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Verb auxiliary ellipsis
Actions & Events
Structure
Subject + (Auxiliary) + (Verb)
Explanation
In Chinese, a verb auxiliary or the main verb in an auxiliary-verb construction can be omitted when it is recoverable from context. This ellipsis creates a more concise expression while the meaning remains clear from the surrounding discourse. It commonly occurs in responses or coordinated clauses where repeating the full verb phrase would be redundant.
Examples
你想去吗？我想。
nǐ xiǎng qù ma? wǒ xiǎng.
Do you want to go? I do.
他会弹钢琴，我也会。
tā huì tán gāngqín, wǒ yě huì.
He can play the piano, and so can I.
她能来，但他不能。
Tā néng lái, dàn tā bù néng.
She can come, but he can't.