nǐ kěyǐ bāng wǒ ná nà běn shū lái ma?

Can you help me bring that book here?

Breakdown of nǐ kěyǐ bāng wǒ ná nà běn shū lái ma?

• 你nǐ: you
• 吗ma: question particle
• 书shū: book
• 那nà: that
• 本běn: bound item classifier
• 我wǒ: me
• 可以kěyǐ: can
• 拿来nálái: to bring here
• 帮bāng: to help

Questions & Answers about nǐ kěyǐ bāng wǒ ná nà běn shū lái ma?

What does 可以 do here? Is it permission or ability?

可以 in requests softens the tone, like “could you” or “would you.” It leans toward “permission/possibility,” not literal ability. You could also use:

• 你能帮我拿那本书来吗？ (能 = ability/possibility; also common and polite)
• Avoid 会 here; 会 is “know how (a learned skill),” so 你会帮我…吗 sounds odd.

Why is 来 at the end? Why not say 拿来那本书?

来 is a directional complement and follows the verb phrase: Verb + Object + 来/去.

• Correct: 拿那本书来 (“take that book and bring it here”)
• Incorrect: 拿来那本书 (wrong order)

What’s the difference between 来 and 去 after 拿?

• 拿…来: movement toward the speaker (“bring here”).
• 拿…去: movement away from the speaker (“take there”). Examples:
• 把那本书拿来。 Bring that book here (to me/this side).
• 把那本书拿去。 Take that book over there (to someone else/that place).

Why say 帮我? Could I just say 你可以拿那本书来吗？

• 你可以帮我拿那本书来吗？ adds “help me,” which is polite and shows you’re asking a favor.
• 你可以拿那本书来吗？ is also polite, just a bit more direct/request-like without the “help” flavor. Both are fine in everyday speech.

Can I use 帮忙 instead of 帮?

• 帮 is a transitive verb: it takes a person or task directly. Ex: 帮我拿…
• 帮忙 is “to do a favor/help (in general).” Don’t say 帮忙我. You can say:
  • 能不能帮忙一下？ (Could you help, please?)
  • Colloquially, 帮忙拿一下那本书 is common, but if you want textbook-clean structure with an explicit object, use 帮我拿那本书.

Where should I put 一下 to sound more polite?

Place 一下 right after the main verb:

• 你可以帮我拿一下那本书来吗？ With 把:
• 你可以帮我把那本书拿一下过来吗？ (natural, though many would just say “…拿过来吗？” and drop 一下 or put it after 拿)

Do I need the 把 construction?

No. Both are correct:

• Without 把: 你可以帮我拿那本书来吗？
• With 把 (brings the object forward and highlights the result): 你可以帮我把那本书拿来吗？ Meaning and politeness are essentially the same here.

What’s the nuance of 拿过来 vs 拿来?

• 拿来: neutral “bring here.”
• 拿过来: emphasizes motion “over to here” (the 过 adds a sense of movement across space). Both are common; 拿过来 can feel a bit more colloquial/vivid.

Why 本 for 书? Can I say 那个书?

本 is the standard measure word for books and bound volumes. You must use a measure word with demonstratives:

• Correct: 那本书 / 这本书
• Incorrect: 那个书 (个 is not the usual classifier for books; learners sometimes overuse 个, but avoid it here).

What does the final 吗 do? Could I use 吧/呢/嘛 instead?

• 吗 turns the sentence into a yes–no question/request.
• 吧 makes it a suggestion/soft command: …来吧 (“let’s/please go ahead and bring it”).
• 呢 is not used for this kind of yes–no request.
• 嘛 (modal) adds an explanatory/obvious tone; not appropriate as a simple request particle here. Stick with 吗 (or use patterns like 好不好？/ 可以吗？).

Can I drop 可以 or 吗? How does that change tone?

• Drop 可以: 你帮我拿那本书来吗？ Still polite; slightly more direct.
• Drop 吗: 你可以帮我拿那本书来。 Grammatically a statement; in context it can function as a gentle request, but standard Mandarin prefers a marker like 吗, 吧, or 好吗 for clear requests.
• Very direct imperative (context-dependent): 帮我把那本书拿过来。

What’s the difference between 拿…来 and 拿给我?

• 拿那本书来 focuses on direction “to here.”
• 把那本书拿给我 focuses on the recipient “to me.” Often interchangeable in effect:
• 你可以把那本书拿给我吗？
• 你可以把那本书拿过来吗？

How do 拿, 带, 取, 搬 differ?

• 拿: take/hold in the hand; neutral “get/bring.” Here it’s perfect.
• 带: bring/carry along with you (accompanying you from one place to another). 带书来 = bring the book along (with you).
• 取: fetch/collect (often from a designated place). 取快递 = pick up a package.
• 搬: move/carry (bulky/heavy items). 搬桌子 = move a table.

Any pronunciation or tone tips for this sentence?

• 可以: third + third tones undergo sandhi; say it like “ké yǐ.”
• 吗 is neutral tone.
• Many speakers say 那本 as “nèi běn” in casual speech; both nà běn and nèi běn are heard.
• Keep 拿 ná, 来 lái, 书 shū with their original tones; don’t flatten them.
• In strings of multiple third tones (e.g., 你 nǐ
  • 可以 kěyǐ
    • 我 wǒ), earlier thirds often become a rising contour in fluent speech.

Can I omit 你, or should I use 您 for politeness?

• Omitting 你 is fine if context is clear: 可以帮我拿那本书来吗？
• For extra politeness (to elders/clients), use 您: 您可以帮我拿那本书来吗？ You can also add 请/麻烦您 for a very polite request.

Is 你可以帮我来拿那本书吗 correct?

No. The directional 来 must attach to the action verb 拿, not 帮. Use:

• 你可以帮我拿那本书来吗？
• or 你可以帮我把那本书拿过来吗？

Could I say 你可以把那本书拿到这儿来吗? What does 到 add?

Yes. 到 explicitly marks the destination:

• 你可以把那本书拿到这儿来吗？ = “Could you bring that book to here?” It’s a bit more explicit than just 拿来, but the meaning is essentially the same in most contexts.