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sentence patterns

 

Lesson 3, Major Sentence Patterns
last revised October 18, 2004

Pivotal Sentences: 請

Pivotal sentences combine two kernel sentences into one, longer, sentence.  The object of the first kernel sentence forms the subject of the second kernel sentence.  Therefore, the first kernel sentence must be a S-V-Obj sentence.  The second kernel sentence may have a variety of structures, for example, there may be no object.  So far, the only verb you know that can function as the pivot between the two is 請.  If the entire sentence begins 請你, you may assume the subject is 我 and the meaning is similar to "please," that is, "I request you (to do something)."

Kernel Sentence 1
S - V - Obj
(N1 - V1 - N2)
Kernel Sentence 2
S - V - (Obj)
(N2 - V2 - N3)
Pivotal Sentence
N1 - V1 - N2 - V2 - (Obj)
我請你。
I invite you.
你吃飯。 
You eat (a meal).
我請你吃飯。
I invite you to eat (a meal).
(我)請你。
I request you.
Please.
你問他。
You ask him.
(我)請你問他。
I request you to ask him.
Please ask him.
高太太請她的女兒。
Mrs. Gao asked her daughter.
她的女兒做飯。
Her daughter cooked dinner.
高太太請她的女兒做飯。
Mrs. Gao asked her daughter to cook dinner.

Affirmative-Negative Questions

Questions may be made by providing both affirmative and negative forms of the verb or adjective side-by-side in a sentence.  When replying, you may choose either the affirmative option and keep the same word order for the rest of the sentence.  For a shorter reply, you may leave out some words as in the examples below.  Note that for adjectives, natives speakers often add 很 if the answer is "yes."
 

Question
S - V - 不/沒 - V - Obj?
S - Adj - 不 - Adj?		 Affirmative Reply
(S) - V - Obj
(S) - (很) - Adj		 Negative Reply
(S) - 不/沒 - V - Obj
(S) - 不 - Adj
今天是不是你的生日?
Is today your birthday?		 今天是我的生日。
Today is my birthday.
是我的生日。
It's my birthday.
是
Yes.		 今天不是我的生日。
Today isn't my birthday.
不是我的生日。
It isn't my birthday.
不是
No.
小李吃不吃中國飯?
Does Little Li eat Chinese food?		 小李吃中國飯。
Little Li eats Chinese food.
他吃中國飯。
He eats Chinese food.
他吃。
He does.
Yes.		 小李不吃中國飯。
Little Li doesn't eat Chinese food.
他不吃中國飯。
He doesn't eat Chinese food.
不吃。
He doesn't.
No.
你認識不認識那個醫生?
Do you know that doctor?		 我認識他。
I know him.		 我不認識他。
I don't know him.
張老師有沒有照片?
Does Teacher Zhang have a photograph?		 他有照片。
He has a photograph.
有。
Yes.		 他沒有照片。
He doesn't have a photograph.
沒有。
No.
小白忙不忙?
Is Little Bai busy?		 他很忙。
He's busy.
Yes.		 不忙。
He's not busy.
No.
那個律師高不高?
Is that lawyer tall?		 她很高。
She's tall.		 她不高。
She's not tall.
你的老師老不老?
Is your teacher old?		 她很老。
She's old.		 她不老。
She's not old.

Alternative Questions: 還是

In this lesson, you learn 還是.  Please note that the use of 還是 does not completely overlap with the English use of "or."  In Chinese, 還是 is used only in questions that offer alternative choices.  Contrast these sentences:

Only in questions of the second type may 還是 be used.  Later on you will learn 或者, the word for "either ... or ..." when used in statements of the first type.  Within these limits, 還是 is still extremely flexible.  The alternate choices must be parallel, but they may be nouns serving as objects in the sentence, nouns serving as time words, verbs, verb-object phrases, or subject-verb-object combinations, and more.  See the text p. 68 for more examples.  Please note that there are sometimes several ways to structure a sentence with basically the same meaning. In some cases, native speakers prefer to include the verb rather than just give an alternative choice between two objects.
 
First part of sentence Alternative choices
(phrase) 還是 (phrase)		 Last part of sentence
你是
Are you		 老師還是律師?
a teacher or a lawyer?
小白
Does Little Bai		 五點還是六點
at five o'clock or six o'clock		 吃晚飯?
eat dinner?
李友喜歡
Does Li You like		 中國飯還是美國飯?
Chinese food or American food?
李友
Does Li You		 喜歡吃中國飯還是喜歡吃美國飯?
like to eat Chinese food or (like to eat) American food?
是
Are		 你請我還是我請你
you inviting me, or am I inviting you
(literally, "Is it you inviting me or me inviting you to dinner?"		 吃晚飯?
to eat dinner?
你請我還是我請你
 Are you inviting me, or am I inviting you		 吃晚飯?
to eat dinner?
你去還是我去  (qu4 means "to go")
Are you going or shall I go?

One more note:  See the last three rows.  If the alternative choice is between possibilities for the subject of the sentence, usually 是 is added at the beginning and/or a verb is included within the choices.

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This page created by Mary Jacob