是……的 Focus on Time, Place, or Manner in Chinese
“是……的”句1：强调时间、地点、方式、动作者
The 是……的 construction highlights a detail of a completed or already relevant event, such as its time, place, manner, or agent. The event itself is presupposed, while the focused phrase receives contrastive attention. It is not a general past-tense marker.
Published August 12, 2026
Reviewed August 12, 2026
01 / PATTERN
See the Structure
MODEL
Subject + 是 + Focused element + Verb + 的
Read the structure
The 是……的 construction highlights a detail of a completed or already relevant event, such as its time, place, manner, or agent. The event itself is presupposed, while the focused phrase receives contrastive attention. It is not a general past-tense marker. Keep the model Subject + 是 + Focused element + Verb + 的 visible while you compare each sentence.
我是昨天到北京的。
I arrived in Beijing yesterday.
Choose the right context
Clarify when an event happened. Highlight where or how an event occurred. Identify the person responsible for a known event.
他是在网上买的手机。
He bought the phone online.
Respect the boundary
Do not use it when the event is still hypothetical. Do not add 是……的 to every past sentence. Do not treat 的 here as an ordinary noun modifier marker.
我是到北京昨天的。
(I arrived Beijing yesterday.)
Repair the pattern
The focus marker is put after the noun: The focused time phrase comes after 是 and before the verb phrase. 是……的 is used for an unreal event: The construction presupposes a known or completed event, so a future plan uses an ordinary modal sentence.
我是昨天到北京的。
Use the repaired structure without changing the intended meaning.
02 / MAP
Read the Sentence
Read from left to right and notice the job performed by each part. The labels describe this example; they are not a rule that every Chinese sentence must copy.
我是昨天到北京的。
I arrived in Beijing yesterday.
我是
Subject
This part occupies the Subject position in the model pattern.
昨天
是
This part occupies the 是 position in the model pattern.
到
Focused element
This part occupies the Focused element position in the model pattern.
北京
Verb
This part occupies the Verb position in the model pattern.
的
的
This part occupies the 的 position in the model pattern.
03 / EXAMPLES
Examples You Can Reuse
Keep the structure stable while changing the people, objects, times, or conditions. Pinyin is shown as reading support; use the Chinese sentence and translation to confirm the grammar relationship.
我是昨天到北京的。
I arrived in Beijing yesterday.
他是在网上买的手机。
He bought the phone online.
我们是坐飞机来的。
We came by plane.
这件事是老师告诉我的。
The teacher told me about this matter.
04 / LIMITS
When to Use It — and When Not To
Use it when
- Clarify when an event happened.
- Highlight where or how an event occurred.
- Identify the person responsible for a known event.
Do not use it when
- Do not use it when the event is still hypothetical.
- Do not add 是……的 to every past sentence.
- Do not treat 的 here as an ordinary noun modifier marker.
05 / REPAIR
Compare Right and Wrong
Compare the smallest meaningful change. Each explanation identifies a placement, scope, form, or clause relationship instead of treating the whole sentence as one undifferentiated mistake.
我是到北京昨天的。
我是昨天到北京的。
The focus marker is put after the noun
The focused time phrase comes after 是 and before the verb phrase.
明天我是去北京的。
明天我要去北京。
是……的 is used for an unreal event
The construction presupposes a known or completed event, so a future plan uses an ordinary modal sentence.
我是到北京昨天的。
The focused time phrase comes after 是 and before the verb phrase.
明天我是去北京的。
The construction presupposes a known or completed event, so a future plan uses an ordinary modal sentence.
06 / PRACTICE
Practice the Grammar Point
Complete three short tasks in order: judge the pattern, repair a common error, and build the sentence. Feedback is fixed and reviewed, so these activities do not use a checker allowance.
1. Judge the sentence
2. Choose the correction
3. Build the sentence
Build a complete sentence with “是……的”句1：强调时间、地点、方式、动作者.
07 / APPLY
Apply It in Your Sentence
Write one original sentence with “是……的”句1：强调时间、地点、方式、动作者. Your draft moves to the checker through this browser session, selects this grammar point as the first review focus, and waits for you to submit.
08 / QUESTIONS
是……的 Focus on Time, Place, or Manner Questions
Does 的 mean past tense here?
No. 是……的 highlights one detail of an event that is already in the discourse. Aspect and context determine the event time.
Can the focused detail be a person?
Yes. 这件事是老师告诉我的 identifies the agent of a known telling event while keeping the event itself presupposed.
09 / SOURCES
Sources and Review Notes
These references support different parts of the lesson. GF0025-2021 supports level placement only; professional grammar works support the explanation, limits, examples, and cross-checks. Their inclusion does not imply endorsement.
Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language Education (GF0025-2021)
Ministry of Education and State Language Commission · Ministry of Education of the PRC · 2021
Locator: Appendix A, Level 2 item 【二60】, PDF p. 194 (printed p. 188)
Lists 是……的 to emphasize time, place, manner, and agent, with four official examples.
Official sourceA Reference Grammar of Chinese
Huang, Shi and Li · Cambridge University Press · 2022
Locator: Chapter 27, focus constructions and 是……的
Explains that 是……的 highlights a constituent of an established event rather than simply marking past tense.
Official source10 / CONTINUE
Continue with a Connected Rule
Continue learning
是The 是...的 Construction
Continue from ordinary 是……的 focus to the explicit time place manner and agent subtype.
Compare
“是……的”句表看法或态度是……的 for Stance or Evaluation
Distinguish event-detail focus from the stance-oriented 是……的 construction in conversation.
Learn first
时间Time Word Placement
Review temporal placement before highlighting when a known event occurred.
Compare
过The Particle 过 (guò)
Contrast constituent focus through 是……的 with past experience marked by 过.
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