In Chinese, some verbs are formed by combining two characters, where the second character adds additional information to the main verb. These compound verbs can provide specific details about the action being performed. Below we show you some common examples of compound verbs and how they are used.
吃到 [chīdào] to manage to eat
• Main Verb: 吃 [chī] eat.
• Complement: 到 [dào] arrive, until.
• 吃到 [chīdào] indicates that something has been managed to eat.
| Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Meaning |
| 我吃到了这个菜 | wǒ chīdào le zhège cài | I managed to eat this dish |
听见 [tīngjiàn] to hear
• Main Verb: 听 [tīng] listen.
• Complement: 见 [jiàn] see.
• In this case, 听见 [tīngjiàn] is used to express that something has been heard.
| Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Meaning |
| 我听见了音乐 | wǒ tīngjiàn le yīnyuè | I heard music |
找错 [zhǎocuò] to search wrongly
• Main Verb: 找 [zhǎo] search.
• Complement: 错 [cuò] mistake.
• 找错 [zhǎocuò] is used to indicate that a mistake has been made while searching for something.
| Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Meaning |
| 我找错了文件 | wǒ zhǎocuò le wénjiàn | I searched for the wrong document |
读书 [dúshū] read books
• Main Verb: 读 [dú] read.
• Complement: 书 [shū] book.
• 读书 [dúshū] is used to express the action of reading books.
| Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Meaning |
| 我喜欢读书 | wǒ xǐhuān dúshū | I like to read books |
