<p>做 + identity = be identity</p>

<p>Example:做好人，做首領 (good person and leader are identities)</p>

<p>做 + procedure/action = do procedure</p>

<p>Example: 做大事， 做錯，做工 (great thing, mistake and work involve procedures or action)</p>

<p>the final particle 了 is a modal word for emphasis, if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence would not change, but the tone would be flat</p>

<p>Example sentence: </p>

<p>"要(做)大人物就要(做)大事" = "to (be) a great man, you need to (do) great thing"</p>

<blockquote>
  <p><em>Why do we use 做 in this sentence as “being”?</em></p>
</blockquote>

<p>朋友 is an identity</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-22T21:28:00.303Z
2019-05-22T21:34:01.740Z
2019-05-22T21:34:01.740Z
Tang Ho
<p>Well, whereas in English you 'be a friend,' in Chinese you '做朋友。‘ Not much of a rule. Why does that surprise you? Do you think Chinese must copy English?</p>

<p>Have a look <a href="http://www.zdic.net/z/15/js/505A.htm" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a>. Number 8</p>

<p>我太喜欢和他做朋友了。</p>

<p>You could write:<br>
我太喜欢当他的朋友。</p>

<p>Edit: I was reading an interview with a TV presenter today. He was asked if he acts role of an intellectual in his TV show. He said:</p>

<p>“我只是在做我自己” </p>

<p>I think there may be a <em>similar</em> form in English.</p>

<p>A: You should try to be more friendly.<br>
B: I don't do friendly! </p>

<p>What is the meaning of 了? That is a whole Pandora's Box of questions!</p>

<p>The simplest answer is, it makes the sentence sound complete. Otherwise it sounds strange, according to a Chinese friend.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-22T22:37:15.110Z
2019-05-23T09:39:16.643Z
2019-05-23T09:39:16.643Z
Pedroski
<p>Quote：- “In principle, in sentences like these, it's possible to replace 做 with 当"</p>

<p>Interesting, because if you combine the two to 当做, it becomes "to treat, to regard, to perceive, to look upon" someone <em>as a friend</em> and not <em>making someone a friend</em> as 做 by itself would.</p>

