Complements

Question 1

v + 得来

v + 不来

Answer 1

Often used with drink, eat and speak to indicate actions that are/are not compatible/agreeable (e.g. coffee does/doesn’t agree with me for liking/not liking it).
咖啡太苦，我和不来
他总是很多要求，我和她说不来 （don’t get on)
我们说得来 （we get on)

Question 2

v + 的了

v + 不了

Answer 2

Pronounced liao(3)
Indicates whether or not you are able to do something.
受得了 （endure/bear/put up with)
你拿不了 （you can’t take it)

Question 3

上 (not as a location word)

3 uses

Answer 3

1) touching, attaching or fixing, including wearing clothes, closing things (doors, books, bottles etc) completely and attaching one thing to another.
快把门关上
你穿上贸易就出去了
2) A goal has been achieved.
家家住上了大房子
他考上了最喜欢的大学 (got into his preferred university)
3) An amount or degree has been reached.
你好好睡上两天，病就好了

Question 4

v + 见 (resultative complement)

Answer 4

Indicates clearness
看见
听见

Question 5

v + 到 (resultative complement)

Answer 5

Indicates reaching (or, seemingly, arrival/completion). It is, therefore, also used for availability of items (is something within reach?)
看到
达到
走到
说到

Question 6

v + 完 (resultative complement)

Answer 6

Indicates completion
看完
说完

Question 7

v + 好 (resultative complement)

Answer 7

Indicates something being done properly (and completed)
说好
走好

Question 8

v + 光 (resultative complement)

Answer 8

Guang. Indicates something all gone, used up, finished (colloquial, often with food, drink, electricity, charge etc).
和光
吃光

As a word it means “alone” or “only”

Question 9

v + 掉 (resultative complement)

Answer 9

Diao（4）
Something removed, or done completely/entirely
喝掉
吃掉
去掉

Question 10

v + 懂 (resultative complement)

Answer 10

Indicates understanding
听懂
看懂

Question 11

v + 对 (resultative complement)

Answer 11

Indicates correctness
做对
写对

Question 12

v + 错 (resultative complement)

Answer 12

Indicates an error or mistake
写错
记错

Question 13

v + 住 (resultative complement)

Answer 13

Indicates tightness/firmness of grasp
记住 （i.e. to hold onto a memory tightly/to remember clearly)
拿住

Question 14

v + 清楚 (resultative complement)

Answer 14

Indicates clarity
听清楚
看清楚

Question 15

v + 起来

3 versions

Answer 15

1. The beginning and continuation of any action. 吃起来(start to eat); 他一会家就做起作业来了(as soon as he got hime he started to do his homework). It also here means something like, doing the action of. E.g. 听起来很好听 (sounds very nice - or more directly, when listening, the sound is pleasant),
2. That dispersed people and things are coming together/a persons process of recalling information has finished. 我想起来 (I realised - e.g. remembered why something is so); 我记不起来了（I couldn’t remember)
3. From a certain aspect (说起来容易，做起来难。
   这种东西用起来很方便)

Question 16

v + 得起

v + 不起

Answer 16

To be or not to be affordable (This is thing that can be meant with 得/不起 - anything else would be with 起 only)
有的五星级酒店太贵了，我住不起
我只买得起很小的房子

Question 17

v + 来 （complement of direction)

Answer 17

Indicates the direction of an action - to come (i.e towards the speaker)
小狗下楼来了

Question 18

v + 去 （complement of direction)

Answer 18

Indicates the direction of an action - to go (i.e. away from the speaker)
朋友回家去了

Question 19

下

Not as a complement of location - three additional uses

Answer 19

Indicates:
1) Separation or division (e.g. put the child down, or 他脱下衣服就开始做饭了)

2) Something has been fixed, set or made certain (e.g. I have remembered it/fixed it in my brain - but always a physical setting down with xia, not metaphorical, or 汽车在我面前停下了)
3) Capacity (e.g. this room has space for 100 people, or 我不太饿，吃不下这么多东西)

Question 20

过来

2 uses

Answer 20

1) To recover or change to a normal or positive state (天气暖和了，花草都醒过来了)
2) An object or person is coming over (他看见一辆汽车开了过来, 她正和朋友说着话，就看见她妈妈走了过来)

Question 21

起

Answer 21

On its own always refers to an action which is in progression - something that is developing.

