I’m a native Mandarin speaker and I don’t even know most of these rules because they just so instinctive to me! This video is making me appreciate the power of language and how language changes the way we think.

@erturtemirbaev5207

3 жыл бұрын

你是中国从哪个地方？

@Bobo-de8zt

3 жыл бұрын

我是中国从广东

@erturtemirbaev5207

3 жыл бұрын

@@Bobo-de8zt OK。 你是女人吗？

@selena4955

2 жыл бұрын

我也是！从前我从未意识到中文里“了”“就”之类的字的用法如此复杂，因为它们都是生活中最常用的字词。中文虽然没有复杂的词性和时态，但最基础的字词确实不容易用得地道

@taa347

2 жыл бұрын

I had the same epiphany about English. Once I started learning other languages, it opened my eyes to how my own worked on a deeper level

"You need to throw out your brain to understand Chinese" Challenge accepted.

@ShuoshuoChinese

4 жыл бұрын

😂😂😂

@karltorento3358

4 жыл бұрын

说老师，真的谢谢! For me, grasping the concept of 了 I’m completed actions only made sense when I learned French. For example, in French, when talking about the past, there’s usually the completed/perfect past and the imperfect past. The French imperfect past (e.g. Je voulais devenir medecin) is clearer than it’s English counterpart. In English, the translation is: I “wanted” to become a doctor. It’s not really obvious in English whether the verb, wanted, was completed back then. You would need to say things like, “I had wanted”. TLDR: It’s easy to learn another language such as Mandarin Chinese when you can draw on other languages for reference points.

@martinphipps2

4 жыл бұрын

@@karltorento3358 Did you mean 老實說?

@martinphipps2

4 жыл бұрын

@@karltorento3358 How would you say in French "I had wanted to become a doctor but didn't succeed?"

@andresilvadias9100

4 жыл бұрын

@@martinphipps2 No, Karl was addressing the video creator by calling her Teacher Shuo; the name goes before the title "Teacher" in Chinese, unlike in English when you put the last name after Mr./M(r)s.

You are a very good Chinese teacher, of you are not already working at a really good institution, you should consider applying, because i can assure you most my Chinese teachers i ever had in person or online could never explain 了 as clearly as you did. I know you said the sole credit is not yours, but you took the time to research a way those who dont speak fluent mandarin could understand.

@paulgrieve7031

2 жыл бұрын

Stay where you are. Be free. Your methods are perfect.

@mannaporanna2678

Жыл бұрын

The exact reason why she can use her own method to expain it so well is that she does not work for any institution and does not have to adjust to any one. She is a creator of her own success , not someone else's :)

I got my "aha" moment thanks to you ^^ not sure I can use it well still but it was really helpful !

@sarakhadjaeva6121

3 жыл бұрын

I’m agree with you 👍

In a word, “了” in Chinese indicates the perfect aspect （完成体）instead of the past tense（过去时）. In Chinese, tenses are indicated by time words.

@xXJ4FARGAMERXx

2 жыл бұрын

And the _perfect_ aspect indicates that an action is done. So why does 我太困了 mean "I _am_ sleepy"? That state is still going on.

@Lilreddeer

2 жыл бұрын

Emphasising just how sleepy you are, as in, I am too tired!@@xXJ4FARGAMERXx

As a native speaker,I think it's very hard to explain"le" to foreigners,but you do it.I think"le"is more than a past tense,but I can't say its other meanings until I watched this video.你太厉害“了”。

I am not a native English speaker myself but for some reason when I am listening to you I dont feel any language barrier. I feel like you are talking so clear and understandable. Maybe it is because you are a great teacher :):P Good work keep it up !

@agnes_ww

9 ай бұрын

Me too

I'm a Japanese learning Chinese. This was one of the most comprehensible videos of 了！！

@FDE-fw1hd

3 жыл бұрын

Yo. Same. I'm also japanese learning chinese. People keep telling me that my japanese is helping me learn chinese. Tbh it really doesn't help to know japanese.

@ganghualei2920

3 жыл бұрын

@@FDE-fw1hd I hope someone can teach me Japanese and I teach him Chinese cos I'm Chinese,hahahaha

My Chinese is still too basic to understand all of the words you used here, but I think I still totally understood the rules of when to use "le" - thank you for explaining so well!

