▎Multiple Verb Phrases

 

Function If there are more than one verb phrase in a sentence, the order of the verb phrases reflects the temporal order in which the actions take place. This construction is called Serial Verbs in linguistics.

1 我帶你們去你們的座位吧！

Wǒ dài nǐmen qù nǐmen de zuòwèi ba!

Let me take you to your seats.

2 他送美美回宿舍。

Tā sòng Měiměi huí sùshè.

He escorted Meimei to back to her dorm.

3 我跟弟弟去機場接朋友。

Wǒ gēn dìdi qù jīchǎng jiē péngyǒu.

My brother and I went to the airport to pick up a friend.

 

Structures The meaning of the sentence changes as the order of the verb phrases changes. Compare the following sentences. However, only a handful of verbs can do this.

1 a. 我們送朋友去機場。

Wǒmen sòng péngyǒu qù jīchǎng.

We took our friends to the airport.

b. 我們去機場送朋友。

Wǒmen qù jīchǎng sòng péngyǒu.

We went to the airport to see our friends off.

2 a. 他們坐巴士到台北。

Tāmen zuò bāshì dào Táiběi.

They took a bus to Taipei.

b. 他們到台北坐巴士。

Tāmen dào Táiběi zuò bāshì.

They went to Taipei to catch the bus.

3 a. 小明送爸爸去高鐵站。

Xiǎomíng sòng bàba qù gāotiě zhàn.

Xiaoming took his father to the HSR Station.

b. 小明去高鐵站送爸爸。

Xiǎomíng qù gāotiě zhàn sòng bàba.

Xiaoming went to the HSR Station to see his father off.

Negation：The negation occurs before the first verb.

1 我還有事。我不送她回家了。

Wǒ hái yǒu shì. Wǒ bú sòng tā huíjiā le.

I still have something to do, so I won’t be taking her back (to her) home.

2 他沒送我去郵局。我是自己去的。

Tā méi sòng wǒ qù yóujú. Wǒ shì zìjǐ qù de.

He didn’t take me to the post office, I went there by myself.

3 我自己去機場比較方便。你別送我了。

Wǒ zìjǐ qù jīchǎng bǐjiào fāngbiàn. Nǐ bié sòng wǒ le.

It would be easier for me to go to the airport on my own. You don’t need to take me there.

Questions：The A-not-A pattern applies only to the first verb. 是不是 pattern can also be used.

1 你去不去圖書館看一下書？

Nǐ qù bú qù túshūguǎn kàn yíxià shū?

Are you going to the library to study for a bit?

2 你是不是搭捷運去山上喝茶？

Nǐ shìbúshì dā jiéyùn qù shān shàng hē chá?

Are you taking the MRT to the top of the moutain and have some tea?

3 王老師明天帶不帶我們去看電腦展？

Wáng lǎoshī míngtiān dài bú dài wǒmen qù kàn diànnǎo zhǎn?

Will Teacher Wang take us to see the computer exhibition tomorrow?

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