Mandarin Chinese reference
开玩笑
kāi wánxiào
to joke
Verb pattern · 10 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) | kāi wánxiàojoke |
Completed action
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | kāi le wánxiàojoked |
Experience
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | kāi guo wánxiàohave joked before |
In progress
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | zài kāi wánxiàobe joking |
Future
About to
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | yào kāi wánxiào lebe about to joke |
Will / can
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | huì kāi wánxiàowill joke |
Negative
Not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | bù kāi wánxiàodo not joke |
Did not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | méi kāi wánxiàodid not joke |
Questions
Yes no question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | kāi wánxiào ma?do you joke? |
A not A question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | kāi bu kāi wánxiào?do you joke? |
Forms from the Loquus reference. Only supplied forms are shown. Browse all Mandarin Chinese entries.