Co-verbs 在/给/跟/用/离 go before the verb
A co-verb (preposition) plus its noun sits BEFORE the main verb, never after it as in English. 在 (zài, at/in a place): 我在图书馆看书。(Wǒ zài túshūguǎn kàn shū.) 给 (gěi, to/for someone): 我给妈妈打电话。(Wǒ gěi māma dǎ diànhuà.) 跟 (gēn, with): 我跟朋友一起去。(Wǒ gēn péngyou yìqǐ qù.) 用 (yòng, with a tool): 我用筷子吃饭。(Wǒ yòng kuàizi chī fàn.) 离 (lí, distance from): 我家离学校很近。(Wǒ jiā lí xuéxiào hěn jìn.) 从……到 (cóng…dào, from…to): 从星期一到星期五. The whole phrase (在图书馆 / 给妈妈) comes before the verb it modifies.
Location: 在 + place + position word 方位词
English puts on / in / under BEFORE the noun; Chinese puts the position word (方位词) AFTER it, inside 在 + place + position word. The commonest: 上 (shàng, on), 下面 (xiàmiàn, under), 里 (lǐ, in), 旁边 (pángbiān, beside), 前面/后面 (qiánmiàn/hòumiàn, in front / behind); the full list is in the note. 书在桌子上。(Shū zài zhuōzi shàng.) 我的手机在书包里。(Wǒ de shǒujī zài shūbāo lǐ.) 学校在医院旁边。(Xuéxiào zài yīyuàn pángbiān.) Do not drop the position word: ✗ 手机在书包 → ✓ 手机在书包里.
The 把 disposal sentence; Higher 被 passive
把 (bǎ) moves a DEFINITE, specific object in front of the verb, then says what happens to it: subject + 把 + object + verb + result/complement. The verb can NOT stand bare -- it needs a result, 了, a direction or a place. 我把作业做完了。(Wǒ bǎ zuòyè zuò wán le.) 他把书放在桌子上。(Tā bǎ shū fàng zài zhuōzi shàng.) HIGHER: the mirror-image 被 (bèi) passive tells the same event from the object side -- 我的自行车被偷了。(Wǒ de zìxíngchē bèi tōu le.)
Drawn from real examiner reports.
Place stuck after the verb (学习在家 ✗)
A word-order calque from English. ✗ 我学习在家 / ✗ 我看电视在家 (place after the verb, as in "study at home") → ✓ 我在家学习。(Wǒ zài jiā xuéxí.) → ✓ 我在家看电视。(Wǒ zài jiā kàn diànshì.) The order is topic – time – place – manner – verb, so the 在 + place phrase belongs BEFORE the verb. Re-read and check any 在/给/跟/用 phrase sits in front of the verb.
(general FL trap)
把 sentence with a bare verb (我把书看 ✗)
A 把 sentence is about DISPOSAL: the object must end up changed, moved or finished, so the verb can not stand alone. ✗ 我把书看 → ✓ 我把书看完了。(Wǒ bǎ shū kàn wán le.) ✗ 我把作业 → ✓ 我把作业做完了。(Wǒ bǎ zuòyè zuò wán le.) ✗ 我把门关 → ✓ 我把门关上。(Wǒ bǎ mén guān shàng.) Add a result (完/好/到), a direction (上/下来), a place (放在桌子上) or at least 了 with a resultative verb.
(general FL trap)
Bare place noun, no position word (在书包 ✗)
A bare place noun is not enough: Chinese needs the position word (方位词) after it. ✗ 我的手机在书包 → ✓ 我的手机在书包里。(Wǒ de shǒujī zài shūbāo lǐ.) — My phone is in the bag. ✗ 书在桌子 → ✓ 书在桌子上。(Shū zài zhuōzi shàng.) ✗ 猫椅子下面 (no 在) → ✓ 猫在椅子下面。(Māo zài yǐzi xiàmiàn.) Exception: place nouns that are already locations (家, 学校, 中国) take no extra word -- 我在家, not 我在家里面.
(general FL trap)
把 needs a SPECIFIC object (not 一本书)
把 fronts a DEFINITE, known object (this book, the homework), never an indefinite one. ✗ 我把一本书买了 → ✓ 我买了一本书。(Wǒ mǎi le yì běn shū.) — a plain sentence, no 把. Use 把 only when the listener already knows which object: ✓ 我把那本书看完了。(Wǒ bǎ nà běn shū kàn wán le.) If the object is new or indefinite, use an ordinary subject + verb + object sentence instead.
(general FL trap)
Higher: 被 passive still needs a result
Like 把, the Higher 被 (bèi) passive can NOT end on a bare verb -- the receiver must end up changed, so keep the result/complement and usually 了. ✗ 我的自行车被偷 → ✓ 我的自行车被偷了。(Wǒ de zìxíngchē bèi tōu le.) — My bike was stolen. ✗ 蛋糕被弟弟吃 → ✓ 蛋糕被弟弟吃完了。(Dàngāo bèi dìdi chī wán le.) — The cake was eaten up by my brother. Pattern: receiver + 被 + (agent) + verb + result + 了.
(general FL trap)
离 (distance) vs 从……到 (route) mixed up
Both involve two places, but are not interchangeable. 离 (lí) states the DISTANCE between two points (near / far): 我家离学校很近。(Wǒ jiā lí xuéxiào hěn jìn.) 从……到 (cóng…dào) marks a ROUTE from a start to an end: 从我家到学校要二十分钟。(Cóng wǒ jiā dào xuéxiào yào èrshí fēnzhōng.) ✗ 从我家离学校 (mixing the two). 离 is not a verb of motion -- it does not mean travel from.