You know, a lot of Chinese teachers tell me that 了 means past tense and they get angry when I tell them it doesn't.

@donaldj.trumpet4205

4 жыл бұрын

from my point, mandarin don’t actually have a ‘past tense’ like English does😂

@martinphipps2

4 жыл бұрын

@@donaldj.trumpet4205 Yes but a LOT of Chinese teachers think 了 indicates past tense. It probably means they don't understand the difference between the past tense and the present perfect. 我寫完了 does not mean "I wrote". It means "I have finished writing."

@donaldj.trumpet4205

4 жыл бұрын

Martin Phipps yeah, exactly! I totally agree with you. I’m a Chinese native speaker and I really appreciate that English has categorized tenses in a relatively specific way compared to mandarin (verbs actually have no tense at all). It sometimes makes the language more accurate and simple in my opinion. While in this case Chinese has to rely on some time indicators in discourse when the tense is not present.

@mugenmaru

3 жыл бұрын

In linguistics we have an gramtical category called "aspect" which expresses how an action, event, or state, denoted by a verb, extends over time. I've never seen chinese textbooks using this idea of aspect to teach Chinese for foreigners. You can think of 了 (finished action) as an aspect particle maybe like 着 or 在. In English, we have simple past, past perfect, past progressive for example. The tense are all past, but the action is in different progressions.

@Dragonkller-mg5og

3 жыл бұрын

The simple past is the simple present in the past time. "I went to school" is the same as " i go to school" just in the past time The present perfekt should be rendered as le and past perfekt as le reffering to completed actions in the past.

06:45 should be “perspective “ not “respective “ apologies!!

@sinfuldavy0

3 жыл бұрын

LOL you know I heard perspective🤷🏿‍♂️ I guess it was auto-correct in my brain because I’m English

@hamsolo474

3 жыл бұрын

I assumed you meant with respect to xx time frame, which is still perfect English

The idea you're talking about near 6:34 in linguistics uses the names "speech time" (you call "the present", which is usually close enough) and "event time". What you call "the point in time that the context shows us" is called "reference time". In English, reference time shows up when you use future perfect tense: "When you read this, your video will have been published for six months". "When you read this" establishes a reference time after my speech (comment) time. The "will" puts the "event" in my future, while "have been" establishes that the event (your video being published) was completed in the past relative to the reference time.

@musical_lolu4811

8 ай бұрын

Keep all that Reichenbachian stuff away from here man. Most people just want to learn how to use a language, not how to be linguists.

The time machine concept- brilliant! Thank you!

This is really interesting! English actually also has this concept of completed or incomplete past as well. It’s referred to as “aspect” rather than tense. It’s not as overt as in some languages, but it does exist. For instance in Spanish you have yo sé (“I know”), yo sabía (“I knew” continuously), and yo supe (“I found out”, completed). In English some phrases that show completion or incompletion are not as easy to track grammatically since the term “found out” really means “knew but in a completed moment” but is described using different words. To some extent “was” is like incomplete past. For instance, “I was eating [set up of the story, background, incomplete task] and then all of a sudden a mouse scurried across the floor [completed task in one moment].” But you could also saying, “The mouse was scurrying [incomplete] but then I came in and started to eat” or “.... ate”. And you can also do things like, “I learned”, “I had learned”, “I will have learned by then” etc., which all have different aspects in addition to their tense. Xie xie!

@tymanung6382

9 ай бұрын

Chinese verbs also show conditional + 2 sorts of, subjunctive verb modes.. These use certain auxiliarynverbs or adverbs. See i, Tuo Kobe. English Subjunctive in Spanish(?or reverse 3 parts in English + Chinese? Powrie, Shawn. Chinese. Counterfactual ...subjunctive +,conditional "(if... then...) section. Zhu, ni, hao yunqi!!

Although I was born, raised and was educated in the United States, learning Chinese has made me more aware of the “mechanics” of the English language (and Spanish). Therefore, although I know of the importance of thinking in the language you are learning, now I know that the sooner I understand the mechanics/grammar, the sooner I will grasp the true meaning and feeling of the language. Thank you for your hard work 😊

OMG, you explain the meaning and usage of "了" so well! The time machine concept made for a very clear explanation.

