Existential sentences tell you what or who is in a place: “There’s a police officer at the door,” “There’s a painting on the wall.” In Chinese, they start with the place, then a posture verb with 著 zhe着 zhe or 了 le, then the person or thing.
一 Posture Verbs (and Friends)
Posture verbs describe someone’s or something’s physical position:
坐 zuòsit站 zhànstand躺 tǎnglie down蹲 dūnsquat
Many other verbs that describe how something is placed or arrives also work in this pattern:
著 zhe着 zhe shows a continuing state: someone or something is in that position right now and stays that way.
門口门口站著着一位警察
There’s a police officer standing at the door.
地上地上躺著着一隻只狗
There’s a dog lying on the ground.
白板上上寫写著着今天的作業作业
Today’s homework is written on the whiteboard.
桌子上上放著着一本書书
There’s a book on the table.
牆墙上上掛挂著着一幅畫画
There’s a painting hanging on the wall.
三 Place + V了 + Noun
Place + Verb + 了 + (Number + MW) + Noun
了 le focuses on the action or change that happened: someone came and stood there, something got hung up. It may or may not still be that way.
門口门口站了一位警察
A police officer came and stood at the door.
地上地上躺了一隻只狗
A dog lay down on the ground.
白板上上寫写了一句話话
Someone wrote a sentence on the whiteboard.
牆墙上上掛挂了一幅新畫画
A new painting has been hung on the wall.
桌子上上放了一杯水
Someone put a glass of water on the table.
四著着 vs. 了
著着 · how it is now
牆墙上上掛挂著着一幅畫画
There’s a painting on the wall. (Describing the scene.)
了 · what happened
牆墙上上掛挂了一幅新畫画
A new painting has been hung on the wall. (Something changed.)
Something newThe thing that appears is usually new information, so it’s often introduced with a number and measure word: 一位警察 yí wèi jǐngchá, 一隻狗 yì zhī gǒu一只狗 yì zhī gǒu, 一幅畫 yì fú huà一幅画 yì fú huà.
五 Common Mistakes
❌ 一位警察站著着門口门口
✅ 門口门口站著着一位警察
In an existential sentence, the place comes first.
❌ 在門口门口站著着一位警察
✅ 門口门口站著着一位警察
Don’t start with 在 zài. The place itself is the topic of the sentence.
❌ 門口门口站著着那位警察
✅ 門口门口站著着一位警察
Existential sentences introduce something new, so use “a / one,” not “that.” To talk about a known person, say 那位警察站在門口门口.
六 Practice
Tap the words below in the right order to build the sentence, then check your answer. If it’s wrong, you can try again as many times as you like, or hit “Show answer” if you get stuck. Careful: some tiles are traps and are not needed!
Question 1 of 10
“There’s a cat sleeping on the sofa.”
Tap words below to build the sentence
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沙發沙发上上睡著着一隻只貓猫
Place first, then V著着. 🐈
“Someone is standing at the door.”
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門口门口站著着一個个人
Place + V著着 + someone new.
“There’s a map hanging on the wall.”
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牆墙上上掛挂著着一張张地圖地图
Something new → “a map,” not “that map.”
“There’s a cup of coffee on the table.”
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桌上上放著着一杯咖啡
Place + 放著 fàngzhe放着 fàngzhe + thing.
“Someone wrote a character on the blackboard.”
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黑板上上寫写了一個个字
Something happened → 了 le.
“There are lots of students sitting in the classroom.”
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教室裡里坐著着很多學生学生
Place + V著着 + people.
“An old gentleman has moved in next door.”
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隔壁搬來来了一位老先生老先生
Someone new arrived → V來来 + 了.
“There’s a note stuck on the fridge.”
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冰箱上上貼贴著着一張张紙條纸条
貼著 tiēzhe贴着 tiēzhe is great for notes and posters.
