Lesson 21. How to Express Present Tense in Chinese

As stated in the previous lesson, there is no verb conjugation in Chinese. In short, 吃 (chī) will always remain as 吃 (chī) regardless of when you eat. On this lesson, let’s learn how to express present tense in Chinese!

 

Adverb of Time

Adverb of time is definitely the clearest way to determine the time when the action occurred. In order to indicate that the action belongs to simple present tense (habitual actions) use the followings:

Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pin Yin	English
每天	每天	měi tiān	every day
每週/每個星期	每周/每个星期	měi zhōu/měi gè xīng qí	weekly
每年	每年	měi nián	every year
經常	经常	jīng cháng	often
有時	有时	yǒu shí	sometimes

Examples:

我每天游泳。

我每天游泳。

Wǒ měitiān yóuyǒng.

I swim every day.

他經常來看我。

他经常来看我。

Tā jīngcháng lái kàn wǒ.

He often comes to see me.

 

If you want to express that the action is present continuous tense (currently in progress), use these following adverbs:

Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pin Yin	English
現在	现在	xiàn zài	now
此刻	此刻	cǐ kè	at the moment
目前	目前	mù qián	at present, currently

Examples:

他現在過得怎麼樣?

他现在过得怎么样?

Tā xiànzàiguò dé zěnme yàng?

How is he doing now?

 

目前我們團隊裡有五個人。

目前我们团队里有五个人。

Mùqián wǒmen tuánduì lǐ yǒu wǔ gèrén.

There are currently five people on our team.

 

Auxiliary Verbs

We can use auxiliary verbs, such as 在 (zài), 正在 (zhèng zài), and 著 [着] (zhe) to express present continuous tense. In other words, it means that an action is currently in progress.

 

在 (zài) does not have a particular meaning. However, it holds an important role as a progressive marker.

Structure: Subject + 在 + Verb + Object

我在看電視。

我在看电视。

Wǒ zài kàn diànshì.

I am watching TV.

 

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

我們正在開會。

我们正在开会。

Wǒmen zhèngzài kāihuì.

We are in a meeting.

 

著 [着] (zhe) is also used to express that the action is ongoing, but it is not interchangeable with 在 (zài) or 正在 (zhèng zài). 著 [着] (zhe) is more like a way to express a continuous static action.   In fact, the usage of 著 [着] (zhe) in a sentence is not as frequent as the two examples before.

Structure: Subject + Verb + 著 [着]

他穿著一條淺藍的襯衫。

他穿着一条浅蓝的衬衫。

Tā chuānzhuó yītiáo qiǎn lán de chènshān.

He is wearing a light blue shirt.

 

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