(general FL trap)
把 is not a free reorder; place goes pre-verb
Two misconceptions. First, 把 is NOT a free reorder: it signals DISPOSAL, so the object must be specific and the verb must carry a result. ✗ 我把书看 → ✓ 我把书看完了。You use 把 precisely to say what HAPPENED to a known object. Second, a place phrase does NOT follow the verb as in English: ✗ 我看电视在家 → ✓ 我在家看电视。The 在 + place phrase is an adverbial and must sit BEFORE the verb.
Put every 在/给/跟/用 phrase before the verb
Build the preposition phrase first -- 在 + place, 给 + person, 跟 + person, 用 + tool, 离 + reference, 从……到 -- and put the WHOLE phrase before the verb: 在家看电视, not 看电视在家. When you self-check, find the verb and make sure every 在/给/跟/用 phrase sits just in front of it.
Give every 把 object a result
For a 把 sentence, check the object is SPECIFIC, then give the verb a RESULT: 把 + object + verb + 完/好/上, or + 在 + place + 了. 我把作业做完了 / 请把门关上 / 他把书放在桌子上. A bare 我把书看 or 我把作业 counts as an error -- the object must end up changed.
Location = 在 + place + position word
For any location, use 在 + place noun + a position word: 在桌子上 / 在书包里 / 在医院旁边. Do not drop the position word (✗ 在书包) and do not drop 在 (✗ 猫椅子下面). The one exception is place nouns that are already locations -- 家, 学校, 中国 -- which take 在 alone: 我在家.
Higher: use 被 to stress what happened TO X
To stress what happened TO something rather than who did it, switch to the Higher 被 passive: receiver + 被 + (agent) + verb + result + 了. 蛋糕被弟弟吃完了。(Dàngāo bèi dìdi chī wán le.) It says the same event as 弟弟把蛋糕吃完了 from the object side, and still needs the result.
This grammar topic (Section G, G5) covers three high-frequency structures the exam rewards across all four papers: prepositions / co-verbs (在 / 给 / 跟 / 用 / 离 / 从……到), giving location with 在 + place + a position word (上 / 下 / 里 / 旁边), and the 把 disposal sentence (subject + 把 + object + verb + result). Higher tier adds a light introduction to the 被 passive. The golden rule: a preposition phrase goes before the verb, and a position word goes after the place noun.
A preposition (co-verb) forms a phrase with its noun and sits before the main verb.
| 汉字 | Pinyin | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 在 | zài | at / in (a place) | 我在图书馆看书。(Wǒ zài túshūguǎn kàn shū.) — I read in the library. |
| 给 | gěi | to / for (someone) | 我给妈妈打电话。(Wǒ gěi māma dǎ diànhuà.) — I phone my mum. |
| 跟 | gēn | with (someone) | 我跟朋友一起去。(Wǒ gēn péngyou yìqǐ qù.) — I go with friends. |
| 用 | yòng | using (a tool) | 我用筷子吃饭。(Wǒ yòng kuàizi chī fàn.) — I eat with chopsticks. |
| 离 | lí | (distance) from | 我家离学校很近。(Wǒ jiā lí xuéxiào hěn jìn.) — My home is near the school. |
| 从……到 | cóng…dào | from ... to | 从星期一到星期五 (cóng xīngqīyī dào xīngqīwǔ) — from Monday to Friday. |
Key point: the whole phrase (在图书馆 / 给妈妈 / 跟朋友) comes before the verb — never after it as in English.
Give the meaning of the prepositions 在, 给, 跟 and 用, each with a short example.
用"在……+方位词"各写一个完整、正确的句子，说明下面三样东西在哪儿，并标出拼音：书、猫、超市（可自选方位词，如 上/里/旁边）。
Level-of-response questions with model answers and mark scheme rubrics.
你借了同学小林的一些东西，明天要还给他，可是你明天很早就要出门。请给小林写一个便条（留言），告诉他：（1）你把他的书放在哪儿了；（2）你把他的雨伞放在哪儿了；（3）请他到你家来拿，并说你家离学校很近。请用中文（汉字）书写，约80-90字，用"把"和方位词（上/里/旁边等），注意地点短语要放在动词前面。（8分）
你们学校的中文杂志想请学生写一篇题目为「我住的地方」的文章。请描写：（1）你的房间是什么样子，东西放在哪儿（用方位词：上/里/旁边等）；（2）你家附近有什么，离学校、商店等远还是近（用"离"和"从……到"）；（3）你喜不喜欢住在那里，为什么。请写你自己的情况，用中文（汉字）书写，约130-150字，用连接词（因为……所以、虽然……但是）把内容展开，注意地点短语要放在动词前面。（16分）
这是一段口语角色扮演（Role Play）。情境：你在中国的一家超市买东西。你（考生）扮演顾客，店员扮演超市的工作人员。请你用中文完成下面的任务： （1）说你想买什么（例如：水果和牛奶）； （2）问牛奶在哪儿（用"在哪儿"和方位词）； （3）问从这里到收银台怎么走（用"从……到"和"怎么"）； （4）回答店员问你"还需要别的吗"； （5）礼貌地感谢并结束对话。 请特别注意：第（2）（3）题你必须提问，要用正确的疑问词和方位词，不要在句子后面再加"吗"。（约10分）