I still have my Nintendo Donkey Kong 2 ‘game’n’watch’. I’m so happy to learn that it can also function as a time machine. Loved this lesson. Yes, these aspects of time tense logic have often seemed mysterious and almost incomprehensible. This could be a mini revolution in this aspect of my learning, thank you!

The use of 了 is similar to verbal "aspect" as opposed to tense - found in the Greek and Russian languages (perfective (completed) and imperfective (not completed) aspects); 了 being more or less a marker for the perfective aspect. There is a book "Biblical Translation in Chinese and Greek: Verbal Aspect in Theory and Practice " By Toshikazu S. Foley (447 pages) which compares meticulously the use of 了, 过 and other Chinese verb markers with Greek verbal aspect system.

@penultimania4295

3 жыл бұрын

Those languages are not the only ones that have aspect.

@Grimebucket

3 жыл бұрын

Doesn't English also have aspect? I'm pretty sure the perfect and progressive/continuous "tenses" of English are not true tenses, but aspects. Actually, the way she describes "le" makes it seem very similar to the English perfect tense/aspect.

@EGFritz

3 жыл бұрын

English has aspect! "I eat" simple/habitual aspect, present tense "I am eating" continuous aspect, present tense "I have eaten" completed (perfective) aspect, present tense "I ate" simple aspect, past tense "I was eating" continuous aspect, past tense "I had eaten" completed aspect, past tense "I would eat (every day)" habitual aspect, past tense

You honestly explain things so well!! such a fantastic teacher

I’ve been watching you for a while now and I think I’m ready to take your course.

One of the best explanations of "le' I have heard. You really gave me that "aha" moment!

您的课程非常有益。 谢谢老师。

What a great explanation!

This is by far the best explanation of 了, you enlightened me! 非常感谢，说说！

I respect your teaching style, thank you very much!

2 years later, I found your channel and wow you couldn't have explained Le 了 better. With that, I came to realize in one Le 了 use case, we Filipinos have a similar particle in our sentences as well (in this case it's "Na"), which similarly indicates a change of state. 我不爱你'了' Wo Bú Aì Ni 'Le' "Di 'na' kita mahal" (base sentence: "Di kita mahal", 我不爱你, I don't love you) Hope I could learn more chinese in the long run. Thanks to your videos they're very helpful 💯 Also, aye 6:19 😆

You explained it so well

Wow! You are so informative!

literally, the best explanation of the notorious ＂ 了 ＂I've seen! 👏👏🙏

You are such an amazing teacher.

This was really helpful. Thanks, Shuo!

You’re such a good Chinese teacher!!! Your videos are helping me a lot☺️

🤯 I feel like I did a huge jump on my knowledge today! 谢谢

Wow you make this grammar so clear, easy and useful. Thanks!

Been living in China 7 years and still you gave me several Aha moments with this video! Well done ☺️

It’s the first time I understand 了 perfectly。谢了❤

Thank you for this excellent explanation.

This was extremely helpful. Thank you!

这个视频很有用。谢谢你的分享。

There is also another structure for 了: it's called the "double 了" sentence. It's used to describe an action which started in the past and is still in progress at this moment. Example: 我学了两年的汉语了 (I started to study Chinese 2 years ago and I am still studying today).

@sadeemto

6 ай бұрын

But doesn’t it mean a completion of an action?

These were excellent explanations! I especially liked the idea of time travelling for a second judgement. Your teaching style is awsome ❤

I have been studying Chinese for a few months now, and I found your videos very helpful. Thank you for the great content offered in your channel.

Very helpful, thank you !❤

Very well explained. Thank you Sister

Very useful, thank you

我很喜欢你的视频，它们非常有趣和有用！加油💪

Thank you so much!! I am only a beginner in chinese, but to have this aha-moment so soon will really help me in my chinese learning journey (: 谢谢你！

Fantastic lesson. Thank you ever so much

This is the best explanation of 了 I have ever heard. It really did clarify the use for me in a new way.

Very good to remind those "simple things" in the Chinese language.. THANK YOU!

Best video on 了 on KZread! 🥳

Super style to teach Chinese...