<p>You can also replace 做 with 交, (jiao) which is, I think, less colloquial.  </p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-12-29T03:39:09.627Z
2019-12-29T03:39:09.627Z
Wayne Cheah
<blockquote>
<p><em>Original</em>: 我太喜欢和他做朋友了<br />
I much like with him being friends</p>
</blockquote>
<p><em><strong>1. 太...了</strong></em></p>
<p>First, it uses the 太...了 grammar construct: see <a href="https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_%22excessively%22_with_%22tai%22" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Expressing &quot;excessively&quot; with &quot;tai&quot;</a>.  Most learners encounter this almost immediately with 太贵了.  Here, it's used for emphasis, such as in 你太好了 or</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我<strong>太</strong>喜欢吃饺子<strong>了</strong><br />
I much like to eat dumplings</p>
</blockquote>
<p>To simplify breaking it down further, I'll delete the 太 and 了, which only reduces the emphasis.  I.e.:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我喜欢和他做朋友<br />
I like with him being friends</p>
</blockquote>
<p><em><strong>2. What if we delete the 做?</strong></em></p>
<p>We get a sentence which is incomplete:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我喜欢和他朋友  ✗<br />
I like with his friend [..?]</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Here, 他朋友 is interpreted as &quot;his friend&quot;, i.e., 他的朋友; see <a href="https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_close_possession_without_%22de%22" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Expressing close possession without &quot;de&quot;</a>.</p>
<p><em><strong>3. Why 做 and not something else?</strong></em></p>
<p><a href="https://chinese.yabla.com/chinese-english-pinyin-dictionary.php?define=%E5%81%9A" rel="nofollow noreferrer">做</a> is one of these Chinese words that have a lot of meanings.  In the original sentence, it could mean any of these (or some combination, or something in between):</p>
<blockquote>
<p>to do; to make; to act as; to be; to become; to function (in some capacity); to serve as; to form (a bond or relationship)</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Precisely what it means depends on context, which is presumably known to the people speaking.</p>
<p>In principle, in sentences like these, it's possible to replace 做 with 当:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我太喜欢和他<a href="http://www.youdao.com/w/%E5%BD%93" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><strong>当</strong></a>朋友了</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But in this example, it seems the formal and distanced 当 is mismatched with the informal and positive 太喜欢...了.  This is probably not true all the time, but it's my impression.  Compare it with examples such as the following:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我说过和他<strong>当朋友</strong>，他还是会说些逾越友情的话<sup><a href="https://zhidao.baidu.com/question/436766394328214004.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">[src]</a></sup><br />
I said I was friends with him, [but] he still says a few exceeding-friendship words</p>
<p>怎样让一个男生知道，我只是想和他<strong>当朋友</strong>...<sup><a href="https://www.zhihu.com/question/36331887?sort=created" rel="nofollow noreferrer">[src]</a></sup><br />
How can I let a man know, I only want to be friends...</p>
</blockquote>
<p>(For why it's not 是, see <a href="https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/29375/when-do-i-have-to-use-%e5%81%9a-%e5%bd%93-instead-of-%e6%98%af">When do I have to use 做/当 instead of 是?</a>)</p>
<p><em><strong>4. Other examples</strong></em></p>
<blockquote>
<p>How can we use 做 in this meaning in other sentences?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Here's some examples I found searching the web:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我立志<strong>做</strong>一名老师<sup><a href="https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1618516714301451809&amp;wfr=spider&amp;for=pc" rel="nofollow noreferrer">[src]</a></sup><br />
I'm determined <strong>to be</strong> a good teacher</p>
<p><strong>做</strong>妈妈后,为什么大家都失去了自我?<sup><a href="http://www.sohu.com/a/127576918_580337" rel="nofollow noreferrer">[src]</a></sup><br />
After <strong>becoming</strong> a mother, why [does] everyone lose their self</p>
<p>我想<strong>做</strong>小偷<sup><a href="http://zuowen.360zuowen.com/xiaoxuexieshi/00182424.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">[src]</a></sup><br />
I want <strong>to be</strong> a thief</p>
<p>谁想<strong>做</strong>百万富翁？<sup><a href="https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%B0%81%E6%83%B3%E5%81%9A%E7%99%BE%E4%B8%87%E5%AF%8C%E7%BF%81/1140517?fr=aladdin" rel="nofollow noreferrer">[src]</a></sup><br />
Who wants <strong>to be</strong> a millionaire?</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-12-29T02:59:41.647Z
2019-12-29T03:04:44.333Z
2020-06-17T09:50:11.587Z
Becky 李蓓
<p>Sentence:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>我太喜欢和他做朋友了</p>
</blockquote>

<p>How can we use 做 in this meaning in other sentences?
Where can I read more about it and what is the name of this "rule"?</p>

<p>And what is the meaning of the 了 in this sentence?</p>

<usage><meaning-in-context><vocabulary>
Why do we use 做 in 我太喜欢和他做朋友了 as "being"?
# Why do we use 做 in 我太喜欢和他做朋友了 as "being"?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2019-05-22)

Sentence:

> 我太喜欢和他做朋友了

How can we use 做 in this meaning in other sentences?
Where can I read more about it and what is the name of this "rule"?

And what is the meaning of the 了 in this sentence?

**Tags:** usage, meaning-in-context, vocabulary


---

## 4 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2019-05-22. Score: 2

做 + identity = be identity

Example:做好人，做首領 (good person and leader are identities)

做 + procedure/action = do procedure

Example: 做大事， 做錯，做工 (great thing, mistake and work involve procedures or action)

the final particle 了 is a modal word for emphasis, if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence would not change, but the tone would be flat

Example sentence:

"要(做)大人物就要(做)大事" = "to (be) a great man, you need to (do) great thing"

> *Why do we use 做 in this sentence as “being”?*

朋友 is an identity


---

### Answer by username_2 on 2019-05-22. Score: 1

Well, whereas in English you 'be a friend,' in Chinese you '做朋友。‘ Not much of a rule. Why does that surprise you? Do you think Chinese must copy English?

