Chinese – First Language (9680) | 实词

🎉 欢迎来到“实词”的世界！ (Welcome to the World of Content Words!)

Hello A-Level students! You are diving into the heart of Chinese grammar: 词类 (Word Classes). Understanding how words function is crucial for high-level language competency (Paper 1 and Paper 2 success!).

This chapter focuses on 实词 (Shící), or Content Words. Think of them as the crucial building blocks of a sentence. They carry the main meaning—the people, actions, qualities, and quantities. Without them, you can't say anything concrete!

💡 为什么实词很重要？ (Why are Content Words important?)

• Precision: Knowing the exact function of a 实词 (e.g., whether a word is a verb or an adjective) helps you use it in the correct sentence structure.
• Analysis: In complex texts, identifying the core 实词 helps you quickly grasp the main subject and action (essential for reading comprehension).
• Exam Skills: Grammar questions often test your ability to differentiate between various types of 实词 and apply the correct modifiers (like adverbs or measure words).

第一部分：实词 vs. 虚词 (Content Words vs. Function Words)

Before listing the categories, let's clarify the fundamental distinction in Chinese grammar.

1. 什么是实词 (What are 实词 - Content Words)?

实词 are words that have a clear, independent lexical meaning. They can typically form a sentence nucleus (subject, predicate, object) and are the most important carriers of information.
Analogy: If a sentence is a house, the 实词 are the bricks, walls, and roof.

实词 Categories (The focus of this chapter, based on the 9680 syllabus):

• 名词 (Nouns)
• 动词 (Verbs)
• 形容词 (Adjectives)
• 数词 (Numerals)
• 量词 (Measure Words)
• 代词 (Pronouns)
• 副词 (Adverbs)

2. 什么是虚词 (What are 虚词 - Function Words)?

虚词 lack independent lexical meaning. They primarily serve grammatical functions—connecting words, indicating relationships, or expressing mood.
Analogy: 虚词 are the glue, mortar, and nails.

(For completeness, remember these are the other major categories in the syllabus that we won't focus on here, as they are not 实词: 介词, 连词, 助词, 拟声词.)

第二部分：实词的详细分类与功能 (Detailed 实词 Categories and Functions)

1. 名词 (Míngcí) – Nouns

Nouns name people, places, things, concepts, or time. They are typically the Subject (主语) or Object (宾语) of a sentence.

主要特点 (Key Characteristics):

• Cannot usually be modified directly by adverbs like 很, 最 (e.g., *很学生* is wrong).
• Must usually be preceded by a 量词 (Measure Word) when counted (e.g., 一个苹果).

重要子类 (Important Subcategories):

1. 普通名词 (Common Nouns): 桌子 (table), 汽车 (car), 想法 (idea).
2. 专有名词 (Proper Nouns): Names of specific entities (e.g., 北京, 王老师, 《边城》).
3. 时间名词 (Time Nouns): Indicate time (e.g., 昨天, 星期一, 明年).
4. 方位名词 (Location/Direction Nouns): Indicate position relative to something else (e.g., 上边, 里头, 附近). These are often combined with 虚词 在 (e.g., 在桌子上).

2. 动词 (Dòngcí) – Verbs

Verbs express actions, movements, changes, states, or existence. They usually form the Predicate (谓语). Verbs are the engine of the Chinese sentence!

主要特点 (Key Characteristics):

• Can take the aspect particles 了 (completion), 着 (continuation), or 过 (experience).
• Can be modified by 副词 (Adverbs) (e.g., 慢慢地走).
• Many verbs can be reduplicated (e.g., 看看, 讨论讨论) to suggest a brief or relaxed action.

重要子类 (Important Subcategories):

1. 行为动词 (Action Verbs): Express physical or mental actions (e.g., 吃, 跑, 思考, 学习).
2. 系动词 (Linking/Copula Verbs): Used to link the subject to an attribute, the most common is 是 (shì). (e.g., 他是学生).
3. 能愿动词 / 助动词 (Modal/Auxiliary Verbs): Express possibility, necessity, or desire (e.g., 会, 能, 应该, 想要). These always precede the main verb.

3. 形容词 (Xíngróngcí) – Adjectives

Adjectives describe the qualities, properties, or states of nouns.

主要特点 (Key Characteristics):

• The most defining characteristic: Most adjectives can be directly modified by the adverb 很 (hěn), meaning "very" or just "quite" (e.g., 很热, 很美丽).
• Can function as the Predicate (谓语) of a sentence directly, often without needing 是 (e.g., 天气热. This is different from English!).
• When modifying a noun, they often require the particle 的 (e.g., 美丽的风景).

例子 (Examples):

高 (tall), 矮 (short), 聪明 (smart), 干净 (clean), 轻松 (relaxed).

4. 数词 (Shùcí) – Numerals & 量词 (Liàngcí) – Measure Words

These two categories work almost exclusively together to quantify nouns, forming the structure: 数词 + 量词 + 名词.

a) 数词 (Numerals):

Words that indicate precise quantity or order (e.g., 一, 二, 三, 第五, 百万).

b) 量词 (Measure Words / Classifiers):

These are obligatory words placed between the numeral and the noun. They classify the nature of the noun being counted (e.g., units, shapes, bundles).

• 个体量词 (Individual Measure Words): Used for specific types of nouns (e.g., 本 for books, 辆 for vehicles, 把 for things with handles).
• 借用量词 (Borrowed Measure Words): Nouns used as classifiers, usually indicating volume or mass (e.g., 一碗饭 (a bowl of rice), 一箱牛奶 (a box of milk)).

5. 代词 (Dàicí) – Pronouns

Pronouns are 实词 used to substitute for nouns or noun phrases to avoid repetition.

重要子类 (Important Subcategories):

1. 人称代词 (Personal Pronouns): Substitute for people (e.g., 我, 你, 他们, 咱们).
2. 指示代词 (Demonstrative Pronouns): Indicate location or identity (e.g., 这 (zhè - this), 那 (nà - that), 这样, 那么).
3. 疑问代词 (Interrogative Pronouns): Used in questions (e.g., 谁 (shéi - who), 什么 (shénme - what), 哪里 (nǎli - where)).

Did you know? In Chinese, it is much more common to omit the subject pronoun (e.g., “吃了饭吗？” instead of “你吃了饭吗？”) if the context is clear.

6. 副词 (Fùcí) – Adverbs

Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. They describe the manner, degree, time, frequency, or negation of an action or state.

主要特点 (Key Characteristics):

• Always placed before the verb or adjective they modify (e.g., 他很努力地工作).
• They **cannot** modify nouns directly (that's the job of an adjective or a phrase).

重要子类与例子 (Important Subcategories and Examples):

1. 程度副词 (Degree Adverbs): Modify adjectives or verbs to show intensity (e.g., 很, 非常, 最, 太).
2. 时间副词 (Time Adverbs): Indicate when (e.g., 已经 (yǐjīng - already), 马上 (mǎshàng - immediately), 刚才 (gāngcái - just now)).
3. 范围副词 (Scope Adverbs): Indicate extent (e.g., 都 (dōu - all), 只 (zhǐ - only), 一起 (yīqǐ - together)).
4. 否定副词 (Negative Adverbs): The most important are 不 (bù) and 没 (méi).

Don't worry if this seems tricky at first—the placement of 副词 in front of the verb/adjective is a consistent pattern you will master through practice!

第三部分：综合复习 (Comprehensive Review)

Keep practicing identifying these categories in context. When you read a text, try labeling the function of the 实词—this active approach will solidify your understanding and boost your grammatical confidence for the exam!

祝你学习顺利！ (Wish you smooth studies!)