Chinese sentence structures in different tenses
past simple
Subject + Verb + Object + 了
他昨天和朋友出去喝酒了。
Pinyin: Tā zuó tiān hé péng yǒu chū qù hē jiǔ le.
present simple
sub. + v. + obj.
Wǒ kàn diànyǐng.
我 看 电影。
I watch movies.
present continious
sub. + 在 (zài) + v. + obj.
Wǒ zài kàn diànyǐng。
我 在 看 电影。
I am watching a movie.
正在 (zhèng zài) is used instead of 在 (zài) to emphasize that the action is happening right now.
Structure: Subject + 正在 + Verb + Object
我们正在开会。
Wǒmen zhèngzài kāihuì.
We are in a meeting.
爷爷 正在 看 报纸 ，别 打扰 他 。
Yéye zhèngzài kàn bàozhǐ, bié dǎrǎo tā.
爷爷 在 看 报纸 呢 ，别 打扰 他 。
Yéye zài kàn bàozhǐ ne, bié dǎrǎo tā.
Grandpa is reading newspapers now. Don't disturb him.
Structure: Subject + Verb + 着 ZHE
他穿着一条浅蓝的衬衫。
Tā chuānzhuó yītiáo qiǎn lán de chènshān.
He is wearing a light blue shirt.
她在穿衣服 = She is getting dressed, while 她穿着衣服 = She is dressed.
future simple
sub. + 会 (huì) + v. + obj.
Wǒ huì kàn diànyǐng.
我 会 看 电影。
I will watch a movie.
present perfect
[subject] [verb] 过
The particle 过 (guò) indicate that that verb was done or experienced in the past. In English, the equivalent would simply be “have”, e.g. in “I have done that”, “I have eaten”, “He has seen it” and so on.
我已经看过。
Wǒ yǐjīng kànguò.
I've already seen it.
我听说过。
Wǒ tīng shuōguò.
I've heard about that.
我试过。
Wǒ shìguò.
I've tried that.
questions
As mentioned above, 吗 is a question particle that is used to turn statements into yes-no questions.
你是李先生吗？
Nǐ shì Lǐ Xiānshēng ma?
Are you Mr Li?
你会中文吗？
Nǐ huì Zhōngwén ma?
Do you speak Chinese?
This is often equivalent to saying “and … ?",
你呢？
Nǐ ne?
And you?
我呢？
Wǒ ne?
What about me?