Chinese Grammar Bank
HOW TO USE 为了
为了 acts as a preposition to express the purpose of an action.
It can be translated in English to “in order to” or “for the sake of (something)”.
HOW TO USE 为了 | STRUCTURE & USAGES
In Chinese, we often use 为了 to express the purpose or indicate someone benefits from something.
So the whole “为了 phrase” should come before the verb.
PATTERN
为了 …… ，Subject ……
Note also that 为了 is a single word; the 了 here is not serving its role as a particle in this case.
HOW TO USE 为了 WITH 是
Sometimes you will see 为了 following 是. In this case, 为了 is used to indicate the purpose or the reason, the reason why something.
It’s similar “for” in English.
PATTERN
…… 是 + 为了 / 因为 ……
Note that 为了 and 因为 both have the character 为 in them, and they have sort of similar meanings. You will also see 因为 following 是 instead of 为了.
It means “is because (of).”
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FAQs
What is 为了?
为了 acts as a preposition to express the purpose of an action.
It can be translated in English to “in order to” or “for the sake of (something)”.
How to use 为了?
In Chinese, we often use 为了 to express the purpose or indicate someone benefits from something.
So the whole “为了 phrase” should come before the verb. The basic structure is:
为了 …… ，Subject ……
What are some examples with 为了?
为了今天的演讲，她练习了很多遍。| She has practiced many times for today’s speech.
为了取得好成绩，她十分努力学习。| To get good grades, she studies very hard.
为了下周的晚宴，她买了一条漂亮的项链。| She bought a beautiful necklace for next week’s dinner party.
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