HSK 1
名词性词语、形容词性词语、数量短语作定语
míng cí xìng cí yǔ 、 xíng róng cí xìng cí yǔ 、 shù liàng duǎn yǔ zuò dìng yǔ
Adjectives, nouns, and quantity phrases as attributives
Explanation
Attributive (定语 dìngyǔ — an element placed before a noun to modify that noun). In Chinese, a noun, an adjective, or a quantity phrase can all serve as an attributive.
Attributive (+ 的 de) + Noun. Noun as attributive: 中文书 (Chinese-language book); adjective: 新书包 (new backpack); adjective + 的: 干净的房间 (clean room); quantity phrase: 两本书 (two books).
the particle (a function word added to the sentence to express a grammatical meaning, with no meaning of its own) 的 (de) is usually added when the attributive is multi-syllabic or when you want to emphasize it (干净的房间); 的 can be omitted with a familiar monosyllabic adjective (新书包) or a close/inherent relationship.
placing the attributive AFTER the noun out of Vietnamese habit (wrong: 书中文, 房间干净) — in Chinese the attributive ALWAYS comes before the noun.
Examples
He is reading a Chinese book.
The new backpack is very nice-looking.
I like a clean room.
She read two books.
Practice
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Learn “名词性词语、形容词性词语、数量短语作定语” effectively
The grammar point “名词性词语、形容词性词语、数量短语作定语” (Adjectives, nouns, and quantity phrases as attributives) is one of the key structures at HSK 1. To use it fluently, you need to understand the contexts where it's used and practice regularly.
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