😅 我起床八点 Wait… That’s Wrong?!

If you say:

👉 我起床八点。(Wǒ qǐchuáng bā diǎn。) – I get up at 8 o’clock.

It might sound okay… but in Chinese, the word order is off! Let’s fix it.👇

❌ What’s wrong?

In Chinese, time words like 八点 (8 o’clock) usually go before the verb, not at the end.

So saying 我起床八点 sounds unnatural — kind of like saying “I get up 8 o’clock” with the words in the wrong place.

Wrong sentence:

❌ ~~我起床八点。Wǒ qǐchuáng bā diǎn。~~

Correct sentence:

✅ 我八点起床。Wǒ bā diǎn qǐchuáng。– I get up at 8 o’clock.

💡 The time comes right after the subject, before the verb.

🗣 Let’s look at a couple more natural Chinese sentences:

✅ 她八点半上班。 Tā bā diǎn bàn shàngbān。

👉🏼 She goes to work at 8:30.

✅ 我们六点吃饭。 Wǒmen liù diǎn chīfàn。

👉🏼 We eat at 6 o'clock.

Chinese follows a common pattern:

So instead of:

You should say:

This word order sounds natural to native speakers.

👉 In Chinese, put the time before the verb!

This helps listeners know when something happens before they hear what it is.

Can you fix the wrong sentences below?

1. ❌ 我上课九点。Wǒ shàngkè jiǔ diǎn。

2. ❌ 他睡觉十点半。Tā shuìjiào shí diǎn bàn。

3. ❌ 我们吃午饭十二点。Wǒmen chī wǔfàn shí’èr diǎn。

Correct answers:

1. ✅ 我九点上课。Wǒ jiǔ diǎn shàngkè。– I have class at 9 o’clock.

2. ✅ 他十点半睡觉。Tā shí diǎn bàn shuìjiào。– He goes to bed at 10:30.

3. ✅ 我们十二点吃午饭。Wǒmen shí’èr diǎn chī wǔfàn。– We eat lunch at 12.

📌 Put time before the verb to make your Chinese smoother and more natural.

Keep practicing and your word order will soon feel automatic! 💪😊