Traditional Chinese 了 (Le): Finished Actions Vs Sentence-Ending 了
Subtitle: Two “le” particles, two jobs — 完成了 (wánchéng le) “completed” vs 變了 (biàn le) “changed.”
Topic Name (中文): 了 (le) 用法：動作完成 vs 句末變化
了 (le) yòngfǎ: dòngzuò wánchéng vs jùmò biànhuà
If 了 (le) makes you feel like Chinese is trolling you… it kind of is. The good news: there are two super common “roles” for 了, and once you learn the difference, most sentences stop feeling random.
You’ll learn (1) action-completion 了 (after a verb) and (2) sentence-ending 了 (new situation / change of state). You’ll also get clean patterns, real-life lines, and quick practice.
Yak Box: 了 (le) is not “past tense.” If you treat it like English -ed, Chinese will politely laugh at you. 了 is about completion and/or change, not “yesterday.”
The Two Most Common 了’s
1) Verb + 了 (Action Completed)
Pattern: 動詞 + 了
dòngcí + le
Meaning: The action is done / completed (regardless of “when” in English).
Example:
我買了咖啡。
Wǒ mǎi le kāfēi.
I bought coffee.
2) … 了 (Sentence-Ending Change)
Pattern: 句子 + 了
jùzi + le
Meaning: New situation / change of state (“now it’s like this”).
Example:
下雨了。
Xià yǔ le.
It’s raining now.
How To Feel The Difference
Quick Test:
- Verb + 了 answers: “Did the action happen (get completed)?”
- Sentence-ending 了 answers: “What’s different now?” / “What’s the new status?”
Mini Pair:
他吃了飯。
Tā chī le fàn.
He ate (the action is done).
他吃飯了。
Tā chīfàn le.
He’s eaten / he’s going to eat now (the situation has changed: “now he’s in the eating situation”).
Core Patterns You’ll Use Daily
| Pattern | Meaning | Example (中文) | Example (Pinyin) | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| V + 了 + O | Completed action | 我看了電影。 | Wǒ kàn le diànyǐng. | I watched a movie. |
| … + 了 | Change / new state | 太晚了。 | Tài wǎn le. | It’s too late now. |
| 快/要 + V + 了 | About to happen | 我要走了。 | Wǒ yào zǒu le. | I’m about to leave. |
| 不 + V + 了 | Not anymore / stopping | 我不喝了。 | Wǒ bù hē le. | I’m not drinking anymore. |
| 已經 + … + 了 | Already (status is now true) | 我已經到了。 | Wǒ yǐjīng dào le. | I’ve already arrived. |
| V + 了 + 時間/次數 | Did it for (duration) / (times) | 我等了三十分鐘。 | Wǒ děng le sānshí fēnzhōng. | I waited 30 minutes. |
Useful Phrases With Real-Life Sentences
Each line gives you the Hanzi + pinyin + meaning, then a real sentence you can steal.
1) 吃了 (chī le) — ate / have eaten
我吃了。
Wǒ chī le.
I ate / I’ve eaten.
2) 做完了 (zuò wán le) — finished (doing)
我做完了作業。
Wǒ zuòwán le zuòyè.
I finished my homework.
3) 看到了 (kàn dào le) — saw / noticed
我看到了你。
Wǒ kàn dào le nǐ.
I saw you.
4) 到了 (dào le) — arrived / reached (and now here)
我們到了。
Wǒmen dào le.
We’ve arrived.
5) 忘了 (wàng le) — forgot (oops)
我忘了帶雨傘。
Wǒ wàng le dài yǔsǎn.
I forgot to bring an umbrella.
6) 下雨了 (xià yǔ le) — it’s raining now
下雨了，我們進去吧。
Xià yǔ le, wǒmen jìnqù ba.
It’s raining—let’s go inside.
7) 太貴了 (tài guì le) — too expensive (now / wow)
這個太貴了。
Zhège tài guì le.
This is too expensive.
8) 變了 (biàn le) — changed
計畫變了。
Jìhuà biàn le.
The plan changed.
9) 可以了 (kěyǐ le) — that’s enough / okay now
好了，可以了。
Hǎo le, kěyǐ le.
Alright, that’s enough.
10) 不要了 (bú yào le) — don’t want it anymore
這個我不要了。
Zhège wǒ bú yào le.
I don’t want this anymore.
The Tricky “Both 了” Case
Sometimes you’ll see two 了. It’s not a typo. It can mean: the action is completed and the new situation is now true.
Example:
我吃了飯了。
Wǒ chī le fàn le.
I’ve eaten (so that’s settled now).
Natural alternative (very common):
我吃過飯了。
Wǒ chī guò fàn le.
I’ve eaten before / I’ve already eaten (status: not hungry / don’t need food now).
