又 (yòu) + verb/adjective A + 又 (yòu) verb/adjective B
or
既 (jì) + adjective A + 又/也 (yě) adjective B
Mandarin chineseConjunctions
The word “and” can be translated into Mandarin in many ways, depending on the context in which it is used.
Mandarin word for "and" | Used to connect... |
|---|---|
和[ hé], 跟 [gēn], 与[yǔ], 及[jí] | (e.g. "teacher," "table,"...) (e.g. "I," "you," "that,"...) |
又 … 又[yòu... yòu], 既 … 又/也[jì... yòu/yě] |
|
也[yě], 还[hái], 而且[érqiě], 并且[bìngqiě] | complete sentences |
The English word “and” is one-size-fits-all: it can link nouns, verbs, adjectives, or even sentences. But as you can see, in Mandarin things work a bit differently! In this post, we'll go over all the different ways to say "and" in Mandarin, and when you should use each one.
Excited for the challenge? Let’s dive in!
Linking nouns and pronouns: "and" or "with"
In Mandarin Chinese, the words 和[hé], 跟[gēn], 与 [yǔ], and 及[jí], can all be used to mean "and" or "with," if you're linking or .
Noun A
和 / 跟 / 与 / 及
and / with
Noun B
他和/与我都是大学学生。
Tā hé/yǔ wǒ dōu shì dàxuésheng.
He and I are university students.
他和/跟我一起去。
Tā hé/gēn wǒ yīqǐ qù.
He will go with me.
lit. He and I will go.
How should you choose between the linkers? Follow the tips below:
Use 和[hé] with longer lists of nouns
When making a list of three or more nouns or pronouns, you should always use 和[hé]. Like when you make a list with "and" in English, 和[hé] will only be used once, before the final noun in the list.
我买了苹果、梨和葡萄。
Wǒ mǎi le píngguǒ, lí, hé pútáo.
I bought apples, pears, and grapes.
小王、老张、和老李都来了。
Xiǎo Wáng, Lǎo Zhāng, hé Lǎo Lǐ doū lái le.
Xiao Wang, Lao Zhang, and Lao Li all came.
Use 与 [yǔ] or 及[jí] in formal situations
In formal contexts, you're more likely to use the linkers 与 [yǔ] and 及[jí].
请写上你的地址及电话。
Qǐng xiě shàng nǐ de dìzhǐ jí diànhuà.
Please write down your address and phone number.
How to connect verbs and adjectives in Mandarin Chinese?
又 (yòu)...又 (yòu), together with 既 (jì))…又/也 (yě)…, connect verbs and adjectives. When using 又... 又, no degree words (e.g. 很 (hěn, very)) can be used. When there are degree words, we use 也. 既 … 又/也… tends to link adjectives.
Now, let’s take a look at how these words can connect actions and descriptors (verbs and adjectives). Check out this helpful diagram below:
Let’s see it in practice.
他又唱又跳。
(Tā yòu chàng yòu tiào.)
He sings and dances.
她又聪明又能干。
(Tā yòu cōngmíng yòu nénggàn.)
She is intelligent as well as capable.
Tip
Generally, the first 又 can be left out.
What to keep in mind
When connecting verbs and adjectives, keep the following key points in mind:
When connecting verbs, one- verbs are preferred over two-syllable verbs.
When verbs consist of two syllables, we add a comma in between, for example:
他唱歌、跳舞。
(Tā chànggē, tiàowǔ.)
He sings and dances.
There is no syllable requirement when connecting adjectives.
When connecting adjectives, both adjectives should be either positive or negative; they cannot be mixed. Otherwise, we say:
她聪明, 但不用功。
(Tā cōngmíng, dàn bù yònggōng.)
She is intelligent, but not working hard.
When using the
又...又... structure to connect adjectives, we can't add degree words, e.g.,很 (hěn, very):⨯他又很聪明又很能干。
BUT if you want to use degree words, you need to use 也 (yě) instead of 又.
For example,
他很聪明，也很能干。
(Tā hěn cōngmíng, yě hěn nénggàn.)
He is very intelligent and very capable.
既 (jì) … 又 (yòu) or 也 (yě)… tend to connect adjectives only:
他既聪明又/也能干。
(Tā jì cōngmíng yòu / yě nénggàn.)
She is intelligent as well as capable.
