The aspect particle 着
We use the particle 着 in several situations. Let's look at each of them.
HSK 3new HSK 2ParticlesVerbal suffixes
Expressing duration with 着
We state the particle after a verb to indicate the continuous aspect of the verb.
Scheme
subject
predicate
着
object
Examples
我认真地听着她
I’m carefully listening her
wǒ rènzhēn de tīngzhe tā
他们开着会
They are holding a meeting
tāmen kāizhe huì
We can also use 着 to express a continuous action that either occurred in the past or will occur in the future.
Pay attention
To clarify what tense we are talking about, you can use time indicators. For example:
Examples
昨天这儿停着很多车
Yesterday there were many cars parked here
zuótiān zhèr tíngzhe hěn duō chē
明天早上我写着作业，请你中午来
Tomorrow morning I will be working on my homework. Could you please come at noon?
míngtiān zǎoshang wǒ xiězhe zuòyè, qǐng nǐ zhōngwǔ lái
Pay attention
When using 着 to speak about past actions, we don’t need to state the negative particle
Expressing state or condition with 着
We also can use 着 to express the state of a person or object at a certain moment.
Pay attention
The action itself has already ended, but the object is still in some state as a result of it.
Examples
门开着
the door is open
mén kāizhe
Pay attention
Someone opened the door before. Although the action has ended, the resulting state of the door being open remains.
Examples
我带着眼睛
I am wearing glasses
wǒ dàizhe yǎnjìng
Pay attention
The glasses were already put on, and we are in the condition that “they're on me now”.
The following verbs are usually used in these type of sentences:
Examples
你看，窗户还开着呢
Look, the window is still open
nǐ kàn, chuānghu hái kāizhe ne
他在那边坐着
He's sitting there
tā zài nà biān zuòzhe
We can also use 着 to indicate the presence of an object in some place. In this case, we usually use the verbs or .
Examples
桌子上放着相架
There is a frame on the table
zhuōzi shang fàngzhe xiāngjià
衣柜里挂着大衣
There is a coat hanging in the closet
yīguì lǐ guàzhe dàyī
Expressing the manner or state for an action
We can use the particle 着 with a verb to describe how another action is performed. These are sentences like “reading a book while drinking coffee”, “listening to music while cleaning”. Such sentences most often have two verbs, where the first verb expresses the manner or state for an action (second verb). We should state 着 after the first verb.
Scheme
subject
predicate 1
着
predicate 2
Pay attention
There are usually objects after predicates.
Examples
听着音乐锻炼身体
Doing sports while listening to music
tīngzhe yīnyuè duànliàn shēntǐ
她拿着地图给我解释怎么走
She was holding a map and explaining to me how to get around
tā názhe dìtú gěi wǒ jiěshì zěnme zǒu
When we can’t use 着
We cannot use the particle 着 after modal verbs. That's basically because modal verbs express states which don’t last for a long time. Here are some of modal verbs:
Also, we should not use 着 with verbs that express actions that are long-term in nature. Examples are verbs denoting feelings and emotions. Here are some of them:
Expressing negation with 着
To make the negation we should state the negative particle before the verb.
Pay attention
Note that we should use the negative particle 没 with 着 regardless of the tense. It’s grammatically incorrect to use the particle particle with 着.
Examples
桌子上没放着书
There are no books on the table
zhuōzi shang méi fàngzhe shū
我没带着帽子
I’m not wearing a hat
wǒ méi dàizhe màozi
他没坐着
She's not sitting
tā méi zuòzhe
Structures with 着
Sometimes we use the particle 着 in the structure . This structure itself also indicates an action that is happening at the moment.
Pay attention
This structure can be shortened to this: …呢 在…呢 正…呢
Examples
她正在看着书呢
She is reading a book now
tā zhèngzài kàn shū ne
他在写着信呢
He is writing a letter now
tā zài xiězhe xìn ne
Learn more
The past tense with the particle 了The structure 正在…呢
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