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New words and language points

Let's learn some new words and expressions first.

New words

东西 dōngxi thing, stuff

吃东西 chī dōngxi to eat something 买东西 mǎi dōngxi to buy something

一点儿 yìdiǎnr a few, a little

苹果 píngguǒ apple

Language points

了 le

It can be used at the end of a sentence makes a difference in tense.

我吃苹果了。It means I ATE an apple or I’ve EATEN an apple.

The particle can also be used between a transitive verb and its object when a modifier, such as a numeral classifier, an adjective or a pronoun, should be added before the object.

For example, 我吃了一个苹果。李月买了三本书。

The negative form of 了 in both cases above should be “没+verb” or “没+verb+object”. Attention: there is no 了 at the end anymore! And there’s no need to use a modifier before the object.

我吃苹果了。我没吃苹果。

他去商店了。他没去商店。

李月买了三本书。李月没买书。

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HSK Standard Course Level 1: 1.3

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