Mandarin · Chapter 18 · Lesson 15 · Grammar primer
Duration complements (时量补语)
How long an action lasts goes AFTER the verb, not before: 他睡了八个小时. With an object you either repeat the verb (他学中文学了三年) or split the duration in with 的 (他学了三年的中文). The 了 placement for a finished vs still-running stretch, the negation that flips duration in front (他三天没吃饭), and the classic 我学了中文三年 error.
The short version
When goes before the verb, how long goes after
Both are 'time', which is precisely why learners mix them. 我三点睡 (wǒ sān diǎn shuì) puts the clock time in the pre-verb adverbial slot; 我睡了八个小时 (wǒ shuì le bā gè xiǎo shí) puts the stretch behind the verb, because a duration is a complement. Ask which question the phrase answers and the slot decides itself.
我睡了八个小时 wǒ shuì le bā gè xiǎo shí
A duration can never trail the object
他学了中文三年 (tā xué le zhōng wén sān nián) is the textbook error, straight off English word order. With an object in the way you must either repeat the verb or wedge the duration in with 的 (学了三年的中文 (xué le sān nián de zhōng wén)). There is no version of Mandarin where a bare duration sits at the end.
他学中文学了三年 tā xué zhōng wén xué le sān nián
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