了 and 过 in real talk

Goals

• Use 了 for a new situation (我太累了)
• Use 了 after a verb for a finished event (我吃了)
• Use 过 for “have you ever”
• Stop translating every English past tense into 了

Change-of-state 了

下雨了. 我饿了. Something is now the case. English past tense is the wrong teacher here.

太贵了, 好了, 对了 live in this family. You already said some of them.

If nothing changed, you may not need 了. 我是学生 is not 我是学生了 unless becoming a student is the news.

Done-event 了

我吃了. 他走了. The event is through. Time words still sit where time words sit: 我昨天吃了饺子.

A beginner mistake is 了 on every verb in a story. Pick the events that are finished and relevant.

Negate a completed event with 没 (not 不了): 我没吃.

过 as experience

你去过北京吗？ asks whether the experience exists in your life, not whether you went this morning.

我没去过 is the usual no. 过 and 了 can combine later; this week, keep 过 for “ever.”

Open the 过 pattern page and run the cloze items after this lesson.

Takeaways

• 了 often marks change or a finished event, not English “-ed.”
• 没, not 不, for “didn’t.”
• 过 is “ever / once before.”

Quick check