Fixed Frames: 从…来看、到…为止、在…看来
Three fixed frames (固定格式) for stating a viewpoint or a boundary.
从…来看 = 'judging from…'. Puts evidence before 来看:
从 + [evidence] + 来看，+ [conclusion]。
在…看来 = 'in X's opinion'. X must be a person/group, not evidence:
在 + [person] + 看来，+ [opinion]。
到…为止 = 'up until [time point]', marking a deadline/cutoff:
到 + [time point] + 为止，+ [state]。
Common mistake: using 在…看来 with evidence instead of a person — say 从这份数据来看, not 在这份数据看来。
Worked examples
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| 从他的话来看，他好像不太满意。 | Cóng tā de huà lái kàn, tā hǎo xiàng bú tài mǎn yì. | Judging from what he said, he doesn't seem very satisfied. | 从…来看 with evidence (他的话) before the conclusion. |
| 在老师看来，这篇作文写得非常好。 | Zài lǎo shī kàn lái, zhè piān zuò wén xiě de fēi cháng hǎo. | In the teacher's view, this essay is written very well. | 在…看来 with a person (老师) giving an opinion. |
| 到现在为止，还没有人能解决这个难题。 | Dào xiàn zài wéi zhǐ, hái méi yǒu rén néng jiě jué zhè gè nán tí. | Up until now, no one has been able to solve this difficult problem. | 到…为止 marks a time boundary (现在). |
| 从这几年的变化来看，到今年为止，这座城市的人口已经翻了一倍。 | Cóng zhè jǐ nián de biàn huà lái kàn, dào jīn nián wéi zhǐ, zhè zuò chéng shì de rén kǒu yǐ jīng fān le yí bèi. | Judging from the changes over these past few years, as of this year, this city's population has already doubled. | Combines 从…来看 and 到…为止 in one sentence. |
What you need first
Every topic in GraphChinese names its own prerequisites, and these are the grammar points this one is built on. If a sentence here will not parse, one of them is why.
Fixed Frames is one topic of 829. GraphChinese teaches them in prerequisite order, so this pattern reaches you on the day everything it rests on is proven. The whole course, HSK 0 through HSK 6, is $49 once for lifetime access.
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