mandarin Friend: [“Separable Verbs” – A Misleading and Unnecessary
Concept](https://mandarinfriend.wordpress.com/2015/02/12/separable-verbs-a-misleading-concept-for-chinese-learners/)
[Categories](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Special:Categories):
- [Verbs](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Category:Verbs)
- [B1 grammar
points](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Category:B1_grammar_points)
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