得
de
Structural particle, indicates manner or result of an action
How to say “can” or “can’t” with 得 and 不 in Chinese
Verb + 得 (de) / 不 (bù) + Result Complement
得 (dé) / 不 (bù) — potential complements
HSK 5Complements
Verb + 得 (de) / 不 (bù) + Result Complement
HSK 5Complements得 (dé) / 不 (bù) — potential complements
Rule structure
Potential complements indicate whether an action is possible or not. Advanced usage includes idiomatic combinations, such as 吃不完 (chī bù wán) and 赶得上 (gǎn de shàng), as well as metaphorical meanings.
Rule structure
Potential complements indicate whether an action is possible or not. Advanced usage includes idiomatic combinations, such as 吃不完 (chī bù wán) and 赶得上 (gǎn de shàng), as well as metaphorical meanings.
Examples
这么多菜，我一个人吃不完。
Zhème duō cài, wǒ yī gè rén chī bù wán.
So many dishes, I can’t finish them all by myself.
Examples
这么多菜，我一个人吃不完。
Zhème duō cài, wǒ yī gè rén chī bù wán.
So many dishes, I can’t finish them all by myself.
Practice
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Frequently asked questions
How do you say “potential complements” in Chinese with 得 / 不?
Use the structure: Verb + 得 (de) / 不 (bù) + Result Complement. For example: 这么多菜，我一个人吃不完。 — “So many dishes, I can’t finish them all by myself”.
What is an example sentence with this grammar rule?
这么多菜，我一个人吃不完。 — “So many dishes, I can’t finish them all by myself”.
Which HSK level includes this grammar rule?
This grammar rule is part of HSK 5.
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More HSK 5 grammar rules
坏了 — extremely, awfully
Verb / Adj. + 坏了 (huàile)
来 vs 去 — verbing around
Verb 1 + 来 (lái) + Verb 1 + 去 (qù)
住, 开, 出来 — result complements
Verb + 住 (zhù) / 开 (kāi) / 出 (chū)(来 (lái))
得 — advanced degree complements
Adj. + 得 (de) + 很 (hěn) / 不得了 (bù de le) / 要命 (yàomìng) / 不行 (bùxíng)
到 — tricky uses of 到
Verb + 到 (dào)
着 — result of an action
Verb + 着 (zháo)
了 — completed action with complement
Verb + Complement + 了 (le) + (Obj.)
万一 — what if
万一 (wànyī) + (Undesirable) Condition + 怎么办 (zěnme bàn)？