I can say what I did yesterday, last week, and last year — and what I didn't do — and ask whether the other person did it.
What's done: the 了 of completion and 没
What's done: the 了 of completion and 没
This lesson is for saying what you did yesterday, last week, last year — and what you didn't. Time words: 昨天, 上个星期, 上个月, 去年; they go at the start of the sentence or right after the subject, not at the end as in English.
了 after a verb means “done”. The pattern: verb + 了 + how many + what: 他上个月看了三个电影。(Tā shàng ge yuè kànle sān gè diànyǐng.) With a bare object and no “how many”, the sentence sounds unfinished, so say 买了两本书 (mǎile liǎng běn shū), 买了很多书 (mǎile hěn duō shū); a place after 去 needs no “how many”: 去了北京 (qùle Běijīng).
If nothing follows the verb, 了 goes at the end: 你吃了吗？(Nǐ chīle ma?) — 吃了。(Chīle.)
“Didn't” is 没 or 没有 + verb, and then no 了: 她没（有）喝。(Tā méi(yǒu) hē.)
不 — “don't, won't”; 没 — “didn't”: 我不喝咖啡。(Wǒ bù hē kāfēi.) 我今天没喝茶。(Wǒ jīntiān méi hē chá.)
了 is not a past tense. English marks every past verb; Chinese doesn't. A past habit takes no 了: 去年他每天六点起床。(Qùnián tā měi tiān liù diǎn qǐchuáng.) A past state (“I was a student”) takes no 了 either.
Common mistakes:
• ×我没去了。(Wǒ méi qù le.) → 我没去。(Wǒ méi qù.)
• ×我昨天不去超市。(Wǒ zuótiān bú qù chāoshì.) → 我昨天没去超市。(Wǒ zuótiān méi qù chāoshì.)
• ×去年我是学生了。(Qùnián wǒ shì xuéshēng le.) → no 了 here: 去年我是学生。(Qùnián wǒ shì xuéshēng.)
The 了 of completion: did, didn't do, asked
After 没（有） the verb no longer takes 了.
| What | How | Example |
|---|---|---|
| when | 昨天 · 上个星期 · 上个月 · 去年 | — |
| did | verb + 了 + how many + what | 他喝了两杯牛奶。(Tā hēle liǎng bēi niúnǎi.) |
| didn't do | 没（有）+ verb, without 了 | 她没（有）喝。(Tā méi(yǒu) hē.) |
| to ask | …了吗？ | 你吃了吗？— 吃了。/ 没吃。(Nǐ chīle ma? — Chīle. / Méi chī.) |
不 or 没
不 — don't, won't; 没 — didn't.
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 不 | don't, won't | 我不喝咖啡。(Wǒ bù hē kāfēi.) |
| 没 | didn't do | 我今天没喝茶。(Wǒ jīntiān méi hē chá.) |
Lesson notes
What's done: the 了 of completion and 没
This lesson is for saying what you did yesterday, last week, last year — and what you didn't. Time words: 昨天, 上个星期, 上个月, 去年; they go at the start of the sentence or right after the subject, not at the end as in English.
了 after a verb means “done”. The pattern: verb + 了 + how many + what: 他上个月看了三个电影。(Tā shàng ge yuè kànle sān gè diànyǐng.) With a bare object and no “how many”, the sentence sounds unfinished, so say 买了两本书 (mǎile liǎng běn shū), 买了很多书 (mǎile hěn duō shū); a place after 去 needs no “how many”: 去了北京 (qùle Běijīng).
If nothing follows the verb, 了 goes at the end: 你吃了吗？(Nǐ chīle ma?) — 吃了。(Chīle.)
“Didn't” is 没 or 没有 + verb, and then no 了: 她没（有）喝。(Tā méi(yǒu) hē.)
不 — “don't, won't”; 没 — “didn't”: 我不喝咖啡。(Wǒ bù hē kāfēi.) 我今天没喝茶。(Wǒ jīntiān méi hē chá.)
了 is not a past tense. English marks every past verb; Chinese doesn't. A past habit takes no 了: 去年他每天六点起床。(Qùnián tā měi tiān liù diǎn qǐchuáng.) A past state (“I was a student”) takes no 了 either.
Common mistakes:
• ×我没去了。(Wǒ méi qù le.) → 我没去。(Wǒ méi qù.)
• ×我昨天不去超市。(Wǒ zuótiān bú qù chāoshì.) → 我昨天没去超市。(Wǒ zuótiān méi qù chāoshì.)
• ×去年我是学生了。(Qùnián wǒ shì xuéshēng le.) → no 了 here: 去年我是学生。(Qùnián wǒ shì xuéshēng.)