Question on placement of the particle 'le'
mnixon
July 30, 2008, 02:32 PM posted in General DiscussionLooked in the grammar section, but couldn't find the answer. Can anyone help? Question: Does the particle 'le' follow the key verb in a sentence or is it at the end of the sentence? Or is it up to the speaker?
Example: (where 'le' clarifies that the action happened in the past)
I went to the park to play.
Wo3 qu4 le gong1yuan2 wanr.
OR
Wo3 qu4 gong1yuan2 wanr le.
Thanks.
AY
xiaohu
July 30, 2008, 03:40 PMHi Anayelena,
It's funny, I've been learning Chinese for almost 6 years now, and with the word 了, I've personally have never been totally clear on it myself, I usually just say what sounds natural.
In the case of 我去公园玩儿了, I would put the 了 at the end of the sentence to indicate that the entire action happened in the past. Meaning that the 了 is modifying not only the verbs 去 and 玩, but also modifying the entire sentence making it clear to the speaker that this chunk (going to the park to play) all happend in the past.
But don't take my word for it, like I said, I've never been 100% clear about this.
RJ
July 30, 2008, 03:37 PMyou can have a subject le or a verb le. The subject le is at the end of the sentence and indicates something has changed. The verb le indicates a completed action or past tense when attached to the last verb in the sentence. You can have both in one sentence. There are other nuances but this is the main idea.