得
dé
Degree complement
得 attaches a judgement about how well the action is performed.
Verb + 得 + Adj.
How it works
你做得不错 — you did that well. 他跑得很快 — he runs fast. The 得 links the verb to the assessment.
When there's an object, the verb repeats: 他说中文说得很好. Dropping the first verb is the most common learner error here.
Negate the adjective, not the verb: 他跑得不快.
Examples
nǐ zuò dé bú cuò
你做得不错。
You did that well.
tā pǎo dé hěn kuài
他跑得很快。
He runs fast.
tā shuō zhōng wén shuō dé hěn hǎo
他说中文说得很好。
He speaks Chinese very well.
Common mistakes
- 他说中文得很好 is wrong — repeat the verb: 说中文说得很好.