Mandarin · Chapter 17 · Lesson 15 · Grammar primer
The experiential 过 (guò)
过 marks an experience that has happened at least once: 我去过北京 (I have been to Beijing). Where 过 sits, the 没...过 negation (我没看过), why 过 keeps the action repeatable while 了 reports a single finished event, and the 吃了 vs 吃过 minimal pairs that separate completion from experience.
The short version
过 (guò) survives negation, 了 (le) does not
This is the cleanest test for which particle you are actually holding. 我没去 (wǒ méi qù) means 'I didn't go' on some particular occasion; 我没去过 (wǒ méi qù guò) means 'I have never been'. The 了 (le) vanishes under 没 (méi) while 过 (guò) stays clamped to the verb, and learners model one on the other and lose the 'never'.
我没去过北京 wǒ méi qù guo Běijīng
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