Why Are Chinese Separable Verbs Important?
One of the key reasons is that among the 1,000 commonly used verbs in Modern Chinese, a whopping 685 of them are separable verbs. You’ll frequently come across them, especially in basic words like 睡觉 (to sleep), 吃饭 (to eat), and 看书 (to read), when learning Chinese. Knowing which verbs are separable helps you put together sentences accurately and create grammatically correct structures or the ability to add details more easily. Moreover, it allows you to easily identify the verb and its corresponding object, making it easier to understand the meaning of the sentence.
I know 685 might seem like a lot, but by learning the patterns of separable verbs, you’ll gain the ability to understand and use a wide range of verb-object combinations, which will help you expand your vocabulary rapidly.
What Are Chinese Separable Verbs
Chinese separable verbs, also known as “separable compound verbs” or “verb-object compounds”, are a linguistic structure found in the Chinese language. In Chinese, verbs are often combined with specific objects to create compound verbs that express a particular action or meaning.
看看 + 書书 = 看書看书
read + book = read books
聽听 + 音樂音乐 = 聽音樂听音乐
listen + music = listen to music
喝喝 + 咖啡咖啡 = 喝咖啡喝咖啡
drink + coffee = drink coffee
How Do Chinese Separable Verbs Work?
These compound verbs are considered “separable” because additional words or phrases can be inserted between the verb and the object without altering the original meaning while providing additional details.
Verb + Details + Object
- Details 1: Aspect markers, such as 了 le, guò, zhe to showing the action states.
唱唱 + 了了 + 歌歌 = 唱了歌唱了歌
sing + action complete + song = sang songs
看看 + 著着 + 書书 = 看著書看着书
read + continued action or state + book = reading books
- Details 2: Duration or quantity
喝喝 + 一杯一杯 + 咖啡咖啡 = 喝一杯咖啡喝一杯咖啡
drink + a cup + coffee = drink a cup of coffee
聽听 + 一下一下 + 音樂音乐 = 聽一下音樂听一下音乐
listen to + a short while + music = listen to music for a short while
- Details 3: An adjective
看看 + 漫畫漫画 + 書书 = 看漫畫書看漫画书
read + comic + book = read comic books
聽听 + 日本日本 + 音樂音乐 = 聽日本音樂听日本音乐
listen + Japan + music = listen to Japanese music
喝喝 + 很貴的很贵的 +咖啡咖啡 = 喝很貴的咖啡喝很贵的咖啡
drink + expensive + coffee = drink expensive coffee
Verb And VO Structure Are The Same?
The short answer is no. Let me show you some special cases of Chinese separable verbs first.
吃吃 + 飯饭 = 吃飯吃饭
eat + rice = eat
跑跑 + 步步 = 跑步跑步
run + steps = run
睡睡 + 覺觉 = 睡覺睡觉
sleep + sleeping = sleep
Weird, right? If the first verb can express the action, why do we add the object? And does adding the object share the exact meaning as the original verb? Before we talk about it, we need to understand the difference between verbs and the Verb Object (VO) Structure.
What is a “Verb” in Chinese
A verb is used to describe an action or motion that occurs at a certain time or in a certain way. For example, 跑 pǎo (run), 吃 chī (eat), 游 yóu (swim), and 睡 shuì (sleep). With these verbs, we always follow them with complements (such as describing how it was, how long, how many, etc.) to provide additional description of the action itself. Let’s take the verbs 跑 pǎo and 跑步 pǎobù as examples to understand their differences.
- 跑 pǎo (run) as a verb is always accompanied by a complement to provide additional information about how the action is performed or the manner in which it is carried out.
他跑得很快他跑得很快
He runs very fast.
她跑了25分鐘她跑了25分钟
She ran for 25 minutes.
她跑走她跑走
She runs away.
我跑去公園我跑去公园
I run to the park.
他每天早上跑他每天早上跑 ❌
He runs every morning.
(There’s no following complement of how the action happens, so it is an incomplete sentence in Chinese.)
What is a “Verb Object Structure”
Verbs in Chinese must always be followed by extra description. But what if there’s no complement for the verb? In this situation, we use the Verb-Object (VO) structure. The Verb-Object structure is when a verb is combined with its associated noun to transform the verb into an activity or process. Taking our example of 跑 pǎo and the noun 步 bù, which means “step,” when they are combined, they form the verb 跑步 pǎobù, which translates to “to run steps.” This specifically refers to the process of “running” or jogging for exercise or recreational purposes.
