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Mandarin Chinese · HSK 3.0 Band 2 · Chapter 28

你跑得很快 You run really fast

Nǐ pǎo de hěn kuài

Ma Shan and Bai Wen at the park: ball games, running. Vocab: 跑 / 游 / 游泳 / 打球 (ball game) / 篮球 (basketball) / 足球 (soccer) / 运动 (exercise) / 锻炼 (work out). Introduces the state complement: V + 得 + adj (跑得很快 'runs really fast').

Dialogue

你跑得真快 — You run really fast

白文马mǎ山shān, 你nǐ在zài公gōng园yuán跑pǎo得dé真zhēn快kuài! 我wǒ跟gēn不bú上shàng你nǐ. Ma Shan, you run so fast in the park! I can't keep up.
马山我wǒ常cháng常cháng跑pǎo. 你nǐ慢màn慢màn来lái. 一yì天tiān比bǐ一yì天tiān快kuài一yì点diǎn儿ér. I run a lot. Take it slow. Day by day, a bit faster.
白文我wǒ快kuài要yào跑pǎo不bú动dòng了le! 累lèi死sǐ了le. I'm about to give out! Dead tired.
马山休xiū息xi一yí下xià. 喝hē点diǎn水shuǐ. 你nǐ跑pǎo了le多duō久jiǔ? Rest a bit. Drink some water. How long did you run?
白文只zhǐ有yǒu十shí分fēn钟zhōng. 你nǐ呢ne? Only ten minutes. You?
马山半bàn个gè小xiǎo时shí. 慢màn慢màn跑pǎo就jiù好hǎo. Half an hour. Just run slow and steady.

Dialogue

打篮球打得很好 — Plays basketball really well

白文马mǎ山shān, 你nǐ也yě打dǎ篮lán球qiú? Ma Shan, you play basketball too?
马山我wǒ打dǎ篮lán球qiú打dǎ得dé不bú错cuò. 你nǐ打dǎ吗ma? I play basketball pretty well. Do you play?
白文我wǒ不bú太tài会huì篮lán球qiú. 我wǒ喜xǐ欢huan游yóu泳yǒng. I'm not great at basketball. I like swimming.
马山游yóu泳yǒng! 你nǐ游yóu得dé快kuài吗ma? Swimming! Are you fast?
白文不bú太tài快kuài, 但dàn是shì我wǒ游yóu得dé很hěn久jiǔ——可kě以yǐ游yóu一yí个gè小xiǎo时shí. Not very fast, but I swim for a long time — can do an hour.
马山一yí个gè小xiǎo时shí! 真zhēn的de太tài好hǎo了le. An hour! Wow that's great.

Dialogue

运动让我高兴 — Exercise makes me happy

白文今jīn天tiān跑pǎo得dé真zhēn好hǎo. 我wǒ很hěn高gāo兴xìng. Ran really well today. I'm happy.
马山运yùn动dòng就jiù是shì这zhè样yàng. 锻duàn炼liàn以yǐ后hòu, 心xīn情qíng都dōu好hǎo. That's exercise for you. After working out, you feel good.
白文高gāo医yī生shēng说shuō的de没méi错cuò. 运yùn动dòng对duì身shēn体tǐ好hǎo. Dr Lin was right. Exercise is good for the body.
马山是shì的de. 锻duàn炼liàn一yì年nián, 身shēn体tǐ一yí定dìng好hǎo. Yes. Exercise for a year, the body's definitely better.
白文我wǒ也yě要yào这zhè样yàng. 明míng天tiān再zài来lái一yì起qǐ跑pǎo吗ma? I want the same. Want to run together again tomorrow?
马山好hǎo. 明míng天tiān见jiàn. Yes. See you tomorrow.

