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A1 · Grammar reference

Wanting to do something with "yao"

The auxiliary verb 要 (yào) has several different meanings, and here we'll tackle the "want to" meaning. To express "wanting to do" something, use 要 (yào) before the verb.

Structure

Subj. + 要 + Verb + Obj.

Keywords
要 · want
Used for
Expressing desires · Expressing determination · Referring to the future · Expressing purpose
Classification
Verbs · HSK2

Examples (9)

他要学中文。

宝宝要睡觉。

早饭我要吃肉。

今天很累,我要休息。

这个周末你们要做什么?

我要喝咖啡。

我想喝咖啡。

你要吃什么?

你想吃什么?

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Full explanation at AllSet Learning

Summary, structure, classification, and adapted sentence examples draw from the AllSet Learning Chinese Grammar Wiki under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0; changes were made. This noncommercial reference is based on an October 2023 snapshot.

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