昨天 · 今天 · 明天
yesterday, this year, next week: time words go before the verb
Structure
前天／昨天／今天／明天／后天 · 去年／今年／明年 · 上／这／下 + （个） + 星期／月
What it means
Time words for days, years, weeks and months. Like all time words, they go before the verb.
How it is built
Days: 前天, 昨天, 今天, 明天, 后天. Years: 去年, 今年, 明年. 上/这/下 + (个) + 星期/月: 上个星期 last week, 下个月 next month. 我明年去北京学习。
When to use it
Put them after the subject or at the very start: 我明天去 or 明天我去. Picture a wall calendar: earlier weeks are 上, “above”, later ones 下, “below”.
Watch out
Never at the end as in English: ✗ 我去北京明天 ✓ 我明天去北京. Here 上 means “last”, not “on”: 上个月 = last month.
Examples
昨天星期五，今天星期六。
Yesterday was Friday; today is Saturday.
我明年去北京学习。
Next year I’m going to Beijing to study.
下星期三我们开会。
We have a meeting next Wednesday.
上个星期天我们去了书店。
Last Sunday we went to the bookshop.
Learn this in HSK 1 · Lesson 8: 今天几月几号 (Dates and the calendar)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
Open the lesson →