▎為了, wèile, (Prep), in order to

 

Function The preposition 為了 refers to ‘in order to, for the purpose of’.

1 為了保護環境，大家都應該做垃圾分類。

Wèile bǎohù huánjìng, dàjiā dōu yīnggāi zuò lèsè fēnlèi.

To protect the environment, everyone should separate their garbage.

2 為了去吃喜酒，美美買了一件新衣服。

Wèile qù chī xǐjiǔ, Měiměi mǎile yí jiàn xīn yīfú.

Gao Meimei bought a new dress for the wedding reception.

3 為了早一點回到家，還是坐捷運吧！

Wèile zǎo yìdiǎn huí dào jiā, háishì zuò jiéyùn ba!

Let’s take the MRT, so that we get home a little earlier.

 

Structures The object of 為了 can be either a noun phrase or a verb phrase.

1 他為了父母，買了飛機票回去看他們。

Tā wèile fùmǔ, mǎile fēijī piào huíqù kàn tāmen.

He bought air tickets to go see his parents.

2 小明為了搬到便宜的套房去，花了很多時間找房子。

Xiǎomíng wèile bān dào piányí de tàofáng qù, huāle hěn duō shíjiān zhǎo fángzi.

Xiaoming spent a lot of time looking at apartments in order to move into a cheap studio.

Negation：別 or 不是 negation can be used.

1 別只為了錢去打工。

Bié zhǐ wèile qián qù dǎgōng.

Don’t work just for the money.

2 他不是為了錢回收汽水罐，是為了保護環境。

Tā búshì wèile qián huíshōu qìshuǐguàn, shì wèile bǎohù huánjìng.

He doesn’t recycle soda cans for the money, but to protect the environment.

3 你們別為了去旅行就不工作了。

Nǐmen bié wèile qù lǚxíng jiù bù gōngzuò le.

Don’t put off work just so you can travel.

Questions：

1 你是不是為了跟同學討論功課，所以晚上沒回家吃飯？

Nǐ shìbúshì wèile gēn tóngxué tǎolùn gōngkè, suǒyǐ wǎnshàng méi huíjiā chīfàn?

Did you not come home for dinner because you were discussing homework with your classmates?

2 他為了什麼到台灣來？

Tā wèile shénme dào Táiwān lái?

For what purpose did he come to Taiwan?

3 你是不是為了幫女朋友照相，所以買了新的照相機？

Nǐ shìbúshì wèile bāng nǚpéngyǒu zhàoxiàng, suǒyǐ mǎile xīn de zhàoxiàngjī?

Did you buy a new camera so you could take pictures of your girlfriend?

 

Usage 為了 is one lexical item, not 為＋了. 為了 can be variously translated into English depending on contexts. Extra caution is recommended.