Question 22

成 v 了

Answer 22

成 means an action has been completed (or in the right combination, that it can/can’t be completed).
了 means an action has been started/can be undertaken (or that it can be started).

Question 23

What is a compound complement and how do they work when referring to location?

Answer 23

Basically means using two verbs as a complement to another, rather than just one. The second is always 去 or 来.
For most things there are very options for sentence structure, but if used with a location then the location splits the compound complement and goes in the middle. E.g.
请把牛奶放进冰箱去

Question 24

出来 v 起来

Answer 24

出来 implies that the thing is intact, and/or that it has come out of nowhere. It can be used for spotting, identifying or detecting things e.g. music (which exist already, just not in your brain). 说出来 = speak out

起来 is about bringing existing thoughts together, so is a process which is reaching it’s conclusion.

Question 25

To have/not have time / be too late

Answer 25

来不及，来得及

Question 26

v + 掉 (comp)

Answer 26

diao (meaning to drop)
As a complement can be used for disappearance, done.

专家说，病毒是可以擦掉和洗掉的，因为它怕水。
要是在外国把护照掉了，你就应该去使馆申请【shen qing:apply】新护照。

Question 27

成 （comp）used with 把 structure

Answer 27

cheng

Indicates what something has become. Connected with 看 or 听 suggests a mistake:
你怎么会把‘大’字看成‘天’字了？
（How could you mistake the character 大for the character 天 ?)

Question 28

v + 遍

Answer 28

bian（4）

Indicates that something is everywhere or everything

Question 29

v + 满

Answer 29

man

Indicates that something is filled.

宿舍都已经住满了 (the dormitory is already full)
你的箱子还没装满 (your box is not full yet)

Question 30

破 (resultative complement)

Answer 30

po

Indicates that something is broken
英国与欧盟的贸易mao yi【trade】看起来进入无协议xie yi【agreement】的情况，要想打破这样的情况，需要双方的努力。

Question 31

V+ 下来 (complement)

Answer 31

1) To cease movement 停下来
2) To complete something 5000米跑下来 （ran 5000 metres)
3) Also, come down

Question 32

V + 断

Answer 32

duan, break, can be used as a complement.

To break. So 摔断 is to fall and break

Question 33

V + 清

Answer 33

Used to say that something is done in its entirely, normally that money has been paid (e.g. repayment is complete, mortgage is paid off).

一般来说，中国人不喜欢贷款，他们喜欢一次付清。

Question 34

A + 得不得了

Answer 34

不得了 on it’s own can mean ‘terrible’, but as a complement with the extra 得 it means extremely/ terribly, whether positive or negative (she’s terribly upset, he’s terribly excited)

她的 妈妈 刚 去世， 她 难过 得 不得了。
他 现在 火 得 不得了，每个人 都 知道 他 。

Question 35

A + 得很 / 得不得了 / 得要命 / 得不行

Answer 35

This is similar to adding 很 before an adjective, but strong and less formal.

我 好 得 很 ，你 不用 为 我 担心 。
这 个 地方 漂亮 得 很，非常 推荐 你 去 。

Question 36

V + 得下 / 不下

Answer 36

Whether or not something will fit (can it be held within)

我 的 车 太 小 ，坐 不 下 五 个 人 。

Question 37

着 (zhao, as a complement)

And with 得 / 不 first

Answer 37

Something has reached it’s purpose
睡着了 (fell asleep)
见着 （meet）

得着 / 不着 carry the meaning of being able/not able to do something