Expressing "with" with "gen"

Using 跟 (gēn) to express "with" is so simple and helpful, after studying it briefly, it will always be with you! 跟 (gēn) is a very common word that will help complete many sentence structures.

Structure

The preposition 跟 (gēn) is commonly used to express "with." Just remember that the "with" phrase comes before the verb.

Subject + 跟 + Person + Verb + Object

The word 一起 (yīqǐ) is used a lot with 跟 (gēn), expressing the idea of "doing something together with somebody." It may seem kind of redundant, but it's totally normal in Chinese to use both.

Subject + 跟 + Person + 一起 + Verb + Object

Certain Chinese verbs use 跟 (gēn) a lot, so be on the lookout for them (examples below)!

Examples

• 你 要 跟 我 一起 去 吗 ？ Nǐ yào gēn wǒ yīqǐ qù ma? Do you want to go with me?
• 我 跟 两 个 同事 去 北京 。 Wǒ gēn liǎng gè tóngshì qù Běijīng. I'm going with two co-workers to Beijing.
• 我 跟 我 朋友 喝 啤酒 。 Wǒ gēn wǒ péngyou hē píjiǔ. I drink beer with my friend.
• 他 跟 他 家人 一起 吃饭 。 Tā gēn tā jiārén yīqǐ chīfàn. He eats with his family.
• 不要 跟 我 说话 ！ Bùyào gēn wǒ shuōhuà! Don't talk to me!
• 中秋节 你 想 跟 我 回 老家 吗 ？ Zhōngqiūjié nǐ xiǎng gēn wǒ huí lǎojiā ma? During Mid-Autumn Festival do you want to go back to my hometown with me?
• 下 个 月 你 要 跟 你 的 男朋友 去 欧洲 吗 ？ Xià gè yuè nǐ yào gēn nǐ de nánpéngyou qù Ōuzhōu ma? Are you going to go to Europe with your boyfriend next month?
• 他 想 跟 他 的 女朋友 结婚 吗 ？ (This is one of those verbs that often appears with 跟)Tā xiǎng gēn tā de nǚpéngyou jiéhūn ma? Does he want to marry his girlfriend?
• 你 的 老师 喜欢 跟 你 聊天 吗 ？ (This is one of those verbs that often appears with 跟)Nǐ de lǎoshī xǐhuan gēn nǐ liáotiān ma? Does your teacher like to talk with you?
• 你 想 跟 他 的 家人 见面 吗 ？ (This is one of those verbs that often appears with 跟)Nǐ xiǎng gēn tā de jiārén jiànmiàn ma? Do you want to meet his family?

Note: One of the most common beginner mistakes is to fail to use 跟 (gēn) with 见面 (jiànmiàn), "to meet." It might help to think of 见面 (jiànmiàn) as "to meet with (somebody)," the "with" cluing you into the fact that you need a 跟 (gēn) in there.

Check out the examples below:

• 我 要 见面 你 。Wǒ yào jiànmiàn nǐ.
• 我 要 跟 你 见面 。Wǒ yào gēn nǐ jiànmiàn .I want to meet (with) you.
• 我 昨天 见面 他 了 。Wǒ zuótiān jiànmiàn tāle.
• 我 昨天 跟 他 见面 了 。Wǒ zuótiān gēn tā jiànmiàn le.I met with him yesterday.
• 你 什么时候 见面 她 ？Nǐ shénme shíhòu jiànmiàn tā?
• 你 什么时候 跟 她 见面 ？Nǐ shénme shíhòu gēn tā jiànmiàn ?When are you going to meet (with) her?
• 明天 我 要见面 我 男朋友 的 家人。Míngtiān wǒ yào jiànmiàn wǒ nánpéngyou de jiārén.
• 明天 我 要 跟 我 男朋友 的 家人 见面 。Míngtiān wǒ yào gēn wǒ nánpéngyou de jiārén jiànmiàn.Tomorrow I am going to meet my boyfriend's family.
• 你 有没有 见面 过 Obama?Nǐ yǒu méiyǒu jiànmiàn guò Obama?
• 你 有没有 跟 Obama 见过面 ？Nǐ yǒu méiyǒu gēn Obama jiànguòmiàn?Have you ever met Obama?

Later on you'll learn more about why this is the case, but for now just memorize the correct pattern.

See also

• Expressing "together" with "yiqi"
• Verbs with "gei"
• Using "dui"
• Expressing "and" with "he"

Sources and further reading

Books

• Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide (p.84, p.88)→buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (pp.166-167) →buy