Verb + 得 + Adjective/Complement
Use this to say how someone does something — 'he sings well,' 'she runs fast,' 'they speak Chinese fluently.' The verb describes the action; the bit after 得 is an adjective phrase that comments on it. This is the degree-of-action complement, and it's how Chinese evaluates manner and quality, where English would use an adverb like 'well,' 'quickly,' or 'beautifully.'
Structure
[SUBJECT] [VERB] 得 [ADJECTIVE/COMPLEMENT]
[VERB] de [ADJ]
How to Think About It
得 is a hinge between an action and its review. The verb on the left is what happened; the adjective on the right is the verdict — how well, how badly, how loudly, how fast. Crucially, when there's an object, you have to repeat the verb: 他说中文说得很好, not 他说中文得很好. The 得 needs to glue directly onto a verb, so if an object got in the way, you say the verb twice.
Examples
她跑得很快。
Tā pǎo de hěn kuài.
She runs very fast.
他唱歌唱得很好听。
Tā chànggē chàng de hěn hǎotīng.
He sings beautifully.
我睡得不太好。
Wǒ shuì de bú tài hǎo.
I didn't sleep very well.
Common Mistake
Learners write the verb only once when there's an object — gluing 得 onto the object instead. With an object present, the verb must repeat so 得 can attach to the action it's evaluating.
他说中文得很好。
他说中文说得很好。
Don't Confuse With
的 (possessive/modifier)
的 connects nouns and modifiers (我的书). 得 follows a verb and introduces a complement. Same pinyin (de), different characters and jobs.
地 (adverbial modifier)
地 sits before a verb to mark manner (慢慢地走 = 'walk slowly'). 得 sits after the verb to describe the result. Before vs. after the verb.
Verb + 完 / Verb + 好 (resultative)
Resultative complements (吃完, 做好) describe the action's endpoint. Verb + 得 + adjective describes how the action was performed, not whether it finished.
Practice
Fill in the blank: 他写字写___很漂亮。
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得
Fill in the blank: 这个孩子说话说得很___。 (clear)
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清楚
Arrange: 得 / 跳舞 / 很 / 她 / 好
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她跳舞跳得很好。
Translate to Chinese: He cooks very well.
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他做菜做得很好。
Write a sentence with Verb + 得 + adjective evaluating how someone does something.
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我妈妈做饭做得特别香。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 5 Fluentide episodes:
导弹飞得很快。
他打得非常好。
昨天晚上，他踢得非常好。
Related Grammar Patterns
Acquire by listening
Hear Verb + 得 + Adjective/Complement in real Chinese, not in a textbook.
Fluentide picks the next news episode at your level, so this pattern shows up again and again in real context. The transcript marks it, the audio drills it. Free to start, no card.