3 · Sentence patterns
The bǎ sentence
the disposal construction
Bǎ brings a definite object in front of the verb to say what was done to it, and the verb cannot stand bare at the end.
In the ordinary order the object follows the verb: 我关了门, “I shut the door”. The 把 sentence takes the object out of that slot and puts it in front of the verb, after 把: 我把门关上了. Word for word it is “I took the door and shut it”. The pattern is chosen when the sentence is about what happens to a particular thing: it is moved, finished, changed, handed over, put somewhere.
The thing after 把 is definite — something both speakers can identify: 把这本书, 把我的手机, 把门 (the door of this room). Where English would say “the”, 把 is possible; where English would say “a”, it usually is not.
The verb can never end the sentence on its own. Something has to follow it that says what became of the object: a result (做完, 洗干净), a direction (拿走), a place or a person (放在…, 交给…), or at least 了. 我把饭吃 is an unfinished sentence; 我把饭吃完了 is complete.
Negation, modal verbs and time words stand before 把, not before the verb: 我没把钥匙带来, 你能把窗户打开吗. And verbs that do nothing to an object — 喜欢, 知道, 是, 有, 来, 去 — never take 把, because nothing happens to the thing liked or known.
The form
| statement | 我把作业做完了。 |
| with a place | 请把书放在桌子上。 |
| negative | 我没把钥匙带来。 |
| a warning | 别把门关上。 |
| question | 你把钱给他了吗？ |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
The object after 把 is definite: a thing both speakers can identify.
请把这杯水喝了。Please drink this glass of water.
The verb never ends the sentence alone: a result, a direction, a place or at least 了 follows it.
我把衣服洗干净了。I have washed the clothes clean.
Negation, modal verbs and time words go before 把, not before the verb.
我没把这件事告诉他。I did not tell him about this.
With a verb followed by 在, 到, 给 or 成 and a definite object, 把 is needed.
他把车停在门口了。He parked the car at the entrance.
Verbs of liking, knowing, being, coming and going do nothing to an object and do not take 把.
我喜欢这本书。I like this book.
A closer look
Why the verb cannot stand alone
The 把 sentence is a report on a thing: it was in one state and is now in another. The part after the verb is that new state — finished, clean, gone, on the table, in English. A verb on its own only names an activity, and an activity is not a result. That is why grammars call it the sentence of “disposal”: the object is dealt with, and the sentence has to say how.
For some sentences 把 is not a choice. When the verb is followed by a place, a recipient or a result — 放在, 送给, 翻译成 — the slot after the verb is already taken, and the object has nowhere to go but in front. A learner who says “I put the book on the table” in English order produces a sentence no Chinese speaker would say; with 把 it comes out right: 我把书放在桌子上了.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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the verb is followed by 在, 到, 给 or 成 and the object is definite
把 is no longer optional; the object must stand before the verb.
他把信寄到上海了。He sent the letter to Shanghai.
The slot after the verb is taken by the place, the recipient or the result, so the object cannot follow the verb as well.
How to spot it
- 把
- 把…放在
- 把…给
- 把…成
- 别把
Example sentences
他把我的蛋糕吃完了。He has finished off my cake.
请你把窗户打开。Please open the window.
我把钥匙忘在家里了。I have left my keys at home.
妈妈把房间收拾得很干净。Mum tidied the room until it was spotless.
别把手机放在床上。Don't put your phone on the bed.
你能把这句话翻译成英文吗？Can you translate this sentence into English?
8 more example sentences
我已经把作业做完了。I have already finished my homework.
他把车停在楼下了。He parked the car downstairs.
你把这些东西拿回去吧。Take these things back with you.
我马上把文件发给你。I'll send you the file straight away.
服务员把菜单递给了我。The waiter handed me the menu.
请把你的名字写在这儿。Please write your name here.
弟弟不小心把杯子打破了。My little brother broke the glass by accident.
我想把头发剪短一点儿。I would like my hair cut a bit shorter.
Worth knowing (1)
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Bǎ with le alone: get it done
A short 把 sentence ending in 了 alone is an instruction to deal with something completely: 把药吃了, “take the medicine (so that it is gone)”. The 了 itself is the result.
快把药吃了！Take your medicine, quickly!
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
English “I read the book” is a complete sentence, so it is tempting to stop after the verb. A 把 sentence promises to say what became of the object, and a bare 看 does not keep the promise. Add the result: 看完了, finished reading.
Bǎ plus a known thing, then the verb — and always something after the verb to say what became of it.
Your turn
10 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.