Verb + 了
Reach for Verb + 了 when you want to say an action has been completed. It's the most common past-action marker in Mandarin, and the one you'll meet on day one. 了 hugs the verb directly: 吃了 (ate), 看了 (watched), 买了 (bought). If a quantified object follows, the structure usually goes Verb + 了 + Number + Measure + Noun (吃了一个苹果). To negate a completed action, switch to 没 + Verb and drop the 了 (没吃 = didn't eat).
Structure
[SUBJECT] [VERB] 了 ([OBJECT])
[VERB] le...
How to Think About It
了 stamps 'this action is done.' It doesn't translate cleanly to English past tense — it marks completion, not time. So 'I eat breakfast every morning' uses NO 了, but 'I ate breakfast (this morning)' does. The single most reliable test: did the action finish? If yes, 了 belongs after the verb. If the action is ongoing, habitual, or future, leave 了 out entirely.
Examples
我吃了一个苹果。
Wǒ chī le yí ge píngguǒ.
I ate an apple.
他买了两本书。
Tā mǎi le liǎng běn shū.
He bought two books.
昨天我看了一部电影。
Zuótiān wǒ kàn le yí bù diànyǐng.
Yesterday I watched a movie.
Common Mistake
Learners negate with 不 and keep the 了, copying English 'didn't.' Chinese flips the rule: completed actions are negated with 没 (or 没有), and the 了 is dropped because there's no completion to mark.
我不吃了饭。
我没吃饭。
Don't Confuse With
Verb + 过
Use 过 for 'have ever done X' (我去过北京 = I've been to Beijing). Verb + 了 marks a specific completed action; 过 marks the experience of having done it at some point.
Sentence + 了 (sentence-final 了)
Use sentence-final 了 to mark a change of state or new situation ('it's snowing now'). Verb + 了 is glued to the verb and signals completion of the action itself.
在 + Verb
Use 在 + Verb for an ongoing action ('she's reading'). Verb + 了 is for action already finished. They don't combine on the same verb.
Practice
Fill in the blank: 妈妈做 ___ 三个菜。
Show answer
了
Fill in the blank: 我没 ___ 早饭。 (eat)
Show answer
吃
Arrange: 一杯 / 喝了 / 我 / 茶
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我喝了一杯茶。
Translate: He bought a new phone yesterday.
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昨天他买了一个新手机。
Write a sentence about something you did this morning using Verb + 了.
Show answer
今天早上我喝了一杯咖啡。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 3 Fluentide episodes:
Related Grammar Patterns
Acquire by listening
Hear Verb + 了 in real Chinese, not in a textbook.
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