把 (bǎ) Construction
Reach for the 把 construction when you want to spotlight what gets done TO an object — when the action moves, changes, fixes, or disposes of something specific. 把 yanks the object out of its usual post-verb position and parks it before the verb, leaving the verb free to carry a result. Use it for tasks with a clear outcome: closing the door, eating the food, putting the books on the shelf. It's the workhorse pattern for 'handle this thing → here's what happens to it.'
Structure
[SUBJECT] 把 [OBJECT] [VERB] [RESULT / COMPLEMENT]
bǎ + object + verb + result
How to Think About It
把 is a flag, not a verb. It tells the listener 'this thing is about to get acted on — track it.' Two things must be true: the object has to be specific (this door, those books — not just 'a door'), and the verb has to come with a result, location, or other complement. Bare verbs without a result feel naked in 把 sentences. 'I closed the door' = '我把门关上了' — 关 alone isn't enough; you need 上 to seal the action's outcome.
Examples
请把窗户关上。
Qǐng bǎ chuānghu guān shàng.
Please close the window.
他把书放在桌子上。
Tā bǎ shū fàng zài zhuōzi shàng.
He put the books on the table.
我把作业做完了。
Wǒ bǎ zuòyè zuò wán le.
I finished the homework.
Common Mistake
Learners forget the result complement and write '我把作业做.' But 把 demands that the verb come with something — a result (做完, 做好), a direction (回去), a location (在桌上), or 了 marking completion. Bare verbs leave the action hanging.
我把作业做。
我把作业做完了。
Don't Confuse With
Subject + Verb + Object
Standard SVO is for general actions ('I eat fish' = '我吃鱼'). Switch to 把 when you want to highlight what HAPPENS to a specific object: '我把这条鱼吃完了' = 'I finished off this fish.' The 把 form requires a definite object and a result.
被 (bèi) passive
被 is the mirror image: 'the object was acted on by someone.' 把 = 'someone acted on the object.' Same event, opposite focus. '小狗把骨头吃了' (the dog ate the bone) vs. '骨头被小狗吃了' (the bone was eaten by the dog).
将 (jiāng) Construction
将 is the formal, written equivalent of 把 — same grammar, different register. Use 把 in everyday speech and 将 in essays, official documents, and news writing.
Practice
请 ___ 门关上, 太冷了。
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把
他把咖啡喝 ___ 了。
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完
Put in order: [我 / 钥匙 / 把 / 在 / 桌上 / 放]
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我把钥匙放在桌上。
Translate to Chinese using 把: 'I washed the clothes clean.'
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我把衣服洗干净了。
Write one sentence using 把 about something you did to an object today (cleaned it, finished it, moved it).
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Example answer: 我把房间打扫干净了。 (I cleaned the room.)
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 1 Fluentide episode: