n.
last year
去年
last year
Literally 'gone year' (去 go/leave + 年 year). Refers to the previous calendar year; say 去年冬天 (last winter).
Common Usage & Traps
- 去年买了新电脑 — bought a new computer last year
- 去年的照片 — last year's photos
- 去年夏天 — last summer
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在去年去年English 'in last year' tempts you to add 在, but bare 去年 is the normal time word. 在去年 sounds stiff or redundant in everyday speech.
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我买了新电脑去年我去年买了新电脑English puts 'last year' at the end, but Chinese time words usually go before the verb or at the front.
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去年照片去年的照片A time word plus a general noun usually needs 的. Without it, the phrase sounds like a clipped label.
Can you say 我买了新电脑去年 for 'I bought a new computer last year'?
No. 去年 goes before the verb or at the front, not after the object.
English loves putting 'last year' at the end: I bought a computer last year. Chinese does not usually do that. Put 去年 at the front, or right after the subject and before the verb. So 去年我买了新电脑 and 我去年买了新电脑 both sound natural. 我买了新电脑去年 sounds like an afterthought and breaks the normal flow.
“去年买了新电脑。” (Last year I bought a new computer.)
“去年买了新电脑。” (Last year I bought a new computer.)
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Placement | 去年我买了新电脑。 / 我去年买了新电脑。 | 我买了新电脑去年。 |
| Subject dropped | 去年买了新电脑。 | 买了新电脑去年。 |
Do you need 在 before 去年, as in 在去年我买了新电脑?
Usually no. Everyday Chinese just says 去年我买了新电脑, without 在.
English says 'in last year', so learners often add 在. But bare 去年 already means 'last year' and needs no helper. 去年我买了新电脑 is the everyday pattern. 在去年我买了新电脑 sounds stiff or redundant. If you add a specific season, 在去年夏天 is fine because 在 attaches to the longer phrase.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Bare time word | 去年我买了新电脑。 | 在去年我买了新电脑。 |
| Specific season | 在去年夏天 | 在去年 |
Do you need 的 between 去年 and a noun, like 去年的照片?
Yes. 去年的照片 is natural; 去年照片 sounds like a clipped label.
去年 can modify a noun, but general nouns usually need 的 in between. 去年的照片 means photos from last year. 去年照片 sounds like a hurried label on a folder. Fixed time phrases like 去年夏天 and 去年十二月 often skip 的. For normal things like 计划 or 照片, keep 的.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| General noun | 去年的照片 | 去年照片 |
| Plan or idea | 去年的计划 | 去年计划 |
Does 去年 already mean the past, so why does 去年买了新电脑 still need 了?
去年 sets the time. 了 still marks the action as done.
去年 already tells you the time is last year. But 了 still does a different job: it marks the buying as done. Without 了, 去年买新电脑 sounds like a fragment, not a finished sentence. So 去年买了新电脑 is the natural full sentence. The 了 sticks to 买, not to 去年.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Completed action | 去年买了新电脑。 | 去年买新电脑。 |
Appears in Stories 3 stories
Real context sentences across different daily scenarios and graded readings.
In this warm dialogue, a parent introduces their family at a restaurant. A teacher gently corrects common mistakes about family words and names, making it perfect for HSK 2 learners.
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A：小明 去年 上小学了。
Is four years to reach HSK 5 fast or slow? Follow a conversation between two learners as they compare study hours and share realistic strategies for busy adults.
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我 去年 住在上海的时候，去一个汉语学校学习汉语，学了一个月。
Follow a day from waking at six-thirty to coming home at eight, then leap across days, months, and years. This simple story helps you practice speaking about routines and life changes with clear time words.
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去年 买了新电脑。
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