Here's something that catches many learners off guard: to say you have not done something in Mandarin, you never use 不 (bù) — you use 没 (méi). That quirk exists because 过 (guò) marks experiences, and in Chinese, experiences are negated with 没, never 不.
Add 过 right after any verb to say you've done that action before. It functions like "have been" or "have ever tried" in English, and the structure is simple: Verb + 过.
For example, 我去过中国 (wǒ qùguò Zhōngguó) — "I have been to China." To ask whether someone has done something, add 吗 (ma): 你吃过北京烤鸭吗？(nǐ chīguò Běijīng kǎoyā ma?) — "Have you ever tried Peking duck?" Negate the whole thing with 没 (méi): 没 + 过, never 不.
In this roughly 10-minute live conversation, you talk out loud with AI teacher Mei Lin about places you've visited, foods you've tried, and movies you've watched. Mei Lin corrects your grammar and pronunciation in the flow of conversation and adapts to your level. You'll practice both sharing your own experiences using 过 (guò) and asking others about theirs.
This lesson is part of our HSK 2 lessons series. If you've just finished Making Comparisons with 比 (bǐ) or talking about things about to happen with 要...了 (yào...le), this is a natural next step.
You can try your first lesson free. To reinforce what you learn, print handwriting sheets with our free Chinese worksheet generator — ready-made packs cover HSK 1 through 3 vocabulary.
过 (guò) is an experiential aspect marker in Mandarin. You place it right after a verb to say you've done that action before — like "have been" or "have ever tried" in English. For example, 我去过中国 (wǒ qùguò Zhōngguó) means "I have been to China."
You negate 过 with 没 (méi), never 不 (bù). Because 过 marks experiences, and in Mandarin experiences are negated with 没. So "I haven't been to China" becomes 我没去过中国 (wǒ méi qùguò Zhōngguó). Using 不 here would sound wrong to native speakers.
In this live voice lesson with Mei Lin, you'll practice talking about things you've done before — places you've visited, foods you've tried, and movies you've watched — and ask others about their experiences using 过 (guò). The lesson takes about 10 minutes and targets this one grammar pattern.
Yes. This is an HSK 2 lesson focused on the Experiential Aspect (Have Done Before) pattern with 过. It's part of the HSK 2 live lesson series, and each lesson targets one specific grammar point in roughly 10 minutes of real-time conversation with Mei Lin.