Questions & Answers about tā shì yí gè hěn nǔlì de xuéshēng.
In this sentence, 很 can mean “very,” but it also often works more like a soft linker between the subject and an adjective.
- 他很努力。
Literally: He very hardworking.
Natural meaning: He is hardworking / He works hard.
If you say 他努力 with no 很, it can sound a bit like a contrast or judgment (“He is hardworking (unlike others)”), and is less neutral.
In 很努力的学生, 很 is both:
- marking the adjective phrase before a noun
- often understood as “very” or “quite”
So 很 is needed for naturalness and often carries a genuine degree meaning (“very” or “quite”), but it also helps make the adjective feel like a normal description rather than a sharp statement.
的 here connects a descriptive phrase to a noun.
Structure:
- 很努力的 = “(who is) very hard-working”
- 学生 = “student”
Together: 很努力的学生 = “a very hard-working student.”
In grammar terms, 的 turns the adjective/adjective phrase into an attributive modifier for the noun:
(很努力) + 的 + (学生)
“hard-working” + 的 + “student”
So, whenever a word or phrase (adjective, verb, or even a clause) is used to describe a noun, 的 is often used after that modifier.