Thank you so much for this video. Amazing explanation. First time I actually understood 了.

谢谢。您的在线课很有意思！

very nice. it help me a lot to understand the use of "了"

This video is gold.

You're so good!! Don't stop of making these videos, you're helping me a lot ❤☺

I'm just starting with my fourth language that is Chinese and I've been watching a lot of KZread channels and I didn't know that a Chinese teacher, *just for my own ignorance for sure* could have a lot of charism like you have and make me feel confident with myself , Thank you so much for your work!:)

As a Vietnamese learning Chinese, I find your explaination really easy to absorb. Thanks so much for sharing with us ;)))

Wow, what a great explanation of how to use 了 I think I can actually start using it correctly now.

BEST EXPLANATION EVER!!!!

Thank you for taking the time to explain this. It makes a lot more sense. My teachers didn't do the best job explaining it, but then got mad at us because we overused it. Lol.

Awesome video!!! You are teaching way better than every book I have rad in school over the last 14 years. 谢谢你!

it's really cool and easy way to learn Chinese.im impressed.you are a great teacher

Your lesson is very informative and interesting.

Wow! Thank you for breaking down the concept of time embedded in English and Chinese grammar like this! As a non-native English speaker, I now also learned from this video why was it so hard for people from my country to learn the whole time-relative grammar in English (past/present/perfect etc etc etc..). Never thought about it before that the way you think about time and describe action in relation to time are different in each culture and language!

Thank u so much, this video is really useful!

I just followed a few of your Chinese lessons . Your teaching is good ; you explain very well ;thank you Shuo Shuo;I started learning Chinese language one year ago

This was so helpful. I never was taught how to use 了 so I just placed it after a verb when I meant past tense. This has cleared up so much confusion for me. 我知道了

never had such a clear explanation

very well explained

You made it so easy to understand, thank you.

Your lesson made me understand how to use 了 very well.

你解释得很清楚。谢谢

One of the most gorgeous teachers

Frienzoned in a chinese class! Achievement unlocked!

Thank you so much for your work! :D All your videos are so interesting and clear. I watch them all with great pleasure! :)

Thank you for posting this instructional video Shuoshuo. To be conversant in a second language provides many opportunities.

I love your examples. This is why I subbed

Very clear, thank you!

What a great explanations. I wish you were my Teacher ! 🙏🙏🙏🙏❤

Many thanks from Korea. I love this lesson. 영상 너무 좋아요!

很棒的视频，看了三遍，Ah Ha! 谢谢老师

Amazing video! Helped me a lot! Thank you!

Very comprehensive! 谢谢！

Brilliant, very helpful thank you

I'm taking an elementary chinese class for now and I have to pass hsk 4 after 1 or 2 years. I've been watching your video and taking notes. Thank you very much! You really help me a lot. You're a good teacher. :3

This is very very helpful. Thank you so much!

Thank you explain very well

That was amazing shuoshuo 😍 谢谢

太谢谢了！Your lesson is exactly what I was looking for. Besides, you're speaking so clearly, that even I can understand you without enabling subtitles. (English is not my mother tongue)

Thank you for this thoroughly explained video, this was extremely helpful (and needed). 现在知道了!

@TRUTHGOSPEL2023

4 жыл бұрын

Yea, although you can say I like this and you will be understood, but what I understood from her video is that we really don't need the ”现在”。。。。 when we say “我知道了” it automatically indicates “现在知道了”，就是说 “我知道了” indicates I didn't know before but now i know; so using 我知道了 makes use of the 了 in the right perspective even without "现在”. 我希望你明白我的意思☺️

I did heard about this explanation from one of my coworkers before. But at that time, I didn't realize how it really works. As been speaking to Chinese people quite often, Im starting to recognize what you say are right. Usually, I learn speaking Chinese with reflection, but I can see what you said is really correct with what I am supposed to speak in every situation. Thanks a lot for explaining.

This video literally blow my mind thank you so much

谢谢！ This video was extremely helpful!

Thank you so much! ❤️

I just love your style of teaching. You made Chinese easier for me. Lots of love from Pakistan

Very very useful

Life changing information 🤩

This was really useful! Thank you!