HSK 1 Grammar

小 can form a familiar name or a smaller item; 第 before a number forms an ordinal.

们 marks a plural group of people; 边 helps form location words such as 里边 and 外边.

Location nouns follow another noun or stand after 在 to show position.

Modal verbs come before the main verb to express ability, possibility, intention or need.

A separable verb behaves like a verb-object phrase, so time or quantity can appear between its parts.

Interrogative pronouns replace the missing information in a question and normally stay in the answer position.

Personal pronouns identify the speaker, listener or another person; 们 forms common plurals.

Demonstratives point to people, objects or places. A measure word often follows 这 or 那 before a noun.

Numbers normally come before a measure word and noun. 两 is common before measure words.

A nominal measure word connects a number or demonstrative with a noun.

Time measure words express age, dates, clock time and duration.

Degree adverbs come before an adjective or stative verb to adjust intensity.

都 means all or both and normally appears before the predicate.

在 or 正在 before a verb marks an action that is happening now.

再 describes an action that will happen again or later.

也 adds another similar fact; 还 can add another item or continuing situation.

不 negates habits or present/future actions; 没有 commonly negates possession or completed events; 不要 gives a negative command.

The preposition 在 introduces the time or place where an action happens.

对 introduces the person affected by speech or an attitude; 和 can introduce a person who joins an action.

The conjunction 和 joins nouns or noun phrases.

The structural particle 的 links a modifier or possessor to a noun and can replace an understood noun.

The aspect particle 了 after a verb marks a completed action in the current context.

Sentence-final particles shape a question, suggestion, continuation or new situation.

喂 is used to get attention, especially when answering or starting a phone call.

Basic phrases combine words through coordination, modification, verb-object or subject-predicate relationships.

Quantity, prepositional and location phrases act as complete units inside a sentence.

The subject names the person or thing being described or performing the action.

The predicate gives the action, identity, number or description of the subject.

The object follows a transitive verb and receives or completes its meaning.

An attributive modifies a noun and often connects to it with 的.

An adverbial gives time, place, manner or degree and normally appears before the predicate.

A verbal measure complement states how many times an action happens.

A simple sentence can use a verb, adjective, noun or short phrase as its predicate.

Level 1 includes statements, several question forms, commands and exclamations.

A 是 sentence identifies or classifies the subject as a person or thing.

A 有 sentence expresses possession or a family/personal relationship.

An existential sentence states what is located or exists at a place.

A serial-verb sentence places two actions together when one leads to or provides the purpose of the other.

A double-object sentence places the recipient before the thing being given, taught or told.

Two related clauses can be joined by meaning, often using 也 or 还 in the second clause.

Completed aspect uses verb + 了 to present an action as completed.

Sentence-final 了 marks a new state or a change from the previous situation.

The progressive uses 在 or 正在 before the verb, sometimes with 呢 at the end.

Money uses a number plus 元 or 块; ordinals use 第 before a number.

Chinese dates and clock times normally move from larger units to smaller units.