Negatives: Where 了 Usually Disappears
Completed Action (Negative)
Pattern: 沒(有) + V (+ O)
méi (yǒu) + V (+ O)
Example:
我沒吃飯。
Wǒ méi chīfàn.
I didn’t eat.
Common wrong idea: 我沒吃了飯 ❌
(Don’t do this.)
“Not Yet” (Still Waiting For Change)
Pattern: 還沒(有) + V + 呢
hái méi (yǒu) + V + ne
Example:
我還沒吃飯呢。
Wǒ hái méi chīfàn ne.
I haven’t eaten yet.
Extra useful:
還沒好。
Hái méi hǎo.
Not ready yet.
Tables Of Words And Patterns
Group A: Verb + 了 (Completion)
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Meaning | Example (ZH) | Example (Pinyin) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 買了 | mǎi le | bought | 我買了兩杯。 | Wǒ mǎi le liǎng bēi. | I bought two cups. |
| 點了 | diǎn le | ordered | 我點了牛肉麵。 | Wǒ diǎn le niúròumiàn. | I ordered beef noodles. |
| 學了 | xué le | studied / learned | 我學了三個字。 | Wǒ xué le sān ge zì. | I learned three characters. |
| 看了 | kàn le | watched / read | 我看了你的訊息。 | Wǒ kàn le nǐ de xùnxí. | I read your message. |
| 找到了 | zhǎodào le | found | 我找到了鑰匙。 | Wǒ zhǎodào le yàoshí. | I found the keys. |
| 睡了 | shuì le | slept | 我昨天睡了八個小時。 | Wǒ zuótiān shuì le bā ge xiǎoshí. | I slept 8 hours yesterday. |
Group B: Sentence-Ending 了 (Change Of State)
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Meaning | Example (ZH) | Example (Pinyin) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 好了 | hǎo le | okay now / done now | 好了，我們走吧。 | Hǎo le, wǒmen zǒu ba. | Alright, let’s go. |
| 來了 | lái le | here / coming now | 他來了！ | Tā lái le! | He’s here! |
| 走了 | zǒu le | leaving now / left | 我先走了。 | Wǒ xiān zǒu le. | I’ll head out first. |
| 冷了 | lěng le | got cold | 天氣冷了。 | Tiānqì lěng le. | The weather got cold. |
| 不…了 | bù…le | not anymore | 我不看了。 | Wǒ bù kàn le. | I’m not watching anymore. |
| 太…了 | tài…le | too… (exclamation) | 你太客氣了。 | Nǐ tài kèqì le. | You’re too polite. |
Common Mistakes And Fast Fixes
- Mistake: Using 了 as “past tense.”
Fix: Ask “completed action?” (Verb+了) or “new situation?” (…了). - Mistake: 沒(有) + V + 了.
Fix: Use 沒(有) + V (no 了).
我沒有買。
Wǒ méiyǒu mǎi.
I didn’t buy it. - Mistake: Missing sentence-final 了 when you mean “now.”
Fix: Add …了 for change/status.
我走。 (neutral)
Wǒ zǒu.
I leave / I’m leaving (flat).
我走了。 (now / bye)
Wǒ zǒu le.
I’m leaving now. - Mistake: Overusing double 了 in every sentence.
Fix: Use it only when you really want “done + now true.” Often, one 了 is enough.
Practice: Pick The Right 了
Fill in the blank with 了 in the best spot, or leave it out if it shouldn’t be there.
- 我( )看( )那部電影。
Wǒ ( ) kàn ( ) nà bù diànyǐng. - 下雨( )！我們回家吧。
Xià yǔ ( )! Wǒmen huíjiā ba. - 我沒( )吃( )飯。
Wǒ méi ( ) chī ( ) fàn. - 我不喝( )，謝謝。
Wǒ bù hē ( ), xièxie. - 你吃飯( )嗎？
Nǐ chīfàn ( ) ma?
Answer Key (Click To Reveal)
1) 我看了那部電影。
Wǒ kàn le nà bù diànyǐng.
I watched that movie.
2) 下雨了！我們回家吧。
Xià yǔ le! Wǒmen huíjiā ba.
It’s raining now! Let’s go home.
3) 我沒吃飯。
Wǒ méi chīfàn.
I didn’t eat.
4) 我不喝了，謝謝。
Wǒ bù hē le, xièxie.
I’m not drinking anymore, thanks.
5) 你吃飯了嗎？
Nǐ chīfàn le ma?
Have you eaten?
Final Yak Box: If you’re unsure, start with one question: “Am I describing a completed action or a new situation?” Put 了 after the verb for completion, and at the end for “now it’s different.” Then go live your best 了-free (just kidding) life.
