Describing a Position

Qiáo! Shuí zuò zài Xiăo Mă yòubian ne?
A:   瞧！ 谁    坐    在  小   马    右边     呢？
Look! Who’s sitting on the right of Xiao Ma?
shì, LăoLĭ. Kănjiàn wŏ de jiāotōngtú le ma?
B: 是，老李。看见    我   的   交通图   了  吗？
It’s Lao Li. Have you seen my road map?
Kànjiàn le, zài zhuōzi shàngbian ne.
A: 看见    了,  在  桌子     上边       呢。
Yes I’ve seen it, on the table.

Nĭ zhīdào Tiānānmén zài năr ma?
A: 你  知道     天安门     在  哪儿 吗？
Do you know where Tian’Anmen is?
Zài shìzhōngxīn. Zhè jiùshì Tiānānmén.
B: 在   市中心。      这     就是    天安门。
In the city center. This is just Tian’Anmen.
GùGōng shì búshì zài tā bĕibian?
A: 故宫       是   不是  在 它  北边？
Is the Forbidden City located to its north?
Duì, GùGōng zài Tiānānmén bĕibian.
B: 对，故宫       在      天安门    北边。
Yes, the Forbidden City is located to the north of Tian’AnMen.
Phrase structure
In a sentence with 在(zài) indicating existence, the

is usually the person or thing concerned and the

is usually a noun denoting position or place.

故宫在天安门北边。 The Forbidden City is to the north of Tian’Anmen.

书在桌子上边。 The book is on the table.

我在他右边。 I’m on his right.

他在我和她中间。 He is between me and her.
Some position words

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