Have a look [here](http://www.zdic.net/z/15/js/505A.htm). Number 8

我太喜欢和他做朋友了。

You could write:  
我太喜欢当他的朋友。

Edit: I was reading an interview with a TV presenter today. He was asked if he acts role of an intellectual in his TV show. He said:

“我只是在做我自己”

I think there may be a *similar* form in English.

A: You should try to be more friendly.  
B: I don't do friendly!

What is the meaning of 了? That is a whole Pandora's Box of questions!

The simplest answer is, it makes the sentence sound complete. Otherwise it sounds strange, according to a Chinese friend.


---

### Answer by username_3 on 2019-12-29. Score: 0

Quote：- “In principle, in sentences like these, it's possible to replace 做 with 当"

Interesting, because if you combine the two to 当做, it becomes "to treat, to regard, to perceive, to look upon" someone *as a friend* and not *making someone a friend* as 做 by itself would.

You can also replace 做 with 交, (jiao) which is, I think, less colloquial.


---

### Answer by username_4 on 2019-12-29. Score: 0

> *Original*: 我太喜欢和他做朋友了  
> I much like with him being friends

***1. 太...了***

First, it uses the 太...了 grammar construct: see [Expressing "excessively" with "tai"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_%22excessively%22_with_%22tai%22). Most learners encounter this almost immediately with 太贵了. Here, it's used for emphasis, such as in 你太好了 or

> 我**太**喜欢吃饺子**了**  
> I much like to eat dumplings

To simplify breaking it down further, I'll delete the 太 and 了, which only reduces the emphasis. I.e.:

> 我喜欢和他做朋友  
> I like with him being friends

***2. What if we delete the 做?***

We get a sentence which is incomplete:

> 我喜欢和他朋友 ✗  
> I like with his friend [..?]

Here, 他朋友 is interpreted as "his friend", i.e., 他的朋友; see [Expressing close possession without "de"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_close_possession_without_%22de%22).

***3. Why 做 and not something else?***

[做](https://chinese.yabla.com/chinese-english-pinyin-dictionary.php?define=%E5%81%9A) is one of these Chinese words that have a lot of meanings. In the original sentence, it could mean any of these (or some combination, or something in between):

> to do; to make; to act as; to be; to become; to function (in some capacity); to serve as; to form (a bond or relationship)

Precisely what it means depends on context, which is presumably known to the people speaking.

In principle, in sentences like these, it's possible to replace 做 with 当:

> 我太喜欢和他[**当**](http://www.youdao.com/w/%E5%BD%93)朋友了

But in this example, it seems the formal and distanced 当 is mismatched with the informal and positive 太喜欢...了. This is probably not true all the time, but it's my impression. Compare it with examples such as the following:

> 我说过和他**当朋友**，他还是会说些逾越友情的话[[src]](https://zhidao.baidu.com/question/436766394328214004.html)  
> I said I was friends with him, [but] he still says a few exceeding-friendship words
>
> 怎样让一个男生知道，我只是想和他**当朋友**...[[src]](https://www.zhihu.com/question/36331887?sort=created)  
> How can I let a man know, I only want to be friends...

(For why it's not 是, see [When do I have to use 做/当 instead of 是?](https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/29375/when-do-i-have-to-use-%e5%81%9a-%e5%bd%93-instead-of-%e6%98%af))

***4. Other examples***

> How can we use 做 in this meaning in other sentences?

Here's some examples I found searching the web:

> 我立志**做**一名老师[[src]](https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1618516714301451809&wfr=spider&for=pc)  
> I'm determined **to be** a good teacher
>
> **做**妈妈后,为什么大家都失去了自我?[[src]](http://www.sohu.com/a/127576918_580337)  
> After **becoming** a mother, why [does] everyone lose their self
>
> 我想**做**小偷[[src]](http://zuowen.360zuowen.com/xiaoxuexieshi/00182424.html)  
> I want **to be** a thief
>
> 谁想**做**百万富翁？[[src]](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%B0%81%E6%83%B3%E5%81%9A%E7%99%BE%E4%B8%87%E5%AF%8C%E7%BF%81/1140517?fr=aladdin)  
> Who wants **to be** a millionaire?


---

