Checking the apartment before leaving | Learn Chinese in English

Sentence explanations

1. 我们离开前，应该检查一下公寓。

   Before we leave, we should check the apartment.

   我们

   we; us

   离开

   leave

   前

   before

   应该

   should; ought to

   检查

   check; inspect

   一下

   briefly; a little

   公寓

   apartment

   More detail

   我们 means “we” or “us.” It is a first-person plural pronoun; Chinese does not mark an inclusive versus exclusive “we” in this form. Here it is the subject understood with the later action 离开. 离开 means “to leave” or “to depart.” It is a verb that can be used before a place or situation: 离开房间 means “leave the room.” In 离开前, it forms the time expression “before leaving.” 前 means “before” when it follows an event or action. The pattern verb + 前 means “before doing ...”: 吃饭前洗手 means “Wash your hands before eating.” In this sentence, the understood subject of 离开前 is 我们. 应该 means “should” or “ought to.” It is a modal verb placed before the action it evaluates: 应该检查 means “should check.” It expresses a recommendation or appropriate action, rather than stating that the checking has already happened. 检查 means “to check” or “to inspect.” It is a verb for examining something to make sure it is in order. For example, 请检查答案 means “Please check the answer.” 一下 follows a verb and makes the action sound brief, light, or less imposing. In 检查一下, it does not assert a measurable quantity; it presents the checking as a quick check. The verb and 一下 form a common reusable pattern: 看一下 means “take a quick look.” 公寓 means “apartment.” It is a noun referring to an apartment or flat. In 检查一下公寓, it is the object of 检查, the thing being checked. Together, 我们离开前 sets the time as “before we leave.” 应该检查一下公寓 says that we should make a brief check of the apartment. The whole utterance therefore means: “Before we leave, we should check the apartment.”

2. 我已经关掉炉子了。

   I already turned off the stove.

   我

   I; me

   已经

   already

   关掉

   turn off

   炉子

   stove

   More detail

   我 means “I” or “me.” It is a first-person pronoun and does not change for subject or object use. Example: 我检查窗户。—“I check the windows.” 已经 means “already.” It places an action before the relevant reference point and commonly appears with 了 when the speaker presents the action as completed or as a resulting change. Example: 我已经吃饭了。—“I have already eaten.” 关掉 means “turn off” here. It combines 关, “close or switch off,” with the result complement 掉, which emphasizes that the thing is removed from its operating state. With an appliance, 关掉 is a useful pattern for switching it off. This differs from 关上, which commonly describes closing something such as a door or window. Example: 请关掉电视。—“Please turn off the television.” 炉子 means “stove.” It is a noun for the cooking appliance or burner unit. Example: 这个炉子很热。—“This stove is very hot.” The final 了 presents the turning-off as completed or as a newly relevant state. It does not by itself mean that the action must have happened at a specific past time. A reusable pattern is: subject + 已经 + action/result phrase + object + 了. In this sentence, 我 identifies the speaker, 已经 marks the action as already completed, 关掉 expresses switching off, and 炉子 is the object. Together, 我已经关掉炉子了。means “I already turned off the stove.”

3. 所有窗户都关上了吗？

   Are all the windows closed?

   所有

   all

   窗户

   window(s)

   都

   all; without exception

   关上

   close; shut

   吗

   question particle

   More detail

   所有 means “all” and forms a complete-set expression. In the reusable pattern 所有 + noun, it identifies the whole relevant set: 所有窗户 = “all the windows.” 窗户 means “window.” Its plural meaning here comes from the combination with 所有; the noun itself does not need a separate plural ending in this sentence. 都 means “all” or “without exception” and commonly follows the set or plural expression it applies to. 所有窗户都…… is a useful pattern meaning “all the windows …,” with 都 marking that the statement applies to every member of the set. 关上 means “close” or “shut” in the sense of bringing something to a closed state. 关 is the base verb “close”; 上 functions here as a result complement, showing that the closing reaches the intended result. For example, 请关上门。 means “Please close the door.” 吗 is a sentence-final question particle. It turns the preceding statement into a generally neutral yes-or-no question; it does not itself mean “all” or “closed.” Together, 所有窗户 identifies the complete set of windows, 都关上 asks whether every one of them has been brought to a closed state, and 吗 marks the whole utterance as a question. The complete meaning is “Are all the windows closed?”

