了 | Grammar | lingaku

Structure

[subject] + [verb] + 了 + [quantified object] [subject] + [verb] + 了 + [object]，[second clause] [subject] + 没(有) + [verb]

Description

了 straight after a verb says the action was completed. It is an aspect marker, not a past tense, and the difference matters in both directions.

。

I ate two bowls of rice.

。

He bought a piece of clothing.

It is not a past tense

A past event with no sense of completion takes no 了. Habits, states and descriptions of how things were all go bare.

。

I lived in London as a child.

。

The weather was good yesterday.

是 and adjectival predicates never take this 了. A 了 at the end of them reports a change, which is the other, sentence-final 了.

× 昨天天气很好了 → 昨天天气很好
× 以前他是老师了 → 以前他是老师

It also works forwards. 了 can mark completion in the future, before anything has happened:

。

I'll go once I've eaten.

The object usually needs something on it

A bare verb + 了 + bare object sounds unfinished. 我买了书 leaves the listener waiting. Give the object a number, a measure word or a modifier, or follow it with a second clause.

。

I bought a book.

。

I bought the book and went home.

Negation removes the 了

没 and the verbal 了 can't both appear.

。

I've eaten.

。

I haven't eaten.

× 我没吃了 → 我没吃

Questions

Add 吗, or put 没有 at the end.

？

Have you eaten?

？

Have you finished the homework?

Examples

。

I ate two bowls of rice.

。

He bought a piece of clothing.

。

I read three books.

。

She drank a lot of tea yesterday.

。

We waited half an hour.

。

I'll come and find you once I've eaten.

。

He didn't come.

。

I didn't see that film.

？

Have you eaten?

？

Have you finished your homework?

。

I bought a phone yesterday.

。

The teacher asked me three questions.

References

Expressing completion with "le"resources.allsetlearning.com