再 for Doing Something Again in Chinese
再
再 marks an action that will happen again or later, including a requested repetition: 请你再说一次. It appears before the verb phrase. For a repeated action already completed in the past, beginner Mandarin normally uses 又 instead. The time reference therefore matters as much as the word order.
Published July 23, 2026
Reviewed July 23, 2026
01 / PATTERN
See the Structure
MODEL
Subject + 再 + Verb Phrase
Read the structure
再 marks an action that will happen again or later, including a requested repetition: 请你再说一次. It appears before the verb phrase. For a repeated action already completed in the past, beginner Mandarin normally uses 又 instead. The time reference therefore matters as much as the word order. Keep the model Subject + 再 + Verb Phrase visible while you compare each sentence.
请你再说一次。
Please say it once more.
Choose the right context
Ask someone to repeat a future action: 请你再说一次。 Plan to do something again later: 我明天再去。 Sequence a later action after another one: 吃完饭再看电影。
我们明天再去看吧。
Let us go see it again tomorrow.
Respect the boundary
Do not use 再 for a repeated event already completed yesterday; use 又 in that basic contrast. Do not place 再 before the subject of a neutral sentence. Do not place 再 after the verb it modifies.
我明天去再书店。
(I will go to the bookstore again tomorrow.)
Repair the pattern
再 inserted between a motion verb and its destination: 再 modifies the complete action 去书店 and must precede it. It cannot split the motion verb 去 from its destination 书店. 再 placed before the subject of its action: The subject 你 comes before the adverb. 再 then stands directly before the verb phrase 说一次.
我明天再去书店。
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.
请你再说一次。
Please say it once more.
请
Subject
This part occupies the Subject position in the model pattern.
你
再
This part occupies the 再 position in the model pattern.
再说
Verb Phrase
This part occupies the Verb Phrase position in the model pattern.
一次
Subject
This part occupies the Subject 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.
请你再说一次。
Please say it once more.
我们明天再去看吧。
Let us go see it again tomorrow.
我吃完饭再打电话。
I will call after I finish eating.
04 / LIMITS
When to Use It — and When Not To
Use it when
- Ask someone to repeat a future action: 请你再说一次。
- Plan to do something again later: 我明天再去。
- Sequence a later action after another one: 吃完饭再看电影。
Do not use it when
- Do not use 再 for a repeated event already completed yesterday; use 又 in that basic contrast.
- Do not place 再 before the subject of a neutral sentence.
- Do not place 再 after the verb it modifies.
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.
我明天去再书店。
我明天再去书店。
再 inserted between a motion verb and its destination
再 modifies the complete action 去书店 and must precede it. It cannot split the motion verb 去 from its destination 书店.
请再你说一次。
请你再说一次。
再 placed before the subject of its action
The subject 你 comes before the adverb. 再 then stands directly before the verb phrase 说一次.
我明天去再书店。
再 modifies the complete action 去书店 and must precede it. It cannot split the motion verb 去 from its destination 书店.
请再你说一次。
The subject 你 comes before the adverb. 再 then stands directly before the verb phrase 说一次.
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 再.
07 / APPLY
Apply It in Your Sentence
Write one original sentence with 再. 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
再 for Doing Something Again Questions
What is the basic difference between 再 and 又?
再 points to another occurrence in the future or a requested repetition. 又 normally presents another occurrence that already happened.
Where does 再 go?
Put it before the verb phrase: 我明天再去 and 请你再说一次. It does not follow the verb or precede an explicit subject.
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, A.1.1.6 副词, 【一12】频率、重复副词：常、常常、再
Supports placement in HSK 1; it does not independently establish the usage explanation.
Official sourceModern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide, 3rd ed.
Ross, Ma, Chen, He and Yeh · Routledge · 2024
Locator: §36.2 and §37.5 (future 再 contrasted with past 又)
再 precedes a verb for repetition in the future, whereas 又 presents repetition in the past in the basic contrast.
Official source10 / CONTINUE
Continue with a Connected Rule
Compare
再度再度: Once Again in Formal Reporting
Compare this lesson with formal 再度 presenting a repeated event; both belong to repetition and recurring event development, but they organize a different sentence role or discourse job.
Compare
频频频频: Repeatedly in a Concentrated Period
Compare this lesson with 频频 emphasizing repeated occurrences in a bounded context; both belong to repetition and recurring event development, but they organize a different sentence role or discourse job.
Compare
A着A着V着V着 for a Developing Event
Compare this lesson with A着A着 showing one ongoing activity developing into another event; both belong to repetition and recurring event development, but they organize a different sentence role or discourse job.
Continue learning
时间Time Word Placement
Continue with the reviewed follow-up lesson to apply this pattern inside a broader, explicitly connected grammar construction.
RECOMMENDED NEXT
Continue learning
Continue with the reviewed follow-up lesson to apply this pattern inside a broader, explicitly connected grammar construction.