4. 卧室的窗户还开着。

   The bedroom window is still open.

   卧室

   bedroom

   的

   possessive linker

   窗户

   window

   还

   still

   开着

   be open

   More detail

   卧室 means “bedroom.” It is a noun and can modify another noun directly when linked by 的. Example: 卧室很小。 — “The bedroom is small.” 的 links a preceding modifier to the noun that follows it. Here, 卧室的窗户 means “the bedroom’s window” or “the window of the bedroom.” This pattern is reusable as A 的 B, meaning “B associated with A”; the relationship may be possession, location, or another clear connection. 窗户 means “window.” It is the head noun of 卧室的窗户, so the whole noun phrase refers to a window associated with the bedroom. Example: 客厅的窗户很大。 — “The living-room window is large.” 还 means “still” here. It indicates that the state described by the predicate continues at the relevant time. It normally appears before the predicate: 门还开着。 — “The door is still open.” 开着 describes an open state that is continuing or maintained. 开 is the base verb “to open” or “to be open,” while 着 marks the resulting state as ongoing. Thus, 开着 focuses on something being in the open state, rather than on the action of opening it. Compare 开窗户 — “open the window” — with 窗户开着 — “the window is open.” Chinese does not need a separate equivalent of English “is” before this predicate: the noun phrase can be followed directly by a state such as 开着. The combination 还 + 开着 gives “still open,” and 卧室的窗户 supplies the subject. Together, 卧室的窗户还开着。 means “The bedroom window is still open.”

5. 我来关上它，再锁上阳台门。

   I'll close it and lock the balcony door.

   我来

   I’ll do it / let me

   关上

   close; shut

   它

   it

   再

   then; and then

   锁上

   lock

   阳台门

   balcony door

   More detail

   我来 combines 我 “I” with 来 “come,” but here 来 marks the speaker’s taking responsibility for the next action: “I’ll do it” or “let me.” It is a reusable way to volunteer to perform an action, rather than simply stating physical movement toward the speaker. 关上 means “close completely.” 关 is the verb “close,” and 上 is a result complement showing that the closing reaches the intended result. This pattern is useful with things that can be opened and closed. Example: 请关上窗户。 — “Please close the window.” 它 is the third-person pronoun “it,” used here as the object of 关上. Its grammatical form does not change for gender or number in this sentence; the specific object is supplied by the surrounding situation. 再 means “then” or “after that” here. It places the following action after the completed closing action. This sequencing use differs from using 再 merely to mean “again” without a stated order. 锁上 means “lock.” 锁 is the verb “to lock,” and 上 is again a result complement, indicating that the locking is completed. Example: 出门前要锁上门。 — “You should lock the door before going out.” 阳台门 is the noun compound “balcony door”: 阳台 means “balcony” and 门 means “door.” In this compound, 阳台 specifies the type or location of door; it is not a separate action. Taken together, 我来关上它 says “I’ll close it,” with the speaker volunteering to do so. 再锁上阳台门 adds the next action: “and then lock the balcony door.” The complete utterance therefore means, “I’ll close it and lock the balcony door.”

6. 走廊的灯还亮着。

   The hallway lights are still on.

   走廊

   hallway

   灯

   light; lamp

   还

   still

   亮着

   be on; remain lit

   More detail

   走廊 means “hallway” and can appear in compounds or noun phrases such as 走廊门 (“hallway door”). Here it is followed by 的, so 走廊的 means “of the hallway” or “hallway’s” and modifies the next noun. 灯 means “light” or “lamp.” In this sentence, the fixed translation identifies it as the hallway lights. Chinese nouns usually do not mark singular versus plural by changing form; number is understood from context or expressed separately when needed. 还 means “still” here: the situation continues from an earlier or expected point. It is placed before the state being described. Example: 他还在家。 — “He is still at home.” 亮着 describes the continuing state of being lit or on. 亮 is the basic form meaning “bright” or “lit,” while 着 marks the ongoing state resulting from or maintained by that condition. This is different from simply describing brightness without emphasizing the continuing state. Example: 门口的灯亮着。 — “The light by the entrance is on.” Together, 走廊的灯 identifies the lights belonging to or located in the hallway, and 还亮着 says that their on-state is continuing. The whole utterance therefore means “The hallway lights are still on.”

