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How to use 了, 的 and 得 in Chinese: the three particles that confuse everyone

Why they confuse so many learners

There are two reasons. First, none of them has a direct equivalent in English: they are not words with a meaning of their own but grammatical "pieces". Second, they sound almost the same: 了 is le, and 的, 地 and 得 are all de, always in the neutral tone. By ear you cannot tell them apart; only context tells you which one it is. When you type with pinyin, your phone offers all three and you have to pick the right one.

This guide covers 了, 的 and 得. The third "de", 地, goes before a verb and turns an adjective into an adverb, much like English "-ly": 慢慢地走 (mànmàn de zǒu, "walk slowly"), 开心地笑 (kāixīn de xiào, "laugh happily"). According to the Chinese Grammar Wiki it is the least common of the three. If you wonder whether Chinese has tenses, read the basic grammar guide first.

了: finished actions and changes of situation

The most common mistake is thinking that 了 is "the past tense". It is not: it marks that something was completed, or that something changed. It has two positions, and each does its own job.

1. After the verb: the action was completed

Structure: subject + verb + 了 (+ quantity + object).

• 我买了一本书。 Wǒ mǎi le yì běn shū. "I bought a book."
• 我今天吃了早饭。 Wǒ jīntiān chī le zǎofàn. "I had breakfast today."
• 我们上周去北京开会了。 Wǒmen shàng zhōu qù Běijīng kāihuì le. "Last week we went to Beijing and had a meeting."

Notice the last example: with several actions in a row you use just one 了, at the end. And because 了 marks completion rather than time, it can also appear in sentences about the future. All of this is on the Chinese Grammar Wiki page about expressing completion with 了.

2. At the end of the sentence: the situation changed

• 下雨了。 Xià yǔ le. "It's raining now" (it wasn't before).
• 他三十岁了。 Tā sānshí suì le. "He's thirty now."
• 我不想去了。 Wǒ bù xiǎng qù le. "I don't want to go anymore" (I did before).

This 了 often translates as "now", "already" or "anymore". According to HSK Lord, it describes a change of situation, not a tense.

When NOT to use 了

• Habits and repeated actions. 我每天喝咖啡。 (Wǒ měi tiān hē kāfēi, "I drink coffee every day"). According to the Chinese Grammar Wiki, 了 is not used with habitual or continuous actions.
• With 是 as a plain statement. 他是老师。 (Tā shì lǎoshī, "he is a teacher"). Nothing is "completed".
• In negation with 没. What did not happen is not marked as completed: 我没买书。 (Wǒ méi mǎi shū, "I didn't buy books"), never 我没买了书. The Chinese Grammar Wiki page on negating past actions explains this.

If it is a change that is being negated, 了 can stay: 我不想去了 ("I don't want to go anymore"). There 不 negates a wish and 了 marks that it changed.

的: links the modifier to the noun

The rule is short: whatever goes before the noun (who owns it, what it is like) is linked to it with 的. It covers English "'s", "of" and possessives, but it is used more widely: it also does the work of putting an adjective or a whole clause before a noun.

When it can be left out

With close relationships (family, close friends, partner) and with institutions you belong to (school, company), Chinese usually drops 的. The Chinese Grammar Wiki gives examples like these, and says that keeping it sounds less natural, as if creating distance:

• 我妈妈很漂亮。 Wǒ māma hěn piàoliang. "My mother is very pretty."
• 我们学校很大。 Wǒmen xuéxiào hěn dà. "Our school is big."
• 他们公司在北京。 Tāmen gōngsī zài Běijīng. "Their company is in Beijing."

With objects there is no exception: 我的手机, not 我手机 in careful writing. And if a noun becomes the centre of a longer phrase, 的 comes back: 他爸爸是我们公司的老板。 ("His father is the boss of our company"; the 的 links our company with boss).

The 是…的 construction

When something already happened and what matters is a detail (when, where, how, who), Chinese puts that detail between 是 and 的:

• 你是什么时候来的？ Nǐ shì shénme shíhou lái de? "When did you arrive?"
• 我是昨天来的。 Wǒ shì zuótiān lái de. "I arrived YESTERDAY."
• 我是坐火车来的。 Wǒ shì zuò huǒchē lái de. "I came BY TRAIN."

