| Let's look at the sentence pattern. |
| Do you remember how the character said, |
| "In the evening, I'm also going to drink with a few friends at a bar. " |
| 晚上，我还要跟几个朋友在酒吧喝酒。(Wǎnshàng, wǒ hái yào gēn jǐ gè péngyǒu zài jiǔbā hējiǔ. ) |
| 晚上，我还要跟几个朋友在酒吧喝酒。(Wǎnshàng, wǒ hái yào gēn jǐ gè péngyǒu zài jiǔbā hējiǔ. ) |
| This sentence follows the pattern here: |
| [Subject] + 要 + 跟 + [Companions] + 在 + [Location] + [Verb Phrase] |
| [Subject] + yào + gēn + [Companions] + zài + [Location] + [Verb Phrase] |
| [Subject] + going to + with + [Companions] + at/in + [Location] + [Verb Phrase] |
| This pattern helps you express what you are going to do, with whom, and where. |
| The verb 要 (yào) literally means "want to," when talking about plans, it translates into "going to," 跟 (gēn) means "with," and 在 (zài) marks the location. |
| You can use this pattern to talk about everyday plans, like studying, shopping, or meeting friends. |
| Let's see how the line from the dialogue uses the pattern. |
| 晚上，我还要跟几个朋友在酒吧喝酒。(Wǎnshàng, wǒ hái yào gēn jǐ gè péngyǒu zài jiǔbā hējiǔ.) |
| "In the evening, I'm also going to drink with a few friends at a bar." |
| Let's break it down: |
| 晚上 (wǎnshàng), meaning "in the evening," sets the time but is not part of the core sentence pattern. |
| 我 (wǒ), the subject, meaning "I," |
| 还要 (hái yào), meaning "also going to. "要 is the key verb of intention. 还 is an adverb that modifies the verb 要, which means still or also. |
| 跟几个朋友 (gēn jǐ gè péngyou), meaning "with a few friends" — matching the 跟 + [Companions] part of the pattern. |
| 在酒吧 (zài jiǔbā), meaning "at a bar" — matching 在 + [Location] |
| 喝酒 (hējiǔ), meaning "to drink (alcohol)" — this is the verb phrase, the planned activity. |
| Another useful pattern is |
| [Subject] + 要 + 去 + [Location] + [Verb Phrase] |
| 我要去健身房锻炼 (wǒ yào qù jiànshēnfáng duànliàn) |
| "I'm going to the gym to work out." |
| 我 (wǒ), the subject, meaning "I," |
| 要 (yào), meaning "going to." |
| 去 (qù), meaning "to go" — this adds the idea of movement toward a location. |
| 健身房 (jiànshēnfáng), meaning "gym." |
| 锻炼 (duànliàn), meaning "to work out." |
| 我要去健身房锻炼 (wǒ yào qù jiànshēnfáng duànliàn) |
| Now, you know how to talk about your plans in Chinese! |
| You might notice that "我要..." (wǒ yào...) sometimes translates to "I want to...," and sometimes "I'm going to..." |
| In daily conversation, both meanings are correct, and context usually tells you which one it is. In this lesson, we focus on talking about plans, so 我要去健身房锻炼 is better understood as "I'm going to the gym to work out," because the speaker is talking about a plan, not just a desire. |
| The key pattern sentence 我还要跟几个朋友在酒吧喝酒 also expresses the speaker's plan. So it's more natural to translate it as "I'm also going to drink with a few friends at a bar." |
| Now let's look at some speaking examples. |
| 我要跟朋友在图书馆学习。(Wǒ yào gēn péngyou zài túshūguǎn xuéxí.) |
| "I'm going to study with my friend at the library." |
| Can you see how the pattern applies here? |
| Let's break it down: |
| 我 (wǒ), the subject, meaning "I," |
| followed by |
| 要 (yào), meaning "going to" |
| next |
| 跟朋友 (gēn péngyou), meaning "with (a) friend," |
| then |
| 在图书馆 (zài túshūguǎn), meaning "at the library," |
| and finally |
| 学习 (xuéxí), meaning "to study." |
| It matches our pattern: |
| [Subject] + 要 + 跟 + [Companions] + 在 + [Location] + [Verb Phrase] |
| Here's another example |
| 她要跟同事在办公室开会。(Tā yào gēn tóngshì zài bàngōngshì kāihuì.) |
| "She's going to have a meeting with her colleagues at the office." |
| 她要跟同事在办公室开会。(Tā yào gēn tóngshì zài bàngōngshì kāihuì.) |
| "She's going to have a meeting with her colleagues at the office." |
| Let's try one more, |
| 他们要跟老师在教室上课。(Tāmen yào gēn lǎoshī zài jiàoshì shàngkè.) |
| "They are going to attend class with the teacher in the classroom." |
| 他们要跟老师在教室上课。(Tāmen yào gēn lǎoshī zài jiàoshì shàngkè.) |
| "They are going to attend class with the teacher in the classroom." |
| Another one. |
| 我明天要去商场买东西。(Wǒ míngtiān yào qù shāngchǎng mǎi dōngxi.) |
| "Tomorrow I'm going to the mall to shop." |
| 我明天要去商场买东西。(Wǒ míngtiān yào qù shāngchǎng mǎi dōngxi.) |
| "Tomorrow I'm going to the mall to shop." |
| This matches our second pattern: |
| [Subject] + 要 + 去 + [Location] + [Verb Phrase] |
| One last example. |
| 我们周末要跟朋友在公园跑步。(Wǒmen zhōumò yào gēn péngyou zài gōngyuán pǎobù.) |
| "We're going to go running with friends in the park this weekend." |
| 我们周末要跟朋友在公园跑步。(Wǒmen zhōumò yào gēn péngyou zài gōngyuán pǎobù.) |
| "We're going to go running with friends in the park this weekend." |
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