Mandarin Chinese reference
有
yǒu
to have / there is
Verb pattern · 7 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.
Audio requires a compatible voice in your browser.
Aspect
Plain statement
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | yǒuhave |
| having something | wǒ yǒu shíjiānI have time |
| there is, in a place | zhuōzi shàng yǒu shūThere are books on the table |
| how many there are | wǒ yǒu sān geI have three |
| asking about experience | wǒ kàn guoI have seen it before |
| being somewhere, with 在 | tā zài jiāHe is at home |
Experience
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | yǒu guohave had before |
Future
Will / can
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | huì yǒuwill have |
Negative
Not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | méiyǒudo not have |
| having something | wǒ méi yǒu shíjiānI do not have time |
| there is, in a place | zhuōzi shàng méi yǒu shūThere are no books on the table |
| how many there are | wǒ méi yǒu sān geI do not have three |
| asking about experience | wǒ méi kàn guoI have never seen it |
| being somewhere, with 在 | tā bú zài jiāHe is not at home |
Did not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | méiyǒudid not have |
Questions
Yes no question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | yǒu ma?do you have? |
| having something | nǐ yǒu shíjiān ma?Do you have time? |
| there is, in a place | zhuōzi shàng yǒu shū ma?Are there any books on the table? |
| how many there are | nǐ yǒu sān ge ma?Do you have three? |
| asking about experience | nǐ kàn guo ma?Have you seen it before? |
| being somewhere, with 在 | tā zài jiā ma?Is he at home? |
A not A question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | yǒu méiyǒu?do you have? |
| having something | nǐ yǒu méi yǒu shíjiān?Do you have time? |
| there is, in a place | zhuōzi shàng yǒu méi yǒu shū?Are there any books on the table? |
| how many there are | nǐ yǒu méi yǒu sān ge?Do you have three? |
| asking about experience | nǐ yǒu méi yǒu kàn guo?Have you seen it before? |
| being somewhere, with 在 | tā zài bu zài jiā?Is he at home? |
Forms from the Loquus reference. Only supplied forms are shown. Browse all Mandarin Chinese entries.