Level 1 Lesson 3.1 – I Learn Chinese At A School

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Level 1 (HSK 1+): Elementary Chinese Level 1 Lesson 3.1 – I Learn Chinese At A School

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Place Word In A Chinese Sentence | Sentence Word Order In Chinese

In this video lesson we'll learn how to position a Place Word in a Chinese sentence, which is a very important sentence word order. We'll also learn the structure of a noun modifying another noun in Chinese.

Sentence Word Order in Chinese: Positioning Place Word in a sentence
学习: to learn vs. to study
学 vs 学习
Noun modifying another noun in Chinese

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VOCABULARY

HSK	CHINESE	PINYIN	P.O.S	ENGLISH
1	学习	xuéxí	v.	to learn(something); to study
1	汉语	Hànyǔ	pn.	the Chinese language
n/a	英语	Yīngyǔ	pn.	the English language
n/a	美国	Měiguó	pn.	USA
n/a	法国	Fǎguó	pn.	France
n/a	法语	Fǎyǔ	pn.	the French language

GRAMMAR

Grammar 1: Word Order: Positioning A Place Word In A Chinese Sentence· HSK 1

Unlike in English where the "Place Word" usually goes at the end of a sentence, if we want to put a "Place Word" in a Chinese sentence, suggesting where the action occurs, we put it between the Subject and the Verb.

Subject + Place + Verb ( + Object )

wǒ zài Běijīng xué Hànyǔ
我在北京学汉语。
I learn Chinese in Beijing.
tā zài sùshè chī píngguǒ
他在宿舍吃苹果。
He eats apple in the dormitory.
wǒ zài Měiguó xuéxí
我在美国学习。
I study in America.

Grammar 2: To Study in Chinese VS. To Learn in Chinese · HSK 1

(1) xuéxí 学习: to learn in Chinese VS. to study in Chinese

When followed by an object, 学 means to learn something in Chinese:

学习 + something = to learn something

tā zài Zhōngguó xuéxí Hànyǔ
他在中国学习汉语。
He learns Chinese in China.
wǒ zài Fǎguó xuéxí Fǎyǔ
我在法国学习法语。
I learn French in France.

When not followed by an object, 学 means to study in general:

学习 object = to study (in general)

tā zài Zhōngguó xuéxí
他在中国学习。
He studies in China.
wǒ zài Fǎguó xuéxí
我在法国学习。
I study in France.

(2) xuéxí 学习 VS. xué 学: to learn in Chinese

When followed by an object, 学习 and 学 are interchangeable:

学习 + something = 学 + something = to learn something

wǒ xǐhuan xué Hànyǔ
我喜欢学汉语。
I like learning Chinese.
wǒ xǐhuan xuéxí Hànyǔ
我喜欢学习汉语。
I like learning Chinese.

Grammar 3: Noun Modifying Another Noun · HSK 3

zài 在 to be in/on/at (+somewhere)

Sometimes a noun can be used to modify another noun in Chinese. We can just put Noun¹ before Noun²:

(Noun¹) Noun²

Yīngyǔ shū 英语书 English book
Hànyǔ xuéxiào 汉语学校 Chinese school
cháshuǐ 茶水 tea water

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12 Comments

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Mente de BoerPremium Student December 22, 2022 at 5:41 pm

Hi, would this sentence be grammaticaly correct?
我妈妈住在我在北京家

Robyn SpoorPremium Student September 8, 2022 at 1:36 am

I would have thought that the “where” word is (or has the effect of) an adverb modifying the verb. In English a word telling where about the verb is an adverb. It more commonly has a preposition before it, but there are some adverbs that come directly before the verb. This is just a way of remembering the word position in Chinese. (I love the logic of this tbh.)

Daniel GraceyPremium Student May 13, 2022 at 8:52 am

我在家学习汉语. Lili is there a Chinese-English dictionary that you recommend for reference?

ChineseFor.UsAcademic Team May 17, 2022 at 9:05 am

有道词典 Youdao is a good tool. They have a website and an app.

david.rappoPremium Student February 8, 2020 at 8:11 pm

Hi,

I am little bit unclear what 茶水 means. If I asked for 茶水 in a Chinese restaurant would the waiter bring a pot of tea and a jug of water? Or is 茶水 simply a longer way to say 茶?

Thanks,

Lili HaoTeacher February 8, 2020 at 10:24 pm

茶 can be used to refer to both tea (leaves) in general, or a cup/pot of tea, depending on the context.
茶水 is specifically “already made and ready to drink” tea.

If you are at a restaurant, you can say both 茶 or 茶水, but 茶 is more commonly used. Sometimes for other purposes, like cooking or staining, 茶水 has to be used if it’s the liquid that’s being used.

Rush3112Premium Student October 5, 2019 at 8:19 am

You are the best in terms of content and teaching methods. best value for the money! I wish you grow fast and quickly add more HSK levels. good luck!

Lili HaoTeacher October 7, 2019 at 12:32 pm

Thank you so much! 谢谢你！We will definitely keep making more HSK levels!

connoryarishPremium Student June 3, 2018 at 12:37 pm

What is the difference between 汉语 and 中文？

PiuPiuPremium Student February 13, 2020 at 12:27 pm

I know it’s late but if I know correctly, 中文 is Chinese language in general , while 汉语 is’ Mandarin Chinese ‘. The difference is subtle.

cashaasdijkStudent April 10, 2020 at 1:52 pm

Well it helped me at least, thx!

RC13Premium Student June 6, 2023 at 4:07 pm

This is just slightly incorrect.

中文 means “Chinese Language.” This term is more in general of the Chinese Languages. As China has many dialects, all dialects can follow under the general term “中文“.

汉语 literally means “Language of the Han”. Directly translates to the language of the Han ethnic group of China. Its more specific than 中文。

普通话 pǔtōnghuà means “Mandarin” or literally “common speech”

Level 1 (HSK 1+): Elementary Chinese