<p>我 晚上 要 打电话 媽媽 : This is <em>invalid</em>.</p>

<p>In the phrase "打电话", "打" is the verb and "电话" is the object. And the "打" here is not a verb that can take two objects. So you must use: 我 晚上 要 <strong>給 媽媽</strong> 打電話</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-01T14:39:20.050Z
or 我 晚上 要  打電話 給 媽媽
Tang Ho
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-01T14:31:03.647Z
2018-07-01T14:31:03.647Z
fefe
<p>The dictionary entry of 打電話 that is given <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E6%89%93%E9%9B%BB%E8%A9%B1" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a> says:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p><strong>Verb</strong></p>
  
  <ol>
  <li>to make a telephone call</li>
  </ol>
</blockquote>

<p>Therefore, I would expect to be able to use it like this:</p>

<pre><code>    我 晚上 要 打電話 媽媽
</code></pre>

<p>However, I found the following example <a href="https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_%22be_going_to%22_with_%22yao%22" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a>:</p>

<pre><code>    我 晚上 要 給 媽媽 打電話
</code></pre>

<p><strong>Q:</strong> are both versions valid? are they both the same?</p>

<hr>

<p>Should 打電話 be read as a single unit or broken down into 打 電話 ? Is this a relevant issue?</p>

<p>The dictionary entry of 打 that is given <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E6%89%93#Chinese" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a> lists:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>to send or call</p>
  
  <p>打電報 / 打电报  ―  <strong>dǎ</strong> diànbào  ―  to <strong>send</strong> a telegraph</p>
  
  <p>打電話 / 打电话  ―  <strong>dǎ</strong> diànhuà  ―  to <strong>call</strong> on the telephone</p>
  
  <p>打手機 / 打手机  ―  <strong>dǎ</strong> shǒujī  ―  to <strong>call</strong> on the cellphone</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-02T10:09:39.430Z
This is a case of [transitivity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transitive_verb). The verb "to call" in English is transitive, but the verbal phrase 打电话 in Chinese is intransitive.
Michaelyus
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-02T10:22:23.383Z
@Michaelyus thank you for pointing that out
Patrick Trentin
<grammar><difference>
"Subj + 打電話 + Obj" vs "Subj + 給 + Obj + 打電話"
# "Subj + 打電話 + Obj" vs "Subj + 給 + Obj + 打電話"

(Asked by: username_0 on 2018-07-01)

The dictionary entry of 打電話 that is given here says:

Verb

to make a telephone call


Therefore, I would expect to be able to use it like this:
    我 晚上 要 打電話 媽媽

However, I found the following example here:
    我 晚上 要 給 媽媽 打電話

Q: are both versions valid? are they both the same?

Should 打電話 be read as a single unit or broken down into 打 電話 ? Is this a relevant issue?
The dictionary entry of 打 that is given here lists:

to send or call
打電報 / 打电报  ―  dǎ diànbào  ―  to send a telegraph
打電話 / 打电话  ―  dǎ diànhuà  ―  to call on the telephone
打手機 / 打手机  ―  dǎ shǒujī  ―  to call on the cellphone

**Tags:** grammar, difference

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: This is a case of [transitivity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transitive_verb). The verb "to call" in English is transitive, but the verbal phrase 打电话 in Chinese is intransitive.  
> **username_0**: @username_1 thank you for pointing that out  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2018-07-01. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

我 晚上 要 打电话 媽媽 : This is *invalid*.

In the phrase "打电话", "打" is the verb and "电话" is the object. And the "打" here is not a verb that can take two objects. So you must use: 我 晚上 要 **給 媽媽** 打電話

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: or 我 晚上 要  打電話 給 媽媽  

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