Chinese grammar - Prepositions with 有 or 没有

Prepositions with 有 or 没有

In Chinese, using prepositional verbs like 在 (zài) is often unnecessary when there is already a verb - other than 是 (shì) - in the sentence.

For instance when the principal verb in the sentence is 有 (yǒu) or 没有 (méi yǒu) then simple prepositions should be used.

These simple prepositions include:

• 里 (lǐ) means 'in', 'inside' or 'within'

• 上 (shàng) means 'on', 'above', 'over' or 'up'

• 下 (xià) means 'under'

Note that, unlike in English, these prepositions come 'after' the noun to which they refer.

Examples:
	公园里有一只猫。 gōngyuán lǐ yǒu yì zhī māo. There is a cat in the park. 只 (zhī) is the counter for certain small animals and birds 一 (yī) changes to fourth tone (yì) when followed by a non-fourth tone, such as in 一只 (yì zhī) 里 (lǐ) means 'in' 猫 (māo) means 'cat'
	学校里没有学生。 xuéxiào lǐ méi yǒu xuéshēng. There are no students in the school.
	包里没有钥匙。 bāo lǐ méi yǒu yàoshi. There are no keys in the bag. 包 (bāo) means 'bag' 钥匙 (yàoshi) means 'key'
	桌子上有一杯咖啡。 zhuōzi shàng yǒu yì bēi kāfēi. On the table there is a cup of coffee. 一 (yī) changes to fourth tone (yì) when followed by a non-fourth tone, such as 一杯 (yì bēi) 上 (shàng) means 'on' or 'up' 杯 (bēi) means 'cup'
	车里没有人。 chē lǐ méi yǒu rén. There is no one in the car. 车 (chē) means 'vehicle', 'car' or 'carriage'
	房间里有一张床。 fángjiān lǐ yǒu yì zhāng chuáng. In the room there is a bed. 房间 (fángjiān) means 'room'
	桌子下有一只猫。 zhuōzi xià yǒu yì zhī māo. There is a cat under the table. 下 (xià) means 'down'
	床下有一只狗。 chuáng xià yǒu yì zhī gǒu. Under the bed there is a dog. 狗 (gǒu) means 'dog'
	桥下有一条河。 qiáo xià yǒu yì tiáo hé. There is a river under the bridge. 条 (tiáo) is a measure word used to classify long, narrow, or flexible objects 桥 (qiáo) means 'bridge' 河 (hé) means 'river'
	教室里没有老师。 jiàoshì lǐ méi yóu lǎoshī. There is no teacher in the classroom. 有 (yǒu) shifts to second tone (yóu) before a third tone, as in 没有老师 (méi yóu lǎoshī), but consecutive second tones remain unchanged
	书架上没有笔。 shūjià shàng méi yóu bǐ. On the bookshelf there are no pens. 有 (yǒu) shifts to second tone (yóu) before a third tone, as in 没有笔 (méi yóu bǐ), but consecutive second tones remain unchanged 书架 (shūjià) means 'bookshelf'
	公园里有多少人？ gōngyuán lǐ yǒu duōshǎo rén? How many people are there in the park?
	家里有多少孩子？ jiā lǐ yǒu duōshǎo háizi? How many children are there in the family?