Potential complements: V得/不C
Insert 得 or 不 between a verb and its result/directional complement to express can or cannot achieve that result.
Structure: Verb + 得/不 + Complement
| Positive | Negative | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 看得懂 | 看不懂 | can / can't understand by reading |
| 做得到 | 做不到 | can / can't accomplish |
| 吃得下 | 吃不下 | can / can't eat (more) |
| 走得了 | 走不了 | can / can't leave |
Key contrast: 看不懂 (potential — don't have the ability) vs 没看懂 (actual — didn't understand this time).
Worked examples
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| 这篇文章太难了，我看不懂。 | Zhè piān wén zhāng tài nán le, wǒ kàn bù dǒng. | This article is too hard; I can't understand it. | 看不懂 = potential negative: lack the ability to understand by reading |
| 放心吧，这点小事我做得到。 | Fàng xīn ba, zhè diǎn xiǎo shì wǒ zuò dé dào. | Don't worry — something this minor I can handle. | 做得到 = potential positive: capable of accomplishing |
| 行李太重，一个人搬不动，需要两个人帮忙。 | Xíng li tài zhòng, yī gè rén bān bù dòng, xū yào liǎng gè rén bāng máng. | The luggage is too heavy; one person can't move it — need two people. | 搬不动 = can't move (because it's too heavy); 动 = motion complement |
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.
What this opens up
These patterns list Potential complements among their own prerequisites, so they become readable once this one holds.
The same pattern at other levels
- Potential Complements — HSK 3
- Potential Complements — HSK 5
Potential complements 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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