Aspect together: 过…了, 着, 起来, 下来, 下去
Combining 过 and 了, 着 in descriptions, and 起来, 下来, 下去 for starting, settling and continuing.
Part of the free B2 Chinese course (about HSK 5). Examples are in Simplified characters, with pinyin only for some new or hard words; press the speaker to hear one with your device's Chinese voice.
过 and 了 together
过 marks experience (过: have you ever…?); sentence-final 了 marks a new situation (了 at the end: something has changed). Together, 过…了 means "have (already) done it": the matter is settled now. The order is always verb + 过, with 了 after.
- 这部电影我看过了，换一部吧。I've already seen this film; let's pick another.
- 他已经来过两次了。He's already been here twice.
着 in descriptions
Beyond 门开着 (在 and 着: doing it now, and staying that way), 着 has two descriptive uses:
- Place + verb 着 + thing: what is somewhere. 墙上挂着一幅画.
- Verb 着 + second verb: the manner of the second action. 笑着说, 站着吃.
- 桌子上放着一束鲜花。There's a bunch of fresh flowers on the table.
- 她笑着点了点头。She nodded with a smile.
起来, 下来, 下去: time, not direction
You know these as direction complements (Direction complements: 进来, 出去, 回来). After many verbs and adjectives they describe the shape of an action in time.
| Complement | Meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 起来 | starts (often suddenly) | 笑起来, 下起雨来, 热起来 |
| 下来 | settles, comes to rest; has lasted until now | 停下来, 安静下来, 坚持下来, 记下来 |
| 下去 | goes on from now | 说下去, 坚持下去, 这样下去 |
With an object, 起来 splits: verb + 起 + object + 来.
- 听到这个消息，大家都笑了起来。When they heard the news, everyone burst out laughing.
- 刚才还好好的，突然下起雨来了。It was fine a moment ago, and suddenly it started raining.
- 车慢慢停了下来。The car slowly came to a stop.
- 教室里安静下来了。The classroom went quiet.
- 你说得很好，继续说下去。You're doing well; go on.
坚持下来 looks back: "kept it up and got through it" (to now, or to the end). 坚持下去 looks ahead: "keep it up (from now on)".
Common mistakes
我看了过这部电影。→ 我看过这部电影了。过 comes straight after the verb; 了 goes after it.突然下雨起来了。→ 突然下起雨来了。The object goes between 起 and 来.你继续说下来。→ 继续说下去。Going on from now is 下去.孩子们安静起来了。→ 安静下来了。Calming down, settling, is 下来.
Practice
- Which order is right?Options: 我吃过午饭了。 · 我吃了过午饭。 · 我过吃午饭了。
Show the answer
我吃过午饭了。 — Verb + 过, then 了.
- 这本小说我已经读_____三遍了。// I've already read this novel three times.Options: 过 · 着 · 起来
Show the answer
过 — 过 … 了: done it (three times) up to now.
- 墙上挂_____一张中国地图。// A map of China hangs on the wall.Options: 着 · 过 · 下去
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着 — Place + verb 着 + thing describes a scene.
- 他听了这个笑话，忍不住笑了_____。// He heard the joke and couldn't help bursting out laughing.Options: 起来 · 下去 · 过
Show the answer
起来 — 起来: an action starts, often suddenly.