Chinese Language Learning Program Lesson 121– Chinese grammar: Chinese adjectives

Chinese Language Learning Program

Lesson 121 –  Chinese grammar: Chinese adjectives

Hello, everyone. Welcome back. This is Baixue’s Chinese Language Learning Program. Last time we talked about Chinese measure words. Today, we will talk about Chinese adjectives.

xíng róng cí

  形     容   词 (adjective)

Learning the Chinese Adjectives is very important because its structure is used in every day conversation. Chinese Adjectives are words that describe or modify another person or thing in the sentence.

1.   Chinese adjectives are used before nouns

Sometimes we add the particle 的 (de) after adjectives to describe the noun, but sometimes we don’t. So you may ask me that if there is a rule for whether or not you should put 的 after an adjective? (This question was asked by Gold the one who is a very wonderful student studying Chinese.)

I will give you some examples:

hóng sè de huā                             dà de fáng zi

   红    色 的   花 (red flower)          大  的   房  子 (big house)

hǎo de gōng zuò                           piào liang de yī fú

  好  的    工     作 (good job)           漂      亮   的 衣 服 (pretty dress)

Sometimes we also say:

hóng huā                              dà fáng zi

   红     花 (red flower)           大   房  子 (big house)

hǎo gōng zuò                       piào liang yī fú

 好     工      作 (good job)       漂     亮   衣 服 (pretty dress)

Some people say that in general, you need to put 的 (de) after a two-syllable adjective, and should not put it after a single-syllable adjective.  But this rule is not 100% right. Even though you can use this “rule” for most situation. This rule is only for “Chinese adjectives are used before nouns”

More example:

hǎo rén                                      xiǎo píng guǒ

  好  人 (good person)                小     苹     果 (small apple)

hēi yǎn jīng                                

 黑   眼   睛 (black eyes)   

If you put adverbs ( 很 (hěn, very); 非常(fēi cháng, extremely, ); etc.) in front of the adjective to emphasis it, the adjective will change into two or more syllables and you should put 的 after it.         

hēi sè de yǎn jīng

黑  色  的  眼    睛 (black eyes)

fēi cháng xiǎo de píng guǒ

 非    常       小  的    苹    果 (very small apple)

hěn hǎo de rén

  很    好  的  人 (very good person)

kě ài de hái zi                           cōng míng de rén

可 爱 的  孩 子 (cute kid)             聪      明    的  人 (smart person)

cōng míng rén                            

   聪      明    人 (smart person)    

hěn cōng míng de rén

  很    聪      明     的  人 (very smart person)

hěn guì de shǒu shì

  很   贵  的    首    饰 (very expensive jewelry)

2.   Chinese adjectives are linked with subjects by degree adverbs

In English, there is usually a copula (be, seem, appear) connecting subjects and predicative adjectives. But in a Chinese sentence, the subjects and predicative adjectives are sometimes linked by some degree adverbs, such as 很 hěn "very," 好 hǎo "highly," 真 zhēn "really," and 非常 fēi cháng "extremely."

In this case, please do not add 的 (de) after the adjectives and the degree adverb hěn often functions as linking adverb and does not necessarily carry any meaning.

For example,

 nǐ de yǎn jīng hěn piào liang

 你 的   眼   睛    很    漂     亮

(Your eyes are beautiful. / You eyes are very beautiful.)

nǐ de yǎn jīng hǎo piào liang

你 的   眼   睛    好    漂     亮

(You eyes are very beautiful.)

nǐ de yǎn jīng zhēn piào liang

你 的   眼   睛    真      漂     亮

(You eyes are very beautiful.)

nǐ de yǎn jīng fēi cháng piào liang

你 的   眼   睛   非     常      漂     亮

(You eyes are extremely beautiful.)

3.   Chinese adjectives are used as predicative adjectives

This sentence structure is :

Noun + 是(shì) + Adj + 的

This sentence structure is used to state or emphasize a fact or a perceived fact.

For example:

tā de jū shì xīn de.

他 的 车  是  新  的。(His car is new.)

wǒ de tóu fǎ shì zōng sè de.

 我  的  头  发 是     棕   色  的。

(My hair is brown.)

nǐ kàn shàng qù guài guài de.

你  看      上     去   怪     怪   的。

(You looks wired.)

Ok, that is all for today.

xiè  xiè!

 谢   谢 ! (Thanks!)

xià  cì  jiàn

 下  次  见!  (See you next time!)