\tChinese grammar rule #1: What precedes modifies what follows<\/p>\n
\tThis rule sounds a little bit complicated when you first see it, but it’s actually quite straightforward. It simply means that modifiers come before the thing they modify. The Chinese language, right through from the written classical language to the modern spoken vernacular, has always had this rule.<\/p>\n
\tLet’s look at some simple examples to demonstrate this rule.<\/p>\n
\t\u4ed6\u4e0d\u559c\u6b22 \u8d35\u7684 \u4e1c\u897f\u3002
\tT\u0101 bù x\u01d0huan guì de d\u014dngxi.
\tHe doesn't like expensive things.
\t\u6211\u54e5\u54e5 \u6162\u6162\u5730 \u5f00\u8f66\u3002
\tW\u01d2 g\u0113g\u0113 mànmande k\u0101ich\u0113.
\tMy brother drives slowly .
\t\u5979\u80fd\u559d \u5f88\u591a \u5564\u9152\u3002
\tT\u0101 néng h\u0113 h\u011bndu\u014d píji\u01d4.
\tShe can drink a lot of beer.
\tAs you can see in each of the Chinese sentences, the modifier (colored red) comes before the thing it modifies. \u8d35\u7684 (expensive) comes before \u4e1c\u897f (things), \u6162\u6162\u5730 (slowly) comes before \u5f00\u8f66 (drive) and \u5f88\u591a (a lot of) comes before \u5564\u9152 (beer). Notice how the position of the modifier varies in the English sentences.<\/p>\n
\tKnowing about this ‘modifiers first’ rule in Chinese grammar can be very helpful in the early stages of your Chinese studies. It lets you follow the structure of sentences more quickly because you can identify modifiers (adjectives and adverbs) and the things they’re modifying (nouns and verbs) more easily.<\/p>\n
\tIt also lets you form sentences with more confidence because you know that adjectives should be placed before the nouns they modify, and adverbs should be placed before the verbs they modify.<\/p>\n