7. 所以我来把它们关掉。

   So I'll turn them off.

   所以

   so

   我来

   I’ll do it / let me

   它们

   them

   关掉

   turn off

   More detail

   所以 means “so” or “therefore.” It links this action to what has just been established: the hallway lights are still on. A reusable pattern is 所以 + clause for a consequence. 我来 is a compact way to say “I’ll do it” or “let me handle it” in this context. 我 is “I/me,” while 来 literally means “come,” but here it introduces the speaker’s taking responsibility for the next action. It is not simply a general future-tense ending. Example: 我来帮你。— “Let me help you.” 它们 means “them” for multiple non-human or unspecified-gender referents. In this bounded context, it refers to the hallway lights mentioned as still being on. Chinese does not mark plural with a change in the pronoun itself: 它 can refer to one such referent, and 它们 to more than one. 关掉 means “turn off” or “switch off.” 关 is the base verb “close” or “turn off,” and 掉 is a result complement showing that the relevant state is removed; together, 关掉 presents the action as switching something off. This differs from 关上, which more specifically emphasizes closing something into a closed position. Example: 请关掉电视。— “Please turn off the television.” Together, 所以 + 我来 + 它们 + 关掉 produces: “So I’ll turn them off.” The speaker presents switching off the hallway lights as the next action and takes responsibility for doing it.

8. 应该就这些了。

   That should be everything.

   应该

   should; be expected to

   就这些了

   that’s all

   More detail

   应该 is a modal word meaning “should” here: the speaker expects the situation to be true. It comes before the part being assessed. In other contexts, 应该 can express what someone ought to do, so the surrounding predicate distinguishes expectation from obligation. Example: 他应该到了。 — “He should have arrived.” 就这些了 is a compact way to say “that’s all.” 这些 means “these (things),” while 就 gives the limiting sense “just” or “only.” The exact things are not named in this utterance; the context supports understanding them as the relevant things under discussion. 了 here is sentence-final: it presents this as the current, newly settled situation. It does not independently mean “complete.” Example: 这些就是我的问题。 — “These are my questions.” Together, 应该 expresses the speaker’s expectation, and 就这些了 says that the relevant set is limited to these things. The whole utterance means “That should be everything.”

9. 趁还不太晚，我们走吧。

   Let's go before it gets too late.

   趁还不太晚

   before it gets too late

   我们

   we; us

   走吧

   let’s go

   More detail

   趁还不太晚 means “before it gets too late” here. 趁 introduces a time window or condition that is still available: 趁 + clause can mean “while/before …”. In this sentence, 还 means “still/yet,” 太 means “too,” and 晚 means “late,” so 还不太晚 is “it is not too late yet.” The phrase is not simply a general word for “before”; it highlights taking action while the situation remains suitable. Example: 趁天气还好，我们出去吧。 — “Let’s go out while the weather is still good.” 我们 is the first-person plural pronoun “we/us.” Chinese does not mark this pronoun for grammatical gender. 我 means “I/me,” and adding 们 forms a plural pronoun: 我们 = “we/us.” Example: 我们现在走。 — “We are leaving now.” 走吧 combines 走, whose basic meaning is “walk” or “go,” with sentence-final 吧. Here 走 is used as a proposed action, and 吧 makes the utterance a suggestion: “let’s go.” 吧 does not itself mean “go”; it marks the speaker’s suggestion or softens the proposal. Example: 我们回家吧。 — “Let’s go home.” Together, 趁还不太晚 sets the time condition, 我们 identifies the people included in the proposal, and 走吧 proposes leaving. The whole utterance means: “Let’s go before it gets too late.”