How to use the 把 (bǎ) sentence structure in Mandarin Chinese?

The 把 (bǎ) sentence structure is used when you want to emphasize that a change has happened to the object of the sentence. It is probably one of the most interesting and challenging structures in Mandarin. It’s interesting because you almost don’t find it in any other language, and what’s challenging is not only how to use it but when to use it: You might be wondering: when do I use the 把 (bǎ) sentence and when do I use the regular (subject + verb + object) structure? In this post, we’re going to explore how and when to use the 把 (bǎ) sentence together. Let’s read on!

Here’s how the 把 (bǎ) sentence works:

Note:

• Negation and modal verbsNo definition set for modal verbsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. are optional in the structure. Everything else is required.

• 了 is an aspectual particle that marks the completion of an action.

Here are the translations of the sentences above:

• I ate the apple.

• He didn't give the homework to the teacher.

• I wrote this word incorrectly.

• (You) clean up the room!

• You should not finish the snacks.

As mentioned above, the 把 (bǎ) sentence is used to emphasize the change that the objectNo definition set for objectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. undergoes, so before we talk about 把 (bǎ) sentence structure, we need to understand the role of a grammatical object in a sentenceNo definition set for sentenceLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.. In a sentence like, “I ate the apple,” “the apple” is considered the object of the sentence, because it is being acted upon by the action of eating. Let's see how to say this in Mandarin:

• 我吃了苹果。

  (Wǒ chīle píngguǒ.)

  I ate the apple.

But, if you want to focus on the fact that the apple has been eaten, one way to do that is to use the 把 (bǎ) sentence structure:

• 我把苹果吃了。

  (Wǒ bǎ píngguǒ chīle.)

  I ate the apple.

As you can see, one thing that 把 (bǎ) does is move the object to a position before the verbNo definition set for verbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., so it shifts the focus of the sentence onto the object. In other words, the 把 (bǎ) sentence draws your attention to what happened to the object by moving the object to the position before the verb.

This is why the 把 (bǎ) sentence structure usually requires some sort of complementNo definition set for complementLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. after the verb (e.g. 了 in the example above), since you need to tell your listener what exactly happened to the object. If you drop this complement, the sentence will often sound incomplete:

• X 我把水喝。

  (Wǒ bǎ shuǐ hē. )

  I drank water.

  (Incomplete)

The sentence above would sound much more natural if you added a complement, such as 完了 (finished):

• 我把水喝完了。

  (Wǒ bǎ shuǐ hē wán le.)

  I have finished drinking the water. / I drank all the water.

The complement here is essential to the 把 (bǎ) sentence because the main goal of the 把 (bǎ) sentence is to emphasize the change that the object undergoes. There are many different types of complements you can use, such as times, locations, and even actions. For example, complements can add information to a verb about how many times you saw a movie or you read a book. Complements can also specify the locations where you move objects to or take objects from, as well as the actions that affect the object, like drying up the clothes or drinking up the water.

• 请把这个字写三遍。

  (Qǐng bǎ zhège zì xiě sān biàn.)

  Please write this word three times.

  (The character wasn’t written but it is now written three times.)

• 我把海报贴在墙上。

  (Wǒ bǎ hǎibào tiē zài qiáng shàng.)

  I put the poster on the wall.

  (The poster was moved to a new position.)

• 他把衣服拿出去晒。

  (Tā bǎ yīfú ná chūqù shài.)

  He took his clothes out to dry.

  (The clothes were taken out to be dried.)

And for negation, the negative adverbs (e.g., 不 (bù), 没 (méi), 别 (bié), 不要 (bùyào)) usually go before 把 (bǎ), instead of the main verb:

• 我没把水喝完。

  (Wǒ méi bǎ shuǐ hē wán.)

  I didn't finish the water.

Mental verbs in Mandarin, such as 想 (xiǎng, want to), 愿意 (yuànyì, be willing to), 能 (néng, can), 可以 (kěyǐ, be allowed to), and 该 (gāi, should) are also used with 把 (bǎ) often, and they should go before 把 (bǎ):

• 我不想把我的鞋扔了。

  (Wǒ bù xiǎng bǎ wǒde xié rēng le. )

  I don’t want to throw away my shoes.

• 你不该把水喝完。

  (Nǐ bù gāi bǎ shuǐ hē wán.)

  You shouldn't finish the water.

Now, let’s talk about an even more important question: When do I use the 把 (bǎ) sentence?

The purpose of using 把 (bǎ) is to bring the focus of the sentence to the object. When you use the 把 (bǎ) sentence, the object should be already known to the listener, or should have been mentioned previously. For example:

• 那本书我看了三遍。

  (Nà běn shū wǒ kànle sān biàn.)

  I read that book three times.

In the sentence above, it is usually assumed that the listener knows the specific book that you’re talking about.

Meaning-wise, 把 (bǎ) emphasizes the disposal of the object. That is, someone does something to the object so that the object changes in some shape or form. For example:

• 我把房间打扫干净了。

  (Wǒ bǎ fángjiān dǎsǎo gānjìngle.)

  I cleaned the room.

Above, you performed the action of cleaning the room, and now the room is clean.

If the emphasis is not on the object, then we don’t need the 把 (bǎ) sentence. For example, if the emphasis is on "I," the subjectNo definition set for subjectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., you would use the regular (subject + verb + object) structure, like this:

• 我打扫房间了。

  (Wǒ dǎsǎo fángjiān le.)

  I cleaned the room.

Remember, with 把 (bǎ), it’s important to have the complement (like 干净了 (gānjìngle, clean) above) after the verb to show how the object (i.e., the room) has changed. Otherwise, the sentence will sound incomplete.

• X 我把房间打扫。

  (Wǒ bǎ fángjiān dǎsǎo. )

  I cleaned the room.

  (Incomplete)

Last but not least, since the 把 (bǎ) sentence is all about the object, you won’t be able to use the 把 (bǎ) sentence if the verb doesn’t take an object. For example, 她哭了 (Tā kūle, She cried) cannot be converted into a 把 (bǎ) sentence.

Similarly, verbs such as 喜欢 (xǐhuan, to like) — as in, 我喜欢蓝色 (Wó xǐhuān lánsè, I like the color blue) — or 要 (yào, to want) — as in 我要那本书 (Wǒ yào nà běn shū, I want that book) — can’t go with the 把 (bǎ) sentence because nothing affects the object. No matter how much you like it or want it, the color or the book won't change, so these verbs cannot go with 把 (bǎ).

Like we said earlier, the most important thing to know about 把 (bǎ) is when to use it. Here are the two principles:

• The object of 把 (bǎ) should be known to the listener or has been mentioned previously.

• 把 (bǎ) expresses the meaning of disposal and emphasizes changes that happened to the object.

The more the situation fits (1) and (2), the more likely you’d use the 把 (bǎ) sentence. You may also want to find out how this structure is different from the 被 (bèi) structure, so why don’t you read that post too?

Are you confident now about using 把 (bǎ) when you speak Mandarin? Let’s try out some exercises to practice using 把 (bǎ) and to put your knowledge to work!