Expressing purpose with "weile"

\r\n为了 (wèile) is most often used to indicate the purpose of an action, or the person that will benefit from some act of kindness. In the "purpose" sense, it corresponds pretty well to "in order to" or "for the purpose of" in English.\r\n== 为了 as a preposition ==\r\nWhen 为了 indicates the purpose of an action, it's usually acting as a preposition. In this role, the whole "为了 phrase" should come before the verb.\r\nNote also that 为了 is a single word; the 了 here is not serving its role as a particle in this case.\r\n=== Structure ===\r\n

\r\n为了+ [some purpose], Subject + Predicate\r\n

\r\n=== Examples ===\r\n

\r\n* 为了 钱 ， 他 出卖 了 朋友 。 (money is the purpose) He betrayed his friends for money.

• 为了 给 他 太太 庆祝生日，他 办 了 一 个 盛大的 派对 。 (the wife benefits) He threw a grand party to celebrate his wife's birthday.
• 为了 有 一个 好 的 未来， 我 必须 好好 学习 。 (having a good future is the purpose) In order to have a good future, I have to study hard.\r\n

\r\n== 为了 as a verb ==\r\nOccasionally you will see 为了 acting as a verb by itself. In this case, it usually combines with 是, and the meaning is not hard to derive: "to be for."\r\n=== Structure ===\r\n

\r\nSubject + (是 +) 为了 + Objective\r\n

\r\n=== Example ===\r\n

\r\n* 我这么做 是 为了 你 。Did is for you.\r\n

\r\n== See also ==\r\n* "For" with "wei"\r\n== Sources and further reading ==\r\n=== Podcasts ===\r\n* Chinesepod Qingwen 为 and 为了\r\n=== Books ===\r\n* Home With Kids1 (家有儿女1) (p.32) →buy

New Practical Chinese Reader 4 (新实用汉语课本4) (p. 40) →buy

卓越汉语－公司实战篇 (p. 12) →buy\r\n===Websites===\r\n* Yale Chinese Usage Dictionary: Uses of 为 and 为了\r\n