Lessons 1-10

Lesson 12 你去过中国吗? Have you been to China?

大连 Dàlián Dalian / 上海 Shànghǎi Shanghai / 北京 Běijīng Beijing
/ 过 guò been to (experienced) /
The character 过 guó means "to pass, or to spend", as in "How did you spend your holiday?" When added to another verb, however, it connotes have done that action in the past. When using 过 guó to describe past actions the emphasis is on having had the experience, in terms of English grammar it is similar to the present perfect tense ("I have been to China. I have read that book. etc.") Of course, "Have you been to XYZ?" is a common question when talking to foreigners, and is a great way to get a real conversation going.

Example sentences:

王 小姐 去过 美国。 Ms. Wang has been to the United States.
Wáng xiǎojiě qùguò Měiguó.
Wang little-big-sister go-experienced beautiful-country.

我 没 去过 美国。 I haven't been to the United States.
Wǒ méi qùguò Měiguó.
I not go-experienced beautiful-country..

你 去过 中国 吗? Have you been to China?
Nǐ qùguò Zhōngguó ma?
You go-experienced middle-country question?

我 没 去过 大连 。 I haven't been to Dalian.
Wǒ méi qùguò Dàlián.
I not go-experienced Big Connection

我 去过 上海。 I have been to Shanghai.
Wǒ qùguò Shànghǎi.
I go-experienced On-the-Sea.

你 去 过 北京 吗? Have you been to Beijing?
Nǐ qùguò Běijīng ma?
You go-experienced North-Capital question?

你 去 过 美国 吗? Have you been to the United States?
Nǐ qùguò Měiguó ma?
You go-experienced beautiful-country question?

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Sound files for the example sentences:

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>> Download JN teacher reading these sentences (right click to save)

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Dialogue:

A 你去过桂林吗?
   Nĭ qùguò Guìlín ma?
   Have you been to Guilin?

B 是, 我去过。
   Shì wŏ qùguò.
   Yes, I have been there.

A 你喜欢吗?
   Nĭ xǐhuɑn ma?
   Did you like it?

B 很喜欢。桂林很漂亮。
   Hĕn xǐhuɑn. Guìlín hĕn piàoliɑng
   I liked it a lot. Guilin is very pretty.

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Sound files for the dialogue:

>> Download MQ teacher and VG teacher performing this dialogue (right click to save)

>> Download DL teacher and DP teacher performing this dialogue (right click to save)

Lessons 11-20
Lessons 21-30
Lessons 31-40
Lessons 41-50
Lessons 51-60
Lessons 61-70
Lessons 71-80
Lessons 81-90
Lessons 91-100
Lessons 101-110
Lessons 111-120
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The Mandarin language is not as difficult as you might think. There’s a reason why it’s the world’s most spoken language! A lingua franca for much of Northern China since the Yuan dynasty, Mandarin has a simple, no-nonsense grammatical system and a vocabulary that builds upon itself. So don’t be daunted! You too can speak this beautiful language.