Details of the rule, according to the Chinese Grammar Wiki: 是 is almost always optional (but is needed when negating), it is negated with 不是 (我不是昨天来的, Wǒ bú shì zuótiān lái de) and never with 没. This pattern is also not used to say that an action was completed: that is the job of 了. They are not the same: 我昨天来了 reports that you arrived; 我是昨天来的 specifies when.

得: how the action is done

This is the 得 that is read de. It goes after the verb and adds a description of degree or result: verb + 得 + description.

• 他跑得很快。 Tā pǎo de hěn kuài. "He runs very fast."
• 孩子们学得挺快的。 Háizimen xué de tǐng kuài de. "The kids are learning quite quickly."
• 他唱得不好。 Tā chàng de bù hǎo. "He doesn't sing well." (the negation goes in the description, not before the verb)

If the verb has an object, the verb is repeated: the object follows the first verb and the complement follows the second. Or the object is moved to the front.

• 她唱歌唱得很好。 Tā chàng gē chàng de hěn hǎo. "She sings very well."
• 他做饭做得很好吃。 Tā zuò fàn zuò de hěn hǎochī. "His cooking is delicious."
• 她的歌唱得很好。 Tā de gē chàng de hěn hǎo. (object in front, same meaning)

This comes from the Chinese Grammar Wiki page on the degree complement, which marks forms such as 你说中文得很好 as incorrect, because the object and the complement cannot share the same verb.

The other 得: děi, "must"

Read děi (third tone), 得 is an auxiliary verb that goes before the verb: subject + 得 + verb.

• 我们得走了。 Wǒmen děi zǒu le. "We have to go."
• 你得先付钱再进去。 Nǐ děi xiān fù qián zài jìnqù. "You have to pay before going in."

It is more colloquial than 必须. To say "you don't have to", use 不用 (bú yòng), not "不得". To tell them apart, look at the position: 得 after a verb is de; 得 before a verb is děi. More on tones in the tones guide.

Typical mistakes, with the corrected sentence

In 我不是昨天来的, 不 (bù) is said bú before a fourth tone (是). The dictionary shows bù.

Mini quiz (with answers)

Fill in each sentence with 了, 的 or 得 (or "nothing" if none is needed).

1. 我昨天买＿＿一本书。
2. 这是我＿＿手机。
3. 他说＿＿很快。
4. 我＿＿妈妈很高。 (is anything needed?)
5. 太晚了，我＿＿回家了。 (have to)
6. 你是什么时候来＿＿？

Answers. 1. 了 (Wǒ zuótiān mǎi le yì běn shū). 2. 的 (Zhè shì wǒ de shǒujī). 3. 得 (Tā shuō de hěn kuài). 4. nothing: 我妈妈很高 (Wǒ māma hěn gāo). 5. 得, read děi here (Tài wǎn le, wǒ děi huíjiā le). 6. 的 (Nǐ shì shénme shíhou lái de).

How Macalaoshi does it

Macalaoshi is not a grammar course, but it helps with something grammar demands: recognising and writing characters correctly. In writing mode you trace each character stroke by stroke, in the correct order, and what you get wrong comes back so you can review it. For the big picture of grammar, see the basic grammar guide; to organise your first steps, where to start and the 30-day plan.

This guide summarises the basic uses of three particles and does not replace a full grammar. For specific cases, consult the Chinese Grammar Wiki.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between 了, 的 and 得?

They do different jobs: 了 marks that an action is completed or that a situation changed; 的 links a modifier to a noun (my book, pretty clothes); 得 links a verb to a description of how it is done (runs very fast). 得 is also read děi when it means "must".

When do you use 了 in Chinese?

After the verb to say the action was completed (我买了一本书), or at the end of the sentence to say a situation changed (下雨了, "it's raining now"). It is not used with habits or to negate with 没.

When can you leave out 的?

With family, close friends and institutions you belong to: 我妈妈, 我朋友, 我们学校. With objects you keep it: 我的手机.

How do you use 得 after a verb?

Verb + 得 + description: 他跑得很快, "he runs very fast". If the verb has an object, repeat the verb: 她唱歌唱得很好.

Why do 的, 地 and 得 sound the same?

All three are pronounced de in the neutral tone, though they are written differently and do different jobs. 的 goes before nouns, 地 before verbs and 得 after verbs.

What does 是…的 mean?

It is a construction that highlights a detail of something that already happened: when, where, how or with whom. 我是昨天来的 means "I arrived YESTERDAY" (not another day).

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