Learn Hardcore Chinese: wǒmen zhōumò xǐhuan zài gōngyuán zǒulù.

周末我们喜欢在公园走路。 ✓
Very natural. Emphasizes the time a bit: As for weekends, we like walking in the park.
我们周末喜欢在公园走路。 ✓
Also very natural and maybe the most neutral: We, on weekends, like walking in the park.
我们喜欢周末在公园走路。 ✓ but less common
This is understandable and not wrong, but the time word 周末 sounds a bit more “attached” to the verb phrase here. Many teachers will recommend the first two orders for basic use.

All three can be used; 周末我们… and 我们周末… are the most standard-sounding.

Why do we need 在 before 公园 in 在公园走路? Could I just say 公园走路?

在 is a preposition meaning “at / in / on” that introduces a location:

在公园 = “in the park”
在家 = “at home”
在学校 = “at school”

The common pattern is:

在 + Place + Verb

So:

在公园走路 = walk in the park

If you drop 在 and say:

公园走路 ✗

it sounds ungrammatical or very strange. For places used as locations, you almost always need 在 (unless the word is part of a longer structure where the grammar is different).

What’s the difference between 走 and 走路? Both are translated as “walk,” right?

Both can mean “walk,” but they’re used differently:

走 (zǒu)
1. To walk / go on foot
2. To leave, to go away
  Example: 我要走了。 = I’m going / I’m leaving.
走路 (zǒulù)
Literally “walk + road”, but it just means “to walk (on foot)” as an activity.
It’s the most natural way to say “walk (as a way of moving / as an activity)”:
- 我每天走路上班。 = I walk to work every day.
- 我们喜欢在公园走路。 = We like walking in the park.

If you used only 走 here (在公园走), it is understandable but sounds a bit abrupt; 走路 is smoother and more common for “walking” as an activity.

What’s the difference between 走路 and 散步? Could I say 我们周末喜欢在公园散步?

Yes, you can say:

我们周末喜欢在公园散步。 ✓

Differences:

走路
- Neutral “walk on foot,” can be practical or for exercise.
- Can be used for “walking somewhere” or “walking as a way to get around.”
散步 (sànbù)
- Means “to take a walk / to stroll,” usually leisurely, for relaxation.
- Often implies you’re walking for pleasure, not just to get somewhere.

In your original sentence, if you want to emphasize the idea of strolling for fun, 散步 might even be a bit more natural than 走路.

Why are there two verbs, 喜欢 and 走路, together? How does this structure work?

Chinese often uses a verb phrase as the object of another verb. Here:

喜欢 = to like
在公园走路 = to walk in the park

So the structure is:

Subject + 喜欢 + [Verb Phrase]

= 我们喜欢在公园走路。

which means We like [walking in the park].

This pattern is very common:

我喜欢看书。 = I like reading books.
他喜欢学中文。 = He likes learning Chinese.
他们喜欢吃中国菜。 = They like eating Chinese food.

So think of 在公园走路 as functioning like a noun phrase “walking in the park.”

How do I say “We walk in the park on weekends” (a simple fact) instead of “We like to walk in the park on weekends”?

Just remove 喜欢:

我们周末在公园走路。
= We walk in the park on weekends. (a habitual fact)

Compare:

我们周末在公园走路。
→ We (do) walk in the park on weekends.
我们周末喜欢在公园走路。
→ We like walking in the park on weekends.

The presence of 喜欢 adds the meaning of “enjoy / like.”

There’s no tense marking like “do / did / will.” How do we know this sentence is about a regular habit?

Chinese usually doesn’t mark tense the same way English does (no do/does/did).

You understand the time and aspect from:

周末 (weekends)
– This suggests a repeated, habitual action.
The lack of any special aspect particles like 了, 着, 过
– With 周末, that usually implies a general, habitual statement in the present.

So 我们周末喜欢在公园走路。 is best read as:

“We like to walk in the park on weekends.”
or “On weekends we enjoy walking in the park.” (a regular habit)

How would I say “every weekend” instead of just “weekends”?

You can add 每 (“every”):

我们每个周末喜欢在公园走路。
我们每个周末都喜欢在公园走路。

Here:

每个周末 = every weekend
都 is often added for emphasis with 每, but it’s optional.

Meaning: We like walking in the park every weekend.

There’s no word for “the” in 公园. How do we know if it means “the park” or “a park”?

Chinese doesn’t have articles like a / an / the. 公园 just means “park” in a general sense.

Whether it’s “the park” or “a park” is decided by context:

我们周末喜欢在公园走路。
Could be translated as:
- We like walking in the park on weekends.
- We like walking in a park on weekends.

If you really want to specify:

在那个公园走路 = in that park
在这个公园走路 = in this park
在一个公园走路 = in a park (one park, not specific before)

But in everyday speech, 公园 without a determiner is very common and usually translated with “the” in English.

How do I turn 我们周末喜欢在公园走路。 into a yes–no question like “Do we like walking in the park on weekends?”

Add 吗 (ma) to the end of the statement:

我们周末喜欢在公园走路吗？

Structure:

[Statement] + 吗？ → Yes–no question

Answers:

喜欢。 / 是的，我们喜欢。 = Yes, we do.
不喜欢。 / 不，我们不喜欢。 = No, we don’t.