guìzhòngwùpǐn zài fángchéndài lǐ.

to be at

Breakdown of guìzhòngwùpǐn zài fángchéndài lǐ.

• 里lǐ: inside
• 贵重物品guìzhòngwùpǐn: valuable item

Questions & Answers about guìzhòngwùpǐn zài fángchéndài lǐ.

Why is there no word for are in this sentence?

In Mandarin, you usually do not use 是 to connect a noun to a location.

So instead of saying something like Valuables are in the dust bag with a separate verb are, Chinese normally uses:

贵重物品 在 防尘袋里。

Pattern: thing + 在 + place

So 在 is doing the job of showing where something is.

• 他在家。 = He is at home.
• 书在桌子上。 = The book is on the table.

Using 是 here would sound unnatural.

What does 在 mean here?

Here, 在 means to be at / in / on a place.

It marks location.

In this sentence:

• 贵重物品 = valuables
• 在 = are located at / in
• 防尘袋里 = inside the dust bag

So 在 tells you where the valuables are.

Why do we need both 在 and 里? Don’t they both mean in?