Level 3 Lesson 20.2 – 下大雨了，我们都跑上了车。
GRAMMAR: Complements of Direction in Chinese，趋向补语 "上" "下" "过".
In this HSK 3 video lesson we'll review 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction) in Chinese and we'll also learn three more verbs that can be used as 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction).
- 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction)
- 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction) "上" "下"
- 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction) "过"
GRAMMAR
Summary. 趋向补语
Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction
| ☑ See also 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction). |
| ☑ See also Summary of 补语 (Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements). |
(1) 趋向动词 (Qūxiàng Dòngcí ▸ Directional Verbs)
Verbs that suggest "direction of motion" are 趋向动词 (Qūxiàng Dòngcí ▸ Directional Verbs).
Before we have learned these 趋向动词 (Qūxiàng Dòngcí ▸ Directional Verbs):
- lái 来 to come (towards)
- qù 去 to go (away from)
- jìn 进 to enter
- chū 出 to exit
- huí 回 to return
- dào 到 to arrive
(2) 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction)
A 趋向动词 can be used as 趋向补语, following this structure:
VERB + Directional Verb = VERB + Complement of Direction
| VERB1 | verb2 |
| Verb | Directional Verb used as Complement of Direction of VERB1 |
| suggests manner or nature of the motion
(by walking, climbing, running, or driving? returning, or leaving?...) |
suggests the direction or path of this motion
(coming towards, or going away? entering or exiting? ascending or descending?…) |
趋向动词 (Qūxiàng Dòngcí ▸ Directional Verbs) 来, 去, 进, 出, 回, 到 can all be used as 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction):
| Verb | Complement of Direction | Verb-Complement Phrase |
| chū 出 to exit |
lái 来 to come (towards) |
chū lai 出来 to exit "coming out of" |
| jìn 进 to enter |
qù 去 to go (away from) |
jìn qu 进去 to enter "going into" |
| zǒu 走 to walk |
jìn 进 to enter |
zǒu jin 走进 to walk "into" |
| ná 拿 to take |
chū 出 to exit |
ná chu 拿出 to take "out" |
| jiē 接 to pick-up |
huí 回 to return |
jiē hui 接回 to pick-up "back" |
| sòng 送 to send |
dào 到 to arrive |
sòng dao 送到 to send "arriving to" |
Grammar 1. 趋向补语 "上" "下"
Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ "shàng" "xià"▸ Complements of Direction "上" "下"
| ☑ See also 方位词 (Fāngwèi Míngcí ▸ Locality Nouns): 上 下 里 外 前面 后面. |
上 and 下 can be 方位名词 (Fāngwèi Míngcí ▸ Locality Nouns) and also 趋向动词 (Qūxiàng Dòngcí ▸ Directional Verbs):
上 |
下 |
|
| 方位名词 Locality Nouns |
surface; the area above | the area underneath |
| 趋向动词 Directional Verbs |
to move upwards; to ascend | to move downwards; to descend |
趋向动词 (Qūxiàng Dòngcí ▸ Directional Verbs) 上, 下 can be used as 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction):
| Verb | Complement of Direction | Verb-Complement Phrase |
| pá 爬 to climb |
shàng 上 to move upwards |
pá shang 爬上 to climb "upwards" |
| pá 爬 to climb |
xià 下 to move downwards |
pá xia 爬下 to climb "downwards" |
| fàng 放 to place; to put |
shàng 上 to move upwards |
fàng shang 放上 to put "up(to)" |
| fàng 放 to place; to put |
xià 下 to move downwards |
fàng xia 放下 to put "down" |
Let's see some example sentences:
(1) 跑上 / 跑下
- Xià dàyǔ le, wǒmen dōu pǎo shang le chē.
下大雨了，我们都跑上了车。
(It is) raining heavy, we all ran “ascending”(/onto) (the) vehicle. - Chē dào zhàn le, wǒ pǎo xia le chē.
车到站了，我跑下了车。
(The) vehicle (has) arrived (the) station, I ran-“descending”(/down) (from) (the) vehicle.
(2) 走上 / 走下
- Shuō wán zàijiàn, Gāo Shūshu zǒu shang le fēijī.
说完再见，高叔叔走上了飞机
(After) finishing-saying goodbye, Uncle Gao walked “ascending”(/onto) (the) plane. - Zǒu xia fēijī yǐhòu, tā qù le yí xià xǐshǒujiān.
走下飞机以后，他去了一下洗手间。
(In the) time (that is) after walking “descending”(/down) (from) (the) plane, he went to (the) restroom “really quick”.
(3) 放上 / 放下
- Fàncài fàng shang zhuō le.
饭菜放上桌了。
(The) food (has been) put “ascending”(/onto) (the) table (already). - Bǎ qián fàng xia!
把钱放下！
(-) “Disposing of” (the) money (-) put “descending”(/down)! [Put down the money! / Drop the money!]
Grammar 2. 趋向补语 "过"
Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ "guò"▸ Complements of Direction "过"
| ☑ See also Dynamic / Aspect Particle 过. |
过 can be 动态助词 (Dòngtài Zhùcí ▸ Dynamic Particle; Aspect Particle ) and also 趋向动词 (Qūxiàng Dòngcí ▸ Directional Verbs):
过 |
|
| 动态助词 Dynamic Particle; Aspect Particle |
suggesting that the action or event is something that has ever happened before |
| 趋向动词 Directional Verbs |
(1) to move from one place to another; to pass by, to pass through, or to go by a place (2) to move from one time point to another time point; to go through/pass a time (period/point) |
趋向动词 (Qūxiàng Dòngcí ▸ Directional Verbs) 过 can be used as 趋向补语 (Qūxiàng Bǔyǔ ▸ Complements of Direction):
| Verb | Complement of Direction | Verb-Complement Phrase |
| zǒu 走 to walk |
guò 过 to pass |
zǒu guo 走过 to walk “passing” |
| fēi 飞 to fly |
guò 过 to pass |
fēi guo 飞过 to fly "passing" |
| yóu 游 to swim |
guò 过 to pass |
yóu guo 游过 to swim "passing" |
Let's see some example sentences:
- Tā cóng wǒ pángbiān zǒu guo.
他从我旁边走过。
He walked passing from (the) side (of) me. - Xiǎo niǎo fēi guo nà zuò shān, kàn bu jiàn le.
小鸟飞过那座山，看不见了。
(The) little bid flew passing that “zuo” (of) mountain, (and) is-not-able-to (been) seen (already). - Nǐ xiāng bu xiāngxìn, wǒ yóu guo zhè tiáo xiǎo hé zhǐ yào jǐ fēnzhōng.
你相不相信，我游过这条小河只要几分钟。
(Do) you believe (it or) not, me swimming passing this “tiao” (of) small river only needs a-few minutes.
Level 2 lesson 11 grammar 4 says
“While using Complement of Direction in Chinese, be careful that no Object should be used after the Verb-Complement Phrase.”
So for other directional complements such as 上 and 下 this is not the case?
As mentioned at 4:54 in this video?
Thank you for bringing this up and asking for clarification, and we apologize for any confusion.
When a “Verb + Complement of Direction” is used, and there is also an Object, there can be three different positions where the Object can go.
At the beginner stage of Level 2, we tend to simplify the grammar rules and focus on a few basic structures.
As you progress to Level 3 and learn more verbs, you will encounter more variations and exceptions in the use of Complements of Direction.
We apologize for any inaccuracies in our language usage and have updated the Level 2 Lesson 11 grammar rule to read, “While using these Complements of Direction in Chinese, be careful that no Object should be used after the Verb-Complement Phrase.”
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we strive to improve the quality of our content. If you have any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.