How to use 有的
有的 + Noun
有的 identifies certain members of a group rather than the whole group. It can come before the relevant noun and predicate, or stand alone when the noun is already understood. The sentence then describes what is true of those members without needing to specify exactly which individuals they are.
Repeating 有的 allows the speaker to describe different subsets and what each does or is like. There can be more than two such parts. The group may have been introduced earlier or be obvious from the setting. This differs from giving an approximate amount with 一些: the focus here is often the distribution of different actions or qualities within a shared larger group.
Examples with pinyin and English
外国人有的很有钱， 有的没钱。
Some foreigners are rich, but some aren't.
我们公司有一些电脑， 有的是新的， 有的是旧的。
Our company has some computers. Some are new, and some are old.
他写了很多书， 有的卖得很好， 有的卖得不好。
He has written a lot of books. Some sell well, but some don't.
中国菜有的好吃， 有的不好吃。
Some Chinese foods are tasty, while some aren't.
What to remember
- Use 有的 for a subset of a group.
- Omit the noun when it is clear.
- Repeat the form for different subsets.
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.