<p>到 after an adjective is a degree particle that indicates &quot;to what degree the adjective reaches&quot;</p>
<p>Example:</p>
<p>[adjective] [degree] --&gt; [白] [耀眼]</p>
<p>[adjective] [to the point of] [degree] --&gt; [白] [到] [耀眼]</p>
<p>白[到]耀眼 = white [to the point of] dazzling</p>
<p>到 after a verb is a degree/result particle that indicates &quot;to what degree the verb reaches&quot; or &quot;what resulted from the action&quot;</p>
<p>Example:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>[verb] [to the point of] [degee]--&gt;  [打] [到] [殘廢] (&quot;to the degree of 殘廢&quot; indicates the severity of the beating is higher than causing pain, but not to the point of causing death)</p>
</li>
<li><p>[verb][result in][result]--&gt;  [打] [到] [殘廢](&quot;result in 殘廢&quot; indicates the result of the beating)</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>打死 = verb + <a href="https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Result_complements" rel="nofollow noreferrer">result complement</a> (打 is the verb, 死 is the result complement)</p>
<p>打殘 = verb + result complement (打 is the verb, 殘 is the result complement)</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-04-22T17:58:50.313Z
2023-04-22T18:07:57.560Z
2023-04-22T18:07:57.560Z
Tang Ho
<blockquote>
<p>到.... I know it means to the extent of.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Yes, you are almost there. My interpretation is:</p>
<p>他白<strong>到</strong>耀眼(的程度) - His whiteness (has <strong>reached</strong> the extent of) dazzling the eyes.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-04-22T20:46:55.323Z
2023-04-22T20:58:51.510Z
2023-04-22T20:58:51.510Z
r13
<p>他白到耀眼 = 他白<strong>到</strong>耀眼<strong>的程度</strong></p>
<p><strong>到</strong>什么<strong>程度</strong> is a popular structure (idiomatic usage or fixed collocation) in Chinese, which means <strong>to the degree of</strong> or <strong>to the extent of</strong>. Sometimes people omit the last part <strong>的程度</strong>.</p>
<p>In this structure,  <strong>到</strong> is a preposition for the noun <strong>程度</strong>, but the adjective 耀眼的 goes before the noun in Chinese.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-04-23T04:35:00.213Z
2023-04-23T04:35:00.213Z
PdotWang
<p>When 到 comes after an adjective like 他白到耀眼, is the 到 a verb or a preposition? I know it means to the extent of.</p>

<grammar><usage><adjectives><complement>
Is 到 in 他白到耀眼 a Coverb Or Just A Verb?
# Is 到 in 他白到耀眼 a Coverb Or Just A Verb?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2023-04-22)

When 到 comes after an adjective like 他白到耀眼, is the 到 a verb or a preposition? I know it means to the extent of.

**Tags:** grammar, usage, adjectives, complement


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## 3 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2023-04-22. Score: 3

到 after an adjective is a degree particle that indicates "to what degree the adjective reaches"

Example:

[adjective] [degree] --> [白] [耀眼]

[adjective] [to the point of] [degree] --> [白] [到] [耀眼]

白[到]耀眼 = white [to the point of] dazzling

到 after a verb is a degree/result particle that indicates "to what degree the verb reaches" or "what resulted from the action"

Example:

* [verb] [to the point of] [degee]--> [打] [到] [殘廢] ("to the degree of 殘廢" indicates the severity of the beating is higher than causing pain, but not to the point of causing death)
* [verb][result in][result]--> [打] [到] [殘廢]("result in 殘廢" indicates the result of the beating)

打死 = verb + [result complement](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Result_complements) (打 is the verb, 死 is the result complement)

打殘 = verb + result complement (打 is the verb, 殘 is the result complement)


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### Answer by username_2 on 2023-04-22. Score: 2

> 到.... I know it means to the extent of.

Yes, you are almost there. My interpretation is:

他白**到**耀眼(的程度) - His whiteness (has **reached** the extent of) dazzling the eyes.


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### Answer by username_3 on 2023-04-23. Score: 1

他白到耀眼 = 他白**到**耀眼**的程度**

**到**什么**程度** is a popular structure (idiomatic usage or fixed collocation) in Chinese, which means **to the degree of** or **to the extent of**. Sometimes people omit the last part **的程度**.

In this structure, **到** is a preposition for the noun **程度**, but the adjective 耀眼的 goes before the noun in Chinese.


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