When do I have to repeat verbs with the 得 structure?

[2bwo]

I'm learning about the degree complement 得. I understood how to use it but what is not clear to me is when do I have to repeat the first syllable of the verb.

For example, there's a sentence which is 我游泳游得不太好 and another one which is 我准备得好 referring to an exam. My question is: why in the first case you need to repeat the first syllable while in the second you don't need to? How do I know when I have to repeat it or not?

[陳德聰]

It depends on what two characters the two-syllable verb is composed of.

 

When a two-syllable verb is composed of a Verb-Object pairing, then you get a repetition in a phrase with 得. When the two-syllable verb is composed of a Verb-Verb pairing, you don’t repeat it.

 

Some people refer to the Verb-Object pairing as “Separable Verbs”, but I think that glosses over what’s actually happening.

 

E.g.

游泳 swim (a swim)

吃飯 eat (a meal)

跑步 run (steps)

起床 get up (from bed)

 

vs.

 

準備 prepare

發現 realise

工作 work

 

As a learner, I don’t know if you can necessarily know from just looking at a verb which type it is, unless you recognise the second character as being an object you already know. But notice that 泳 飯 步 床 are all nouns?  

[2bwo]

Thank you a lot for your reply, that actually makes things clear

What tricked me though, is that on Pleco Dictionary for Android 备 is also considered a noun with the meaning of "equipment", not only a verb. Why is that?

[Shelley]

Chinese nouns can also be verbs. It also means "to equip" . The PLC entry in Pleco list verbs, nouns, and adverbs under the headword 备。 if you look under the words tab there are lots of examples of it being used in many ways.

 

In English the same thing can happen - I am going for a swim.   or  I like to swim once a week. 

 

These things are not set in stone

[somethingfunny]

Yes, you have to be careful with these and work out which ones can be separated.  I remember once talking to a student:

 

Me: 你做什么？

Student: 我读书。

Me: 你读什么书？

 

Where's that facepalm emoticon.  The stupid thing is, I did actually want to know what subject they were studying and this was my brain's first idea for how to ask that.

[Publius]

I remember someone mentioned that the ABC Dictionary marks these verb+object verbs as v.o., quite useful if you can afford the price.

[2bwo]

4 hours ago, somethingfunny said:

Yes, you have to be careful with these and work out which ones can be separated.  I remember once talking to a student:

 

Me: 你做什么？

Student: 我读书。

Me: 你读什么书？

 

Where's that facepalm emoticon.  The stupid thing is, I did actually want to know what subject they were studying and this was my brain's first idea for how to ask that.

Is it wrong asking it that way? I'd do the same...

How should I say it then?

[somethingfunny]

读书 means to study (a course), but if you separate them out it means to read a book.  So the conversation in English would have been:

 

Me:  What do you do?

Student: I'm studying.

Me: What book are you reading?

[陳德聰]

It's actually kind of amusing to think about, but that conversation (if you have an imprecise personality) could look like this:

 

A: 你做什麼？

B: 我讀書

A: 你讀什麼？

[2bwo]

Got it now, thank you guys. I wish to reach your level one day