除了 chúle besides
besides; except for; aside from; in addition to
How to remember 除了: 除 remove + 了 particle: completed action / change of state = besides.
Characters
How it is used
- Pattern 除了 A（以外），都… - 'except for A, all the rest': 除了他，大家都来了 (chúle tā, dàjiā dōu lái le) everyone came except him.
- Second pattern 除了 A（以外），还/也… - 'besides A, also': 除了英语，他还会说法语 (chúle Yīngyǔ, tā hái huì shuō Fǎyǔ) besides English, he also speaks French.
- The follow-up word (都 for exclusion vs 还/也 for addition) decides the meaning - watch which one appears.
Example sentences
- 我们都去，除了他。 Wǒmen dōu qù, chúle tā.All of us except him will go there.
- 除了星期天他每天工作。 Chúle xīngqītiān tā měitiān gōngzuò.He works every day except Sunday.
- 除了一人，大家都回家了。 Chúle yīrén, dàjiā dōu huíjiā le.Except for one person, everybody went home.