time words and adverbs that refer to past time
37.837.7 Comparing the aspect markers 过/過 guo and 了 le
The aspect markers 过/過 guo and 了 le overlap in meaning, but they are not identical. As
illustrated in Section 37.6, they may sometimes be used together. However, in many contexts,
only 过/過 guo or 了 le is appropriate.Here is a table that summarizes the meanings associated with 过/過 guo and 了 le, and illustrates
their differences.
过/過 guo 了 leThe action
is complete.过/過 guo is acceptable 了 le is acceptable
我去过中国。 我去了中国。
我去過中國。 我去了中國。
Wǒ qùguo Zhōngguó. Wǒ qù le Zhōngguó.
I’ve been to China before. I went to China.
The action has
never been
performed by
the subject.过/過 guo is acceptable 了 le is acceptable, but simply indicates
that the action did not happen
我没去过中国。 我没去中国。
我沒去過中國。 我沒去中國。
Wǒ méi qùguo Zhōngguó. Wǒ méi qù Zhōngguó.
I have never been to China before. I didn’t go to China.
The action
refers to
a repeatable
event.This condition is necessary for
过/過 guo了 le can be used for repeatable or
non-repeatable events
我看过那个电影。 我看了那个电影。
我看過那個電影。 我看了那個電影。
Wǒ kànguo nàge diànyǐng. Wǒ kànle nàge diànyǐng.
I have seen that movie before. I saw that movie.
If the action is not repeatable,
过/過 guo is not acceptable
*她大学毕业过。 她大学毕业了。
她大學畢業過。 她大學畢業了。
Tā dàxué bìyèguo. Tā dàxué bìyè le.
She graduated from university. She graduated from university.
The action is not
customary. It is
unusual for the
subject to do it.This condition is usually implied by
过/過 guo了 le can be used with customary or
unusual actions
我吃过蛇肉。 我吃了蛇肉。
我吃過蛇肉。
Wǒ chīguo shé ròu. Wǒ chīle shé ròu.
I have had the experience of
eating snake before.I ate snake. (There is no
implication about how common
this action is for me.)37.8 Time words and adverbs that refer to past time
37.8.1 time words that refer to past time
Here are some common time words that refer to past time.昨天 zuótiān yesterday
前天 qiántiān the day before yesterday
大前天 dàqiántiān three days before now
上个星期/上個星期 shàng gè xīngqī last week
上个礼拜/上個禮拜 shàng gè lǐbài last week
上个月/上個月 shàng gè yuè last month