Expressing various aspects with "yi fangmian"

When talking about various aspects of a situation, "一方面⋯⋯， (另)一方面⋯⋯" (yī fāngmiàn..., (lìng) yī fāngmiàn...) can be used in a similar