vault update: 2024-07-11 18:37:05

Affected files:
了le.md

了le.md

@@ -4,4 +4,63 @@
 The verbal 了 is used primarily to mark the completion [[Aspect|aspect]] of a verb. Note that this is not equivalent to marking a past action (tense).
 In English, the "perfective"/"completive" may appear in all three tenses:
 1. Past Perfect: I *had* already arrived (when he called).
-2. 
+2. Present Perfect: I have already arrived.
+3. Future Perfect: I will/shall have arrived (by 8PM tomorrow).
+"Perfect" refers to the completion of perfection aspect of an action, signalling that the action as represented by the verb has attained its completion by a certain point in time.
+
+The Chinese "verb + 了" serves to mark the perfective aspect. "verb + 了" can appear with a future, present, or past action - as long as the context calls for its use.
+
+## 了 doesn't apply to all past actions
+Since past actions are often also already accomplished actions, "verb + 了" is often used for past actions. However, past actions don't have to have a 了 - it's only needed when the completion aspect is stressed. 
+
+### Habitual Actions
+For example, when describing a habitual action in the past, 了 is not used:
+1. 他以前常常来看我。
+   He used to often come to see me.
+2. 他昨天来了。
+   He came yesterday.
+In (2), a specific event took place yesterday, and thus is completed by now. However, (1) states a general or habitual situation in the past. Because the action in (1) was repeated on a regular basis, the emphasis is not on the perfective aspect - and 了 should not be used. Indeed, translating the sentence with "used to" - instead of just "came" - is also omitting the perfective aspect in English.
+
+### Describing State or Status
+When a sentence reports a state/status in its entirety - and not measured in terms of its various aspectual phases - we don't use the perfective 了:
+1. 他去年在中国学习汉语。
+   He was studying Chinese in China last year.
+The sentence describes his previous state as a Chinese language student for the entire year. Thus, the focus is on the continuous state and not it's conclusion.
+Indeed, verbs such as 是 (to be), 姓 (to be surnamed), 有 (to have), etc. which pertain to status descriptions do not normally get used with 了:
+1. 他以前是我老是。
+   He used to be my teacher.
+2. 王老师以前姓文。
+   Teacher Wang's surname used to be Wen.
+3. 今年以前，这儿都是电影院。
+   A few years ago, this place used to be full of cinemas.
+
+### Descriptive Statements with Adjectives
+Descriptive statements with an adjective do not employ the perfective 了. Adjectives are stative verbs in Chinese, and - as stative verbs - do not usually appear in the perfective:
+1. 这个作家以前很又名。
+   This author used to be very famous.
+2. 昨天的酒会不太有意思。
+   Yesterday's reception wasn't particularly interesting.
+
+### Sentences with the Degree Complement Construction
+The [[Complements#Complement of Degree|degree complement]] is essentially a description of the state of achievement. Thus, we don't use the perfective 了 with it:
+1. 你昨天跳舞跳得很好。
+   You danced very well yesterday.
+
+### Sentences with Reported Speech
+The emphasis when giving reported speech is more on what is being said, rather than the completion aspect of the speech itself. So, the quotation always begins with a simple verb such as 说，问, etc. and doesn't use the perfective 了:
+1. 老师问我们， “你们想去参加招待会吗？”我们说：“我们都很想去。”
+   The teacher asked us, "Would you want to go to the reception?" We responded, "We would all love to."
+2. 他说他不会翻译今天的课文。
+   He said he didn't know how to translate today's text.
+
+## Grammatical Rules with Perfective 了
+
+When the verb doesn't take an object, the aspectual 了 appears immediately after the verb. The negative of "verb + 了" is "没(有) + verb". The perfective 了 is cancelled by the presence of 没有 in the negative pattern:
+
+| Pos/Neg/Int   | Construction                                                                                  | Meaning                                                         |
+| ------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------- |
+| Positive      | Subject + Verb + 了                                                                            | has taken place                                                 |
+| Negative      | (a) Subject + 没(有) + Verb<br>(b) Subject + 还没(有) + Verb + 呢                                   | has not taken place<br>has not taken place yet, but would later |
+| Interrogative | (a) Subject + Verb + 了 + 吗？<br>(b) Subject + Verb + 了 + 没有?<br>(c) Subject + Verb + 没 + Verb？ |                                                                 |
+
+1.