How to use 时间词
Subj. + Time⋯⋯ / Time + Subj.⋯⋯
Time expressions naming when something happens commonly appear in two positions in a Mandarin sentence. They can introduce the sentence before the subject, or follow the subject before the predicate. Both arrangements keep the time frame ahead of the main action, rather than adding it at the end as English often does.
The choice can reflect what the conversation treats as its starting point: the time period or the person involved. This guidance concerns expressions identifying when, such as a day or a month. Durations measuring how long an action lasts follow different patterns. Keep those functions separate when arranging a longer sentence, and check where any location or adverb belongs as well.
Examples with pinyin and English
昨天我去了酒吧。
Yesterday I went to the bar.
我昨天去了酒吧。
I went to the bar yesterday.
下个星期他要回国。
Next week he is going back to his country.
他下个星期要回国。
He is going back to his country next week.
What to remember
- Put the time frame before the action.
- Either side of the subject can work.
- Do not confuse when with how long.
Practise the pattern
Use one example as a model. Change the people, objects or situation, keeping the grammar pattern in the same order. Read the explanation again to check how your sentence uses the construction.
Look up the grammar words
Source and editorial notes
Explanation rewritten for Laowai. Examples are adapted from the Laowai English grammar curriculum, with editorial corrections where needed. The original curriculum credits AllSet Learning’s Chinese Grammar Wiki as used with permission. Read the retained source credits.
Difficulty labels describe the level of the explanation; they are not official HSK placement. Send a correction with this page’s URL.