3 · Sentence patterns
Two verbs in a row
serial verb constructions
One subject, two verb phrases one after the other: the first says where or how, the second says what for.
Chinese often strings two verb phrases together with nothing between them: 我去超市买菜, “I am going to the supermarket to buy food”. English needs a link word — “to”, “and”, “by” — and Chinese needs none. Both verbs belong to the same subject, and their order follows the order of events: first you go, then you buy.
Three kinds are especially common. Going somewhere for a purpose: 去 or 来 plus a place, then what you do there (我来中国学习汉语). A means of transport: 坐, 骑 or 开 plus the vehicle, then the journey (坐地铁上班). And a tool: 用 plus the thing, then the action (用筷子吃饭). In each case the first phrase sets the scene and the second carries the point.
Negation and modal verbs stand before the first verb, because they apply to the whole chain: 我不坐地铁上班, 我想去中国旅游. The aspect particle 了, on the other hand, usually goes after the second verb, which carries the event: 她去银行取了钱.
The typical mistake is to translate the English link word. 和 joins nouns, not verbs, so “go to the shop and buy” cannot use it; and 为了 (“in order to”) is far heavier than the little English “to”. Leaving the gap empty is the Chinese way.
The form
| purpose | 我去超市买菜。 |
| means of transport | 他坐地铁上班。 |
| tool | 我们用筷子吃饭。 |
| negative | 我不坐公交车去学校。 |
| completed | 她去银行取了钱。 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
The phrases stand in the order things happen: go first, then do.
我去图书馆借书。I am going to the library to borrow books.
A means of transport or a tool comes first, then the action.
她骑自行车上学。She cycles to school.
Negation and modal verbs go before the first verb.
他不开车去公司。He doesn't drive to the office.
了 usually follows the second verb, which carries the event.
他去商店买了一件衬衫。He went to the shop and bought a shirt.
A closer look
Going to do something, the spoken way
In speech the purpose can come before 去, which then closes the sentence: 我买菜去, “I am off to buy food”, 他吃饭去了, “he has gone for something to eat”. It means the same as 去买菜 and sounds a little more casual.
Both orders keep the rule that matters: there is no link word, and the movement verb and the purpose share one subject. What changes is only where the movement verb stands, and with it the rhythm of the sentence.
How to spot it
- 去…
- 来…
- 用…
- 坐…
- 骑…
Example sentences
我明天去机场接我妈妈。Tomorrow I am going to the airport to pick up my mother.
他每天坐地铁上班。He takes the underground to work every day.
请你用中文写你的名字。Please write your name in Chinese.
周末我们来你家看你。We will come round to your place at the weekend to see you.
她去邮局寄了一个包裹。She went to the post office and sent a parcel.
太晚了，我们打车回家吧。It is too late — let's take a taxi home.
8 more example sentences
爸爸每天开车送我去学校。Dad drives me to school every day.
我想去中国学习汉语。I would like to go to China to study Chinese.
他一般用手机付钱。He usually pays with his phone.
我们一起去饭馆吃饭吧。Let's go to a restaurant together for a meal.
她每天走路去公司。She walks to the office every day.
你可以上网查一下。You can look it up online.
他昨天去医院看了医生。Yesterday he went to the hospital to see a doctor.
我没有坐飞机去，我是坐火车去的。I didn't fly — I went by train.
Worth knowing (1)
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Lái before a verb: let me
来 before another verb often loses its sense of movement and becomes an offer: 我来 plus a verb is “let me do it”, “I'll take care of that”. Nobody has to come anywhere.
你休息吧，我来做饭。You have a rest — I'll do the cooking.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
和 is the “and” of nouns — “bread and milk” — and it cannot join two actions that follow each other like this. Whether English says “go and buy” or “go to buy”, Chinese puts the two verb phrases side by side with nothing between them.
Two verb phrases, one subject, in the order things happen — and no word for “and” or “to” between them.
Your turn
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