Mandarin Chinese reference
谈
tán
to talk (something) over; to talk about
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) | tántalk (something) over |
Completed action
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | tán letalked (something) over |
Experience
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | tán guohave talked (something) over before |
In progress
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | zài tánbe talking (something) over |
Future
About to
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | yào tán lebe about to talk (something) over |
Will / can
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | huì tánwill talk (something) over |
Negative
Not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | bù tándo not talk (something) over |
Did not
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | méi tándid not talk (something) over |
Questions
Yes no question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | tán ma?do you talk (something) over? |
A not A question
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| verb phrase (subject omitted) | tán bu tán?do you talk (something) over? |
Forms from the Loquus reference. Only supplied forms are shown. Browse all Mandarin Chinese entries.