Verbs followed by "gei"

Although it's standard practice to put a word or phrase that modifies a verb before the verb, there are, of course, exceptions. 给 (gěi) is one of those exceptions; it sometimes comes before the verb, and sometimes after. This article is about when it comes after.

Basic Pattern

Structure

Note that the verbs that fit into this pattern are normally single-syllable verbs.

Subj. + Verb + 给 + [Recipient] + Obj.

Examples

• 昨天 他 送给 老师 一 束 花。Zuótiān tā sòng gěi lǎoshī yī shù huā. He gave the teacher a bouquet of flowers.
• 我 要 还给 你 三 十 块 钱。Wǒ yào huán gěi nǐ sānshí kuài qián. I need to return 30rmb to you.
• 房东 租给 了 我 一 个 很 便宜 的 房子。Fángdōng zū gěi le wǒ yīgè hěn piányi de fángzi.The landlord rented a very cheap house to me.
• 姐姐 分给 了 我 一块 蛋糕。Jiějie fēn gěi le wǒ yīkuài dàngāo. Older sister gave me a piece of cake.
• 那些 照片 你 都 传给 我 了 吗 ？Nàxiē zhàopiàn nǐ dōu chuán gěi wǒ le ma?Have you sent me all those photos yet?
• 老师 ，这 本 书 可以 借给 我 吗 ？Lǎoshī, zhè běn shū kěyǐ jiè gěi wǒ ma?Teacher, could you please lend me this book?
• 我 要 的 是 糖 ，他 却 递给 我 一 瓶 盐 。Wǒ yào de shì táng, tā què dì gěi wǒ yī píng yán.What I asked for was sugar, but he handed me a bottle of salt.
• 我们 想 献给 老师 一 首 歌 。Wǒmen xiàn gěi le lǎoshī yī shǒu gē. We dedicated a song to the teacher.
• 这些 校友 捐给 了 学校 二 十 万 。Zhèxiē xiàoyǒu juān gěi le xuéxiào èrshí wàn.These alumni donated two hundred thousand to the school.
• 这么 重要 的 工作 ，应该 交给 他 。Zhème zhòngyào de gōngzuò, yīnggāi jiāo gěi tā.It's such an important job. You should give it to him.

Pattern Using 把

Structure

Additionally, you can add 把 into this structure. This does not change the meaning of the sentence and when used in context can even add emphasis to what's being done and given.

Subj. + 把 + Obj. + Verb + 给 + Person

Examples

• 他 把 一 束 花 送给 了 我。Tā bǎ yī shù huā sòng gěi le wǒ.He gave me a bouquet of flowers.
• 这 个 老板 把 一 条 死鱼 卖给 了 我。Zhège lǎobǎn bǎ yītiáo sǐ yú mài gěi le wǒ.This boss sold me a dead fish.
• 我 把 书 借给 了 他。Wǒ bǎ shū jiè gěi le tā.I lent him a book.
• 我们 想 把 这 首 歌 献给 了 老师。Wǒmen xiǎng bǎ zhè shǒu gē xiàn gěi le lǎoshī. We want to dedicate this song to the teacher.

Note that the verb 嫁 (jià) cannot fit into the 把 pattern above; it's an exception.

• 她 嫁给 了 一 个 有 钱 的 老头。Tā jià gěi le yī gè yǒu qián de lǎotóu.

If you really want to make a 把 sentence, though, you can do this:

• 她 的 爸爸 把 她 嫁给 了 一 个 有 钱 的 老头。Tā de bàba bǎ tā jià gěi le yī gè yǒu qián de lǎotóu.

Academic Debate

Although 给 phrases should normally precede a verb like any other prepositional phrase, they sometimes come after. Why have it both ways? There is some academic debate over whether this 给 is actually a preposition or a type of verb (often called a "co-verb"), or even a type of complement. This type of discussion is outside the scope of this article, however.

See also

• Verbs with "gei"
• "for" with "gei"
• Expressing passive voice with "gei"
• Advanced uses of "ba"

Sources and further reading

Books

• 现代汉语虚词例释 (p. 196)→buy

Dictionaries

• 现代汉语词典（第5版） (p. 464) →buy