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Separable verb Also known as: 离合词 (líhécí) and verb-object phrase.

"Separable verbs" get their name from their ability to "separate" into two parts (a verb part and an object part), with other words in between. In fact, you could also simply call separable verbs "verb-object phrases."


What Are Separable Verbs?

Separable verbs are "verb-object phrases." They consist of two characters: the first is the verb, and the second is the object. Very often, these two will appear together, seemingly acting as a single verb, as in 吃饭, "to eat," 见面, "to meet," or 睡觉, "to sleep." But the two can also separate, and the verb can also be used without the object.


Verb + Object

Verb... [Other Stuff]... Object

The Typical Learner Mistake

Let's look at a typical example in Chinese, using the verb 见面, meaning "to meet." 见 is the verb; 面 is the object, which literally means "face," but is never translated as such. The mistake everyone makes is to put an object after 见面. You can't do this, though, because 见面 already has its own object.

The key features of separable verbs are:

The key to using separable verbs correctly is to remember that they are "Verb + Object" constructs. The verb alone must be treated as a verb, and the object cannot be treated as part of the verb.

How to Use Separable Verbs

The first step in mastering separable verbs is knowing which verbs are actually separable verbs.

Some of the more common separable verbs you should already know include: 吃饭 (chīfàn), 出差 (chūchāi), 读书 (dúshū), 过年 (guònián), 见面 (jiànmiàn), 讲话 (jiǎnghuà), 开车 (kāichē), 开会 (kāihuì), 看病 (kànbìng), 聊天 (liáotiān), 生气 (shēngqì), 谈话 (tánhuà), 洗澡 (xǐzǎo), 游泳 (yóuyǒng).

Slightly less common (but still useful for intermediate learners) separable verbs include: 帮忙 (bāngmáng), 分手 (fēnshǒu), 结婚 (jiéhūn), 请假 (qǐngjià), 离婚 (líhūn), 跑步 (pǎobù), 报名 (bàomíng), 道歉 (dàoqiàn), 散步 (sànbù), 排队 (páiduì).

Perhaps the most common examples of separable verbs that beginners first struggle with are 见面 and 睡觉. What makes them especially hard is that the "object" part of each word seem to have no counterpart in English. "Meet face?" "Sleep a sleep?" It all feels very odd.

Below we will introduce separable verbs in more detail, provide more examples, and also offer more specific cases which can trip up learners.

Using 跟 with Separable Verbs

A few verbs allow you to effectively add an additional object by using a 跟 (or 和) phrase before the verb.


跟 + Person + Verb + Object

In this pattern, the verb-object construct remains unseparated.


You'll have to learn which separable verbs allow this pattern on a case-by-case basis.

Where to put 了, 过, 着 with Separable Verbs

Hint: they go after the verb, not the object.


Verb + 了 / 过 / 着 + Object


见面 (jiànmiàn)

开会 (kāihuì)

吃饭 (chīfàn)

Note: unlike the particles 过 and 着, the particle 了 is especially tricky, and it can also appear after the object. So it can be correct in multiple places.

Where to Put Measure Words with Separable Verbs

You guessed it: they go after the verb, not the object.


Verb + [Measure Word Phrase] + Object




睡觉 (shuìjiào)

How to Reduplicate Separable Verbs

Reduplication is a way to express the casual nature of a verb or that it happens only briefly. When it comes to separable verbs, only the verb part reduplicates.


Verb + Verb + Object


Note that you can't put 一下 after separable verbs to express that it happened briefly.

Common Examples and Common Mistakes with Separable Verbs

帮忙 (bāngmáng) to help; to do a favor. 帮 is the verb; 忙 is the object, meaning "a favor."

If you want to ask someone to do you a favor, check this out:

结婚 (jiéhūn) to get married. 结 is the verb; 婚 acts as the object, meaning "marriage." However, 婚 cannot typically be used as a noun by itself.

聊天 (liáotiān) to chat; to talk (about things in general). 聊 is the verb; 天 acts as the object.

Literally, 天 doesn't mean anything. The object needs to be something specific if you mean to be clear.

Why Use Them

If separable verbs are simply verb-object phrases, then why the special name? It's because there are some special features of Chinese verb-object phrases worth special attention, and the name "separable verbs" helps call attention to this. Mastering separable verbs can be a little tricky and is an essential objective of the intermediate (B1) level learner of Chinese.

Separable verbs are just one of those things you can't avoid. Many extremely common verbs, such as "to sleep" (睡觉) or "to meet" (见面) are separable verbs, and until you understand which verbs are separable verbs and how they work, you'll forever be making mistakes with these words, even in very basic sentences. In addition, you will continue to encounter new separable verbs, and being already familiar with the concept makes mastering new words much easier.

Academic debate

There is some debate as to how useful the concept of separable verbs really is. For our purposes, we're only concerned with whether or not separable verbs are a useful concept for the student of Mandarin Chinese. Many learners do, in fact, find the concept to be quite useful in helping them speak more natural Chinese.





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