- 跑步 pǎobù (running) is a noun (running – activity) and a verb-object compound.
我去公園跑步我去公园跑步
I go running (jogging) in the park.
我非常不喜歡跑步我非常不喜欢跑步
I really don’t like running. (jogging)
她每天早上跑步她每天早上跑步
She runs every morning.
In these previous examples, there are no complements following the verb 跑 pǎo, so we have to use the VO structure 跑步 pǎobù; otherwise, the sentence would be incomplete.
我跑步20分鐘我跑步20分钟 ❌
I ran for 20 minutes.
(VO structures cannot be followed with complements like this.)
我跑步跑了20分鐘我跑步跑了20分钟 ✅
I ran for 20 minutes.
(If you want to talking about how long did you do this ‘action’, repeating verb can solve this problem.)
Let me give you more examples
Sleep: 睡 shuì – 睡觉 shuìjiào
Similarly to the previous example, 睡 shuì and 睡觉 shuìjiào in Chinese also demonstrate a similar relationship.
- 睡 shuì: This verb means “to sleep” in English. It refers to the state of being asleep or resting. Like “跑,” it can be used independently as a verb without the need for an accompanying noun, but it needs a complement. For example:
我晚上睡得很好我晚上睡得很好
I sleep well at night.
她睡得太久了她睡得太久了
She’s been sleeping too long.
- 睡觉 shuìjiào: This VO structure consists of the verb 睡 shuì and the noun 觉 jiào, which means “sleeping.” Together, they form the VO 睡觉 shuìjiào, which literally translates to “sleep sleeping.” It specifically refers to the activity of sleeping, and it does not need a complement. For example:
你昨天幾點睡覺？你昨天几点睡觉？
What time did you go to sleep yesterday?
我上課常常睡覺我上课常常睡觉
I often sleep in class.
Eat: 吃 chī – 吃饭 chīfàn
The verbs 吃 chī and 吃饭 chīfàn in Chinese also demonstrate a similar relationship.
- 吃 chī: This verb means “to eat” in English. It is a general term used to describe the action of consuming food. Iit can be used independently as a verb without the need for an accompanying noun, but it needs a complement. For example:
他吃得很快他吃得很快
He eats quickly.
他吃飽了他吃饱了
He is full. (Lit. “He eats and is full.”)
- 吃饭 chīfàn: This VO structure consists of the verb 吃 chī and the noun 饭 fàn, which literally means “rice” or “meal.” Together, they form the VO 吃饭 chīfàn, which specifically refers to the act of having a meal or eating rice. However, in general usage, it can refer to having any type of meal, not just rice. For example:
我們一起去吃飯吧我们一起去吃饭吧
Let’s have a meal together.
你吃飯了嗎？你吃饭了吗？
Have you had your meal? (Have you eaten?)
Can I Changing The Object?
Yes! Since the verb and the object can be separated, it is also possible to replace the object with a more detailed one. For example:
吃飯吃饭: Eating (It is a general activity, and we don’t have a specific idea of what kind of food.)
吃牛肉麵吃牛肉面: “Eating beef noodle soup” (Very specific object shows what we eat.)
見面见面: meeting someone
見朋友见朋友: meeting friends
我見面朋友我见面朋友 ❌
(Double object is not necessary.)
教書教书: teaching
教中文教中文: teaching Chinese
我教書中文我教书中文 ❌
(Double object is not necessary.)
Do All Verbs use the VO Structure?
The answer is no. About 10% of verbs in Chinese cannot take an object. Also, there are some verbs that consist of two characters but still function as a single verb rather than a verb and object. For example:
- Verbs cannot taken an object:
畢業、進步、笑、哭、遲到…etc.毕业，进步，笑，哭，迟到…etc.
to graduate, to improve, to laugh, to cry, to be late…etc.
我大學畢業了我大学毕业了
I have graduated from college.
你的中文進步很多你的中文进步很多
Your Chinese has improved a lot.
你遲到了很久你迟到了很久
You have been late for a long time.
- Verbs consist of two characters:
休息、討論、練習、喜歡、討厭…etc.休息，讨论，练习，喜欢，讨厌…etc.
to rest, to discuss, to practice, to like, to hate…etc.
你想討論這件事嗎？你想讨论这件事吗？
Do you want to discuss this matter?
請回家練習中文请回家练习中文
Please go home and practice Chinese.
我討厭你我讨厌你
I hate you.