You can also use 和 (hé) to connect verbs. In this case though, verbs are often not used alone. For example, we can say:
关于这个问题，我会进一步了解和说明。
(Guānyú zhègè wèntí, wǒ huì jìn yībù liǎojiě hé shuōmíng.)
I will get to know this issue better and explain it further.
However, we don’t say,
⨯ 关于这个问题，我了解和说明。
(Guānyú zhègè wèntí, wǒ liǎojiě hé shuōmíng.)
I will get to know this issue and explain it.
In the first example, 了解和说明 (get to know and explain) are used together with 会进一步 (will further) which is another element that modifies 了解和说明, so 和 (hé) can be used here. But the second example is not okay because the verbs are not used with any other elements.
How to connect sentences in Mandarin Chinese?
也 (yě), 还 (hái), 而且 (érqiě), and 并且 (bìngqiě) connect when their subjects are the same. When the subjects are different, 也 is the only suitable option, the other three are not.
We’ve connected the various parts of a sentence with conjunctions. Now, let’s try connecting whole sentences together! There are plenty of options for which kind of Mandarin “and” we can use — take a look at the construction below:
Sentence A, 也/还/而且/并且 + sentence B
他去买了些东西，还去看了一个朋友。
(Tā qù mǎi le xiē dōngxī, hái qù kàn le yīgè péngyǒu. )
He bought some things, also visited a friend. (same subject, 他)
他给她打了电子邮件，她也回复了。
(Tā gěi tā dǎ le diànzǐyóujiàn, tā yě huífù le.)
He emailed her, and she replied to it. (different subjects, 他, 她)
What to keep in mind
When connecting sentences in Mandarin Chinese, keep the following grammar points in mind:
When used to connect two sentences with the same subject, 也/还/而且/并且 are preceded by a comma in writing.
When two sentences share the same subject, the second subject can be dropped.
When used to connect two sentences with different subjects, only 也 is used and it is placed after the subject of the second sentence.
Important
和 (hé) does not connect sentences, so avoid the following mistake:
⨯ 他聪明，和她也聪明。
(Tā cōngmíng, hé tā yě cōngmíng.)
He is intelligent, and so is she.
Can “and” be left out in Mandarin Chinese?
You can actually drop “and” altogether, especially in informal and spoken Mandarin Chinese, including text messages, group chats, emails, twitter, etc.
“and” dropped | “and” added | Punctuation | English |
|---|---|---|---|
你我一起去吧。 (Nǐ wǒ yīqǐ qù ba.) | 你和我一起去吧。 (Nǐ hé wǒ yīqǐ qù ba.) | 你、我一起去吧。 (Nǐ, wǒ yīqǐ qù ba.) | I think you and I can go together. |
他唱歌跳舞。 (Tā chànggē tiàowǔ.) | 他唱歌、跳舞。 (Tā chànggē, tiào wǔ.) | He sings and dances. | |
小王聪明能干。 (Xiǎo Wáng cōng míng nénggān.) | 小王(又)聪明又能干。 (Xiǎo wáng (yòu) cōngmíng yòu nénggān.) | 小王聪明、能干。 (Xiǎo Wáng cōng míng, nénggān.) | Xiao Wang is intelligent and capable. |
Important
Have you noticed the ability of the punctuation mark “、” to replace “and”? It’s called 顿号 (dùnhào); it’s used to list words, and is similar to an English comma. Even in the case where no “and” should be added, this punctuation can still do the trick. So, you may want to remember this very useful little punctuation mark. It has actually been suggested that the easiest way to connect two non-noun words is to omit “and” altogether (i.e., doing nothing at all is the best option).
Tip
The comma, 顿号, is used in writing. When speaking, put a pause in the place of a 顿号.
Below are the patterns to follow when you use the Mandarin Chinese “and” along with some tips:
Noun A + 和/跟/与/及 + Noun B
又 (yòu) + verb/adjective A + 又 (yòu) verb/adjective B
既 (jì) + adjective A + 又/也 (yě) adjective B
Sentence A, 也/还/而且/并且 + sentence B
When the subjects of the two sentences are the same, the second one can be omitted
You can drop “and” altogether in some situations
Ready to give it a try? Here are some practice exercises on the Mandarin conjunction “and,” which will help you revise and reinforce your knowledge about “and” in Mandarin Chinese.
