Comparing "fan'er" and “xiangfan"

The differences between 反而 (fǎn'ér) and 相反 (xiāngfǎn) are pretty clear. 反而 is an adverb, while 相反 is an adjective and also a conjunction, and this determines how they are used grammatically.

Position in a Sentence

Structure

相反 normally starts a sentence, and when used should be followed with a comma. As an adverb, 反而 is not so set apart from the rest of the sentence, and should not be followed by a comma.

A，相反，B

A，反而 B

Examples

• 这样 做 帮 不了 他 ，相反，还 会 害 了 他。Zhèyàng zuò bāng bùliǎo tā, xiāngfǎn, hái huì hài le tā.This won't help him. On the contrary, it will harm him.
• 这样 做 不但 帮 不了 他，反而 会 害 了 他。Zhèyàng zuò bùdàn bāng bùliǎo tā, fǎn'ér huì hài le tā.Not only will this not help him, on the contrary it will harm him..

Differences in Meaning

反而 is used in the context of the speaker expecting some kind of turning point. 相反 is for similar things that have a different aspect. 反而 conveys that the difference between what was expected and what actually happened was quite large. 相反 isn't as strong.

Structure

Situation，相反，The Opposite of the Situation

Expectation，反而 + The Opposite of Expectation

Examples

• 好好 工作 就 会 升职，相反，不 好好 工作 是 不 会 升职 的。.
• 老板 没有 生气，反而 表扬 了 我。.
• 老板 没有 生气，相反，他 还 表扬 了 我。.

相反 can act as an attribute

相反 is an adjective, and of course it can also be an attribute. Just make sure to add a 的 after it. 反而 cannot be used this way.

Structure

相反 + 的 + Noun

Examples

• 这 是 两 个 完全 相反 的 结果。These are two completely opposite results.
• 你 应该 朝 相反的 方向 走。You should go down a different path.

相反 can be the predicate

相反, like all other adjectives, can be placed after the subject as the predicate of the sentence.

Structure

Subj. + 相反

A 和 / 跟 B ＋ 是 ＋ 相反的

Examples

• 这 两 种 艺术 的 表现 形式 相反。These two art pieces have completely different forms.
• 我们 的 看法 是 相反 的。Our perspectives are not the same.
• 老板 的 想法 跟 我 的 相反。The boss's way of thinking and mine don't match up.
• 现在 的 观念 和 以前 的 相反。The views of today are different from what they were in the past.

Sources and further reading

Books

• HSK Standard Course 4下 (pp. 24) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
• 对外汉语教学语法释疑201例 (pp. 184) [ →buy]
• 现代汉语八百词（增订本） (pp. 199, 574) [ →buy]
• 现代汉语虚词例释 (pp. 172, 504) 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 →buy
• 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 (pp. 19-20) 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 →buy

Dictionaries

• 现代汉语词典（第5版） (pp. 1484, 377) 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 →buy

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