了
le
(completed action marker)
(modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause)
了 — the completion and change-of-state marker
Originally a verb meaning 'to finish' or 'to complete,' 了 was extended to mark that an action is done or that a situation has newly changed. Its simple shape carries no visual clue to this grammar — the meaning comes entirely from how speakers borrowed it for function.
Words with 了
嘎了
gǎ le
(slang) (I'm, you're) toast; so screwed; it's game over (for sb); (sth) bit the dust
欧了
ōu le
(coll.) okay (loanword from "over")
临了
lín liǎo
at the last moment
这还了得
zhè hái liǎo dé
How dare you!
过了这个村就没这个店
guò le zhè ge cūn jiù méi zhè ge diàn
past this village, you won't find this shop (idiom)
过了这村没这店
guò le zhè cūn méi zhè diàn
past this village, you won't find this shop (idiom)
远水救不了近火
yuǎn shuǐ jiù bu liǎo jìn huǒ
water in a distant place is of little use in putting out a fire right here
迟了
chí le
late
都什么年代了
dōu shén me nián dài le
What decade are you living in?
铁了心
tiě le xīn
determined
除了
chú le
apart from; besides; in addition to (used to exclude, as in 除了他，誰也沒來|除了他，谁也没来[chu2 le5 ta1 , shei2 ye3 mei2 lai2] "apart from him, nobody came", or to include, as in 除了英語，他也會法語|除了英语，他也会法语[chu2 le5 Ying1 yu3 , ta1 ye3 hui4 Fa3 yu3] "in addition to English, he also knows French")
饶了
ráo le
to spare