<p>It is a modal particle 了 (aka 了2) that expresses &quot;already&quot;:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>我忘了問他要電話 = I forgot to ask him for (his) phone number.</p>
</li>
<li><p>我忘了問他要電話了 = I have forgotten to ask him for (his) phone number.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>The first &quot;了&quot; indicates the completion of action &quot;忘&quot;; the 了 at the end indicates you have (already) done such - &quot;問他要電話&quot;. Similarly,</p>
<ul>
<li><p>我問他要電話 = I ask him for (his) phone number.</p>
</li>
<li><p>我問他要電話了 = I've asked for his phone number.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Here is a good study material - <a href="https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Uses_of_%22le%22" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Uses_of_%22le%22</a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-14T20:57:56.983Z
2023-05-14T21:29:59.343Z
2023-05-14T21:29:59.343Z
r13
<p>I found an aticle from Zhihu, which might solve your problem:</p>
<p><a href="https://www.zhihu.com/question/25458789/answer/94693280" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.zhihu.com/question/25458789/answer/94693280</a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-06-18T13:23:18.727Z
2023-06-18T13:23:18.727Z
hikali8
<p>It's a change of situation, isn't it? But what has changed? Why is 了 not used after the verb?</p>

<grammar><particles>
What function does 了perform in this sentence 我忘问她要电话了 ？
# What function does 了perform in this sentence 我忘问她要电话了 ？

(Asked by: username_0 on 2023-05-14)

It's a change of situation, isn't it? But what has changed? Why is 了 not used after the verb?

**Tags:** grammar, particles


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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2023-05-14. Score: 2

It is a modal particle 了 (aka 了2) that expresses "already":

* 我忘了問他要電話 = I forgot to ask him for (his) phone number.
* 我忘了問他要電話了 = I have forgotten to ask him for (his) phone number.

The first "了" indicates the completion of action "忘"; the 了 at the end indicates you have (already) done such - "問他要電話". Similarly,

* 我問他要電話 = I ask him for (his) phone number.
* 我問他要電話了 = I've asked for his phone number.

Here is a good study material - <https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Uses_of_%22le%22>


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### Answer by username_2 on 2023-06-18. Score: 0

I found an aticle from Zhihu, which might solve your problem:

<https://www.zhihu.com/question/25458789/answer/94693280>


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