grabbing something.

[莱利89]

What is the difference between： 他在把他的书 & 他拿着一个公文包?

 

I am having difficulty understand when to use 把 and when to use 拿着. Do they both mean to grab or grasp something?

I understand that carrying something or someone would be 我在背子我儿子 for example? Correct me if I am wrong, I know my grammar is probably incorrect in these sentences. 

 

 

 

[stapler]

拿 is a verb, and 把 is a grammatical particle (one that does not exist in European languages). See: http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%22Ba%22_sentence

 

Your first sentence is incorrect because you are using 把 as a verb rather than a grammatical particle. You have to say 我在拿着他的书 or 我把他的书拿[what you did with it - eg 走]

 

Also, 着 in this case is also a grammatical particle that modifies 拿. It changes it from "pick up" to "is holding" - it means the verb is in progress. See: http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_actions_in_progress_%28full_form%29

 

背 specifically means "carry on your back". Usually people would just say 带 - means to bring along/transport/etc. Chinese, unlike European languages, is verb heavy. Quite often English only uses one verb to cover three or more Chinese verbs.

 

I think (hopefully a more advanced learner can correct me if I'm wrong) you should say 我在背我儿子 - 背子 isn't a word (except for some in non-standard dialects, where it is a noun). Or you can say 把我儿子背到那里去 (see here how 把 is a grammar component, not a verb)

[莱利89]

Thanks for the response, those links and your explanation were both helpful.

[Tiana]

Stapler's reply is very good, but I should add that the example "我把他的书拿" has some element missing; and this missing element is actually the main reason for using 把: the main verb in a 把-structure generally requires some kind of complement: 他把我的书拿走了.

As to new comers to the language, I'd advise not to use 把 in the physical sense of "grab/ grabbing something".

[max_power]

他拿走了我的书/他把我的书拿走了 are telling the same thing. The difference in english is: 他拿走了我的书-- He took away my book. 他把我的书拿走了--- My book was taken away by him.

Got it?

[Enoxus]

把：形声字 (Phono-semantic compound character) , 从手, 巴声 。本义：握持、执。(complied with 手 as its radical,  with 巴 as its phonic root. Original meaning: Hold)

Basically, 扌related to 手(hand), 把 related to action, movement and motion with hands.

把有五种词性 has five parts of speech:

 

1. 动词 Verb

• 握 hold：把酒临风，把酒问青天
• 看守 guard：把门，把风，把守
• 按、诊 feel：把脉

2. 名词 Noun

• 把手 handle, bar, grip：车把（自行车把，摩托车把），门把手，把手

3. 形容词 Adjective

• 大约、差不多 about：个把月，百把公斤

4. 介词 Preposition

• 用在直接宾语之前，宾语的后面要跟着及物动词 Used before the Direct Object followed by a Transitive Verb：把书拿走！把手拿开！把门关上！
• 处置 manage, handle, act：把头一甩
• 导致、致使 cause, lead to：把人急死了！把我烦死了！
• 相当于“被” equivalent to passive tense (-ed by)：他把她迷住了 She got attracted by him.

5. 量词 Quantifier

• 用于有柄的器具 used for appliances with handles：一把刀，一把椅子
• 一只手抓起的数量 refers to amount, volume that a hand can grab or pick up：一把土，一把米
• 一次手的动作或一股手的力量 a hand movement or a handful power or force：看在上帝的份上，拉兄弟一把吧。。。帮我一把好吗？

 

Your question can be explained by words highlighted in brown color.

 

 

拿（合+手） is more easier to understand. 拿 has two parts of speech: verb and preposition. 拿 simply means hold (holding, held) as a verb, no matter combined with 着 or 了 or 过。

 

When 拿 is used as a preposition, it means to rely on, be based on, depend on: 拿事实说话。The interesting (complicated) thing is, as a preposition, 拿 can also be equivalent to 把 as a preposition：别拿豆包不当干粮！

 

Lastly, as a preposition, 拿 sometimes used with 来说，来讲 to quote or give an example: 拿这件事来讲。拿你的这个话题来说。

 

 

There are several characters can be used to describe grab or grasp: 抓，握，攥，捏，拿, it depends on what and how you grab or grasp. Small objects can be 握，攥，捏，larger ones need to be 拿 or 抓。