Mandarin Chinese reference
会
huì
can, know how to
Verb pattern · 4 form tables
Mandarin verbs do not change for tense. These tables show aspect, negation, questions and sentence patterns. Short phrases omit the subject; full examples retain theirs.
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Aspect
Plain statement
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | huìcan do it |
| a learned skill, 会 | wǒ huì shuō ZhōngwénI can speak Chinese |
| able right now, 能 | wǒ jīntiān néng láiI can come today |
| allowed, 可以 | wǒ kěyǐ jìn láiI am allowed to come in |
| likely to happen, 会 | míngtiān huì xià yǔIt will rain tomorrow |
Negative
Not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | bú huìcannot do it |
| a learned skill, 会 | wǒ bú huì shuō ZhōngwénI cannot speak Chinese |
| able right now, 能 | wǒ jīntiān bù néng láiI cannot come today |
| allowed, 可以 | nǐ bù kěyǐ jìn láiYou are not allowed to come in |
| likely to happen, 会 | míngtiān bú huì xià yǔIt will not rain tomorrow |
Questions
Yes no question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | huì ma?can you do it? |
| a learned skill, 会 | nǐ huì shuō Zhōngwén ma?Can you speak Chinese? |
| able right now, 能 | nǐ jīntiān néng lái ma?Can you come today? |
| allowed, 可以 | wǒ kěyǐ jìn lái ma?May I come in? |
| likely to happen, 会 | míngtiān huì xià yǔ ma?Will it rain tomorrow? |
A not A question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | huì bu huì?can you do it? |
| a learned skill, 会 | nǐ huì bu huì shuō Zhōngwén?Can you speak Chinese? |
| able right now, 能 | nǐ jīntiān néng bu néng lái?Can you come today? |
| allowed, 可以 | kě bù kěyǐ jìn lái?May I come in? |
| likely to happen, 会 | míngtiān huì bu huì xià yǔ?Will it rain tomorrow? |
Forms from the Loquus reference. Only supplied forms are shown. Browse all Mandarin Chinese entries.