Mandarin Chinese reference
工作
gōngzuò
to work
Verb pattern · 14 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) | gōngzuòwork |
Completed action
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | gōngzuò leworked |
Experience
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | gōngzuò guohave worked before |
In progress
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | zài gōngzuòbe working |
Ongoing state
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | gōngzuò zhebe working |
Future
About to
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | yào gōngzuò lebe about to work |
Will / can
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | huì gōngzuòwill work |
Negative
Not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | bù gōngzuòdo not work |
Did not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | méi gōngzuòdid not work |
Questions
Yes no question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | gōngzuò ma?do you work? |
A not A question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | gōngzuò bu gōngzuò?do you work? |
Patterns
Affirmative
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| every day, a habit | tā měitiān gōngzuòHe works every day |
| right now | tā zài gōngzuòHe is working |
| yesterday, finished | tā zuótiān gōngzuò leHe worked yesterday |
| ever, at some point | tā zài zhèr gōngzuò guoHe has worked here before |
| tomorrow, planned | tā míngtiān gōngzuòHe is working tomorrow |
| about to start | tā kuài yào gōngzuò leHe is about to start working |
Negated
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| every day, a habit | tā měitiān bù gōngzuòHe does not work on any day |
| right now | tā méi zài gōngzuòHe is not working |
| yesterday, finished | tā zuótiān méi gōngzuòHe did not work yesterday |
| ever, at some point | tā méi zài zhèr gōngzuò guoHe has never worked here |
| tomorrow, planned | tā míngtiān bù gōngzuòHe is not working tomorrow |
| about to start | tā hái bù gōngzuòHe is still not working |
Question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| every day, a habit | tā měitiān gōngzuò ma?Does he work every day? |
| right now | tā zài gōngzuò ma?Is he working? |
| yesterday, finished | tā zuótiān gōngzuò le ma?Did he work yesterday? |
| ever, at some point | tā zài zhèr gōngzuò guo ma?Has he ever worked here? |
| tomorrow, planned | tā míngtiān gōngzuò ma?Is he working tomorrow? |
| about to start | tā kuài yào gōngzuò le ma?Is he about to start working? |
Forms from the Loquus reference. Only supplied forms are shown. Browse all Mandarin Chinese entries.