When Chinese learners are making sentences, they sometimes have problems with the unfamiliar sentence structure. As a beginner, learning these four structures by heart will help you avoid committing grammatical mistakes when creating simple Chinese sentences:

Structure No.1: subject + verb + object

English

I am going to school.

Chinese (Pinyin)

wǒ  qù  xué xiào。

Literal translation: I go to school

Chinese (Character)

我去学校。

Structure No.2: subject + time + verb + object

English

I am going to school at 8 o’clock.

Chinese (Pinyin)

wǒ  bā diǎn  qù  xué xiào。

I at 8 o’clock go to school

Chinese (Character)

我八点去学校。

Structure No.3: subject + place + verb + object

English

I am having dinner at home.

Chinese (Pinyin)

wǒ  zài  jiā  chī  wǎn fàn。

I at home eat dinner 

Chinese (Character)

我在家吃晚饭。

Structure No.4: subject + time + place + verb + object

English

I am having dinner at home at 6:30.

Chinese (Pinyin)

wǒ  liù diǎn bàn  zài  jiā  chī  wǎn fàn。

I at 6.30 at home eat dinner

Chinese (Character)

我六点半在家吃晚饭。