Vocabulary

得dé: auxiliary state-complement particle (V + 得 + adj)
跑pǎo: verb run (Bk1 ch9 revisit; formal placement)
游yóu: verb swim; travel (short for 游泳)
游yóu泳yǒng: verb swim
打dǎ: verb hit; play (sport) — high-frequency action verb
球qiú: noun ball
篮lán球qiú: noun basketball
足zú球qiú: noun soccer
运yùn动dòng: v./n. exercise; sport
锻duàn炼liàn: verb work out; exercise (formal)
高gāo兴xìng: adjective happy (Level 1 revisit)
累lèi死sǐ了le: expression dead tired (colloquial intensifier)

New characters

死: (in 累死了 = dead tired (colloquial intensifier))
累死了 lèi sǐ le — dead tired (colloquial intensifier)
篮: basket (in 篮球)
篮球 lánqiú — basketball
游yóu: swim; travel
游泳 yóu yǒng — swim旅游 lǚyóu — tourism; sightseeing游戏 yóuxì — game
泳: (in 游泳 = swim)
游泳 yóu yǒng — swim
运: (in 运动 = exercise; sport)
运动 yùndòng — exercise; sport
锻: forge; temper (in 锻炼)
锻炼 duànliàn — work out; exercise (formal)
炼: refine; temper (in 锻炼)
锻炼 duànliàn — work out; exercise (formal)
情: feeling (in 热情) (recall Bk2)
热情 rèqíng — warm; enthusiastic
足: foot (semantic radical, introduced)
足球 zúqiú — soccer

Hanzi — writing & recognition

得

de / dé / děi (de) state-complement particle; (dé) get/obtain; (děi) must Writing

11 strokes left-right radical 彳

跑

pǎo run (Bk1 ch9 revisit; formal placement) Writing

12 strokes left-right radical 足

游

yóu swim; travel Writing

12 strokes left-right radical 氵

Phono-semantic compound: 氵 (water radical) + 斿 (yóu, phonetic). Original sense: "moving through water = swim." Extended: "travel" (游 in 旅游 — Level 3). Modern: 游泳 (swim, this chapter), 游 also means tour. Continues the 氵 cluster.

动

dòng move (in 运动) Writing

6 strokes left-right radical 力

Phono-semantic compound: 云 (yún, phonetic / partial semantic — also "cloud, motion") + 力 (strength radical, on right). Original sense: "applying force = move." Anchors 运动 (sport / exercise, this chapter). The 力 (strength) radical heads action / power characters.

球

qiú ball Writing

11 strokes left-right radical 王

Phono-semantic compound: 王 (jade radical, the left form of 玉) + 求 (qiú, phonetic). Original sense: "a round jade stone = ball." Modern: ball — anchors 篮球 (basketball), 足球 (soccer), 球 itself (ball / sphere).

打

dǎ hit; play (Level 1 revisit) Recognition

5 strokes left-right radical 扌

篮

lán basket (in 篮球) Recognition

16 strokes top-bottom radical 竹

足

zú foot (Level 1 revisit; the radical itself) Recognition

7 strokes standalone

锻

duàn forge; temper (in 锻炼) Recognition

14 strokes left-right radical 钅

炼

liàn refine; temper (in 锻炼) Recognition

9 strokes left-right radical 火

Grammar

State complement — V + 得 + adj (how the action is done)

Explanation

Mandarin uses a 'state complement' to describe HOW an action is performed: Subject + V + 得 + adj. Example: 他跑得很快 ('he runs very fast'). 王月唱歌唱得很好 ('Wang Yue sings very well'). The adj usually takes a degree adverb (很 / 不 / 真). KEY SYNTAX: (1) No object: V + 得 + adj (跑得很快). (2) WITH object: Subject + V + O + V + 得 + adj — repeat the verb. 他打篮球打得很好 ('he plays basketball very well'). NOT *他打得篮球很好 (wrong word order). (3) Negation goes BEFORE the adj, not before V: 跑得不快 (correct), NOT *不跑得快. CRITICAL: 得 has two uses with two readings: (a) de (light) — state complement (this chapter). (b) děi (full 3rd) — modal 'must' (我得走 = 'I must go'). Same character, different role.

Examples

马山跑得很快. Ma Shan runs very fast.
白文打篮球打得不错. Bai Wen plays basketball pretty well.
我游泳游得不太好. I don't swim very well.
他唱得真好听. He sings really well.

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