了 (le) is one of those simple Chinese characters that tend to leave learners perplexed...
In this quick video we clear up the confusion to help you use "了" more accurately!
A summary of the main usages of "了le"
#1: Change of State = translated as "now"
"了le" can be used to show a change of state.
Structure: Sentence +“了le”
Examples:
下雪了。
xià xuě le.
It's snowing now.
It wasn't snowing previously.
我饿了。
wǒ è le.
I'm hungry now.
I wasn't hungry previously.
他不是我男朋友了。
tā bù shì wǒ nán péng you le.
He isn't my boyfriend now.
He was my boyfriend previously.
我不结婚了。
wǒ bù jié hūn le.
I'm not getting married now.
I had previously planned to get married.
#2: Action Complete in the PAST
"了 le" is placed after a verb to show that the action is complete.
Structure: Verb +“了le”
You can think of it as adding an “-ed” to a verb in English.
“arrived” , “watched”
Here are some examples:
我们到了。
wǒ men dào le.
We have arrived.
他昨天看了一部电影。
tā zuó tiān kàn le yī bù diàn yǐng.
He watched a movie yesterday.
妹妹昨晚哭了一个多小时。
mèi mei zuó wǎn kū le yī gè duō xiǎo shí.
My younger sister cried for over one hour last night.
我今天早上运动了20分钟。
wǒ jīn tiān zǎo shang yùn dòng le 20 fēn zhōng.
I exercised for 20 minutes this morning.
#3: Action Complete in the FUTURE
"了 le" is also used for action complete in the future. It shows the order in which two actions happen.
Examples:
我到了酒店，就给你打电话。
wǒ dào le jiǔ diàn， jiù gěi nǐ dǎ diàn huà.
When I arrive at the hotel, I'll call you.
Action 1: "到了酒店 dào le jiǔ diàn" arrive at the hotel
Action 2: "给你打电话 gěi nǐ dǎ diàn huà" call you
In this situation you can think of "了 le" as meaning “when” or “after”
When Action 1: "到了酒店 dào le jiǔ diàn" arrive at the hotel completes, then Action 2: "给你打电话 gěi nǐ dǎ diàn huà" call you will take place.
"When action 1 completes, then action 2 will take place."
Structure: Action 1 (Verb 1) +“了le”
Here are some more examples:
我明天下了班，就去你家。
wǒ míng tiān xià le bān， jiù qù nǐ jiā.
When I finish work tomorrow, I'll go to your place.
Action 1: "下了班 xià le bān" finish work
Action 2: "去你家 qù nǐ jiā" go to your place
When Action 1: "下了班 xià le bān" finish work completes, then Action 2: "去你家 qù nǐ jiā" go to your place will take place.
这本书我下周看了再还你。
zhè běn shū wǒ xià zhōu kàn le zài huán nǐ.
When I finish reading this book next week, I'll return it to you.
我看了房子以后，才能决定要不要买。
wǒ kàn le fáng zi yǐ hòu， cái néng jué dìng yào bù yào mǎi.
When I see the house, I can decide whether to buy it or not.
我签收了包裹以后就马上退款给你，你放心吧。
wǒ qiān shōu le bāo guǒ yǐ hòu jiù mǎ shàng tuì kuǎn gěi nǐ， nǐ fàng xīn ba.
When I sign for the package, I will refund it to you immediately, don't worry.
#4: Imminence of an action. To express something that is about to happen.
When we express that something is about to happen, we use "了 le" together with words like 快 (kuài) and 要 (yào).
我们快到了。
wǒ men kuài dào le.
We're about to arrive. (We're almost there.)
Structure:
快 (kuài) + VERB +“了le”
要 (yào) + VERB +“了le”
or
Structure:
就要 (jiù yào) + VERB +“了le”
快要 (kuài yào) + VERB +“了le”
Examples:
圣诞节快到了。
shèng dàn jié kuài dào le.
Christmas is about to arrive. (Christmas is around the corner.)
我要结婚了。
wǒ yào jié hūn le.
I'm about to get married.
他要登机了。
tā yào dēng jī le.
He's about to board.
飞机就要起飞了。
fēi jī jiù yào qǐ fēi le.
The plane is about to take off.
他们的宝宝就要出生了。
tā men de bǎo bǎo jiù yào chū shēng le.
Their baby is about to be born.
快要下雨了。
kuài yào xià yǔ le.
It’s about to rain.
我们快要迟到了。
wǒ men kuài yào chí dào le.
We're about to be late.
#5: Emphasis
Sometimes "了 le" is simply used to add emotion to what you’re saying. Or to indicate that you’ve finished speaking.
Structure: Sentence +“了le”
Here’re some examples:
太好了！
tài hǎo le！
That's great!
太麻烦了！
tài má fan le！
That's so troublesome!
现在太晚了！
xiàn zài tài wǎn le!
Now it's too late.
你怎么还在工作了？！
nǐ zěn me hái zài gōng zuò le？！
Why are you still working?
你又迟到了！
nǐ yòu chí dào le！
You are late again!
她不可能懂的了！
tā bù kě néng dǒng de le！
She has no way of understanding.
他还在手术中，我们只能耐心等候医生的消息了。
tā hái zài shǒu shù zhōng， wǒ men zhǐ néng nài xīn děng hòu yī shēng de xiāo xī le.
He is still in surgery, we can only wait patiently for the doctor's update.
这里的菜太难吃了，服务员的态度太差了，还有价钱太贵了，我以后都不会再来这里吃饭了。
zhè lǐ de cài tài nán chī le， fú wù yuán de tài dù tài chà le， hái yǒu jià qián tài guì le， wǒ yǐ hòu dōu bù huì zài lái zhè lǐ chī fàn le.
The food here is so bad, the attitude of the waiter is so bad, and the price is so expensive, I will never eat here again.
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