How do I use the 把 (bǎ) sentence structure?

The 把 (bǎ) sentence structure is useful for constructing sentences where the focus is on the result of an actionIt's very common in Mandarin but can feel a bit strange for english speakers as the verb is right near the front of the sentence.Normally, a basic sentence in Mandarin is formed with a subject-verb-object (SVO) word order, like in English: Subject + Verb + ObjectA 把 sentence however is structured like this:Subject + 把 + Object + VerbThe object has moved in the order and is now before the verb and preceded by 把 giving you S把OV.So, if you're already familiar with the SVO structure, why would you want to use the 把 structure?Take this sentence for example: 把盘子在桌子上。
If you tried to say this without using the 把 structure -
放盘子在桌子上
It might be clear what you were saying, but, would be grammatically incorrect.
This is because you can't put an object after a verb and then add other modifiers to that verb after the object.


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