View source for Comparing "zhijian" and “zhongjian"

{{Grammar Box}} 

When describing spatial relationships, the words 之间 (zhījiān) and 中间 (zhōngjiān) will come in handy to express the concepts of "between" and "among."  Both have a few particular uses, though.

== Physical Space ==

=== Used as "Between... and..." ===

之间 and 中间 can both refer to a space "in the middle" between two points, as long as we're talking about physical space. 

==== Structure ====

<div class="jiegou">
A + 和 + B + 之间／中间
</div>

==== Examples ====

<div class="liju">
*上海 在 江苏省 和 浙江省 <em>之间</em> / <em>中间</em> 。<span class="trans">Shanghai is between Jiangsu Province and Zhejiang Province.</span>
*我家 客厅 和 卧室 <em>中间</em> 是 洗手间 。<span class="trans">Our bathroom is between the bedroom and the living room.</span>
</div>

Grammatically, both 之间 and 中间 are nouns ([[location noun]]s, to be precise). One difference between the two, however, is that 中间 can be used all by itself, but 之间 is always used together with other words.

<div class="liju">
*明天 早上 我 有 两个 考试 ，<em>中间</em> 有 20 分钟 的 休息时间 。<span class="trans">I have two exams tomorrow morning. And there is a 20-minutes break in between them.</span>
</div>

== Used as "In the Middle of" ==

When something is inside a place and it's right in the middle, you can only use 中间.

=== Structure ===

<div class="jiegou">
Place + 的 + 中间 
</div>

==== Examples ====

<div class="liju">
*客厅 的 <em>中间</em> 有 一个 沙发  。<span class="trans">Shanghai is between Jiangsu Province and Zhejiang Province.</span>
*大厅 的 <em>中间</em> 有 很多 人 。<span class="trans">There are many people in the middle of the lobby.</span>
</div>

Grammatically, both 之间 and 中间 are nouns ([[location noun]]s, to be precise). One difference between the two, however, is that 中间 can be used all by itself, but 之间 is always used together with other words.

<div class="liju">
*明天 早上 我 有 两个 考试 ，<em>中间</em> 有 半个小时 的 休息时间 。<span class="trans">.</span>
</div>


=== For time and number ranges use 之间 ===

This usage refers to examples like "between 8am and 3pm" or "a number between 32 and 51."

==== Structure ====

<div class="jiegou">
Time 1 + 和 + Time 2 + 之间
</div>

<div class="jiegou">
Number 1 + 和 + Number 2 + 之间
</div>

==== Examples ====

<div class="liju">

*你 可以 明早 八 点 到 十 点 <em>之间</em> 过来 。 <span class="trans">You can come between 8 and 10 o'clock tomorrow morning.</span>
*3月 到 7月 <em>之间</em> 是 。 <span class="trans">Between March and July is a good time to travel.</span>

</div>

=== For describing location within an object, use 中间 ===

This "within" could be "inside" a space (like inside a house, or inside a refrigerator), and is similar to 里面 except that it is also centered in the space (with regards to the sides, but not height).  But it can also mean "in the middle of" a two-dimensional physical space, like in the middle (center) of a table, or in the middle of the screen.

You can't use 之间 in this way.

==== Structure ====

<div class="jiegou">
Noun + (的 +) 中间
</div>

==== Examples ====

<div class="liju">

* 房子 的 <em>中间</em> 有 一 个 大 桌子 。 <span class="trans">In the middle of the apartment there's a table.</span>
* 我 在 这 一 排 座位 的 <em>中间</em> 。 <span class="trans">I'm in the middle of this row of seats.</span>
* 把 花 放 在 桌子 <em>中间</em> 。 <span class="trans">Put the flowers in the middle of the table.</span>
</div>

== Other uses of 之间 ==

=== 之间 can be used to indicate relationships ===

The idea is that the relationship is "between two people," and the "between" is indicated by 之间.  This usage of 之间 can also refer to relationships between a person and a company, two companies, two countries, etc.

You can't use 中间 in this way.

==== Structure ====

<div class="jiegou">
Noun 1 + 和 + Noun 2 + 之间
</div>

In the structure above, Noun 1 and Noun 2 are frequently people.

==== Examples ====

<div class="liju">
* 父母 和 孩子 <em>之间</em> 应该 多 交流 。 <span class="trans">There should be plenty of communication between parents and children.</span>
* 我们 公司 ， 同事 <em>之间</em> 的 关系 很 复杂 。 <span class="trans">The relationships between our company and its employees are quite complex.</span>
* 中美 <em>之间</em> 还 有 很 多 问题 需要 解决 。 <span class="trans">There are a lot of issues between China and the USA which need to be resolved.</span>
* 我们 <em>之间</em> 什么 话 都 说 。 <span class="trans">The two of us can talk about anything.</span>
* 你 要 学 会 处理 上下 级 <em>之间</em> 的 关系 。 <span class="trans">You need to learn to handle the relationships between superiors and subordinates.</span>
* 国家 <em>之间</em> 的 政治 关系 受 经济 的 影响 很 大 。 <span class="trans">The effect of economics on the relationship between the two countries is significant.</span>
</div>

== Other uses of 中间 ==

=== 中间 can also mean "among" ===

中间 is used when referring to one (or more) "among many."

==== Structure ====

<div class="jiegou">
Noun + (的 +) 中间
</div>

==== Examples ====

<div class="liju">
* 你们 <em>中间</em> 有 会 唱歌 的 吗 ？ <span class="trans">Can anyone among you sing?</span>
* 这些 人 <em>中间</em> 只 有 一 个 我 认识 。 <span class="trans">Among these people, there's only one I know.</span>
</div>

=== 中间 can be used as part of other words ===

中间 is a noun, and can combine with other nouns to create a number of fairly common verbs.

==== Structure ====

<div class="jiegou">
中间 + Noun
</div>

==== Examples ====

<div class="liju">
* <em>中间</em>人 <span class="trans">intermediary (lit. "middle person")</span>
* <em>中间</em>商 <span class="trans">broker (lit. "middle business")</span>
</div>

== Sources and further reading ==

=== Books ===

=== Dictionaries ===

[[Category:grammar comparison]]
{{Basic Grammar|之间|B1|之间 vs. 中间| 八 点 到 十 点 <em>之间</em> 我 都 有空 。房子 的 <em>中间</em> 有 一 个 大 桌子 。|grammar point|ASGN6O6J}}
{{Rel char|中间}}
{{Comparison|Nouns}}