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Progressive Aspect

Learn how to describe actions happening right now in Chinese using the progressive aspect marker 正在.

To show that an action is currently ongoing (like "-ing" in English), Chinese places the progressive aspect marker 正在 (zhèngzài) directly before the action verb:

我正在看書。

I am reading a book.

This applies directly to any SVO structure, including sports and chores, to denote active progress.

Practice

Follow along with these examples to strengthen your understanding.

Assistant

你正在做什麼？

What are you doing?

我正在喝茶。

I am drinking tea.

Assistant

他正在做什麼？

What is he doing?

他正在看書。

He is reading a book.

Assistant

她正在做什麼？

What is she doing?

她正在打網球。

She is playing tennis.

Assistant

你正在做什麼？

What are you doing?

我正在打掃房間。

I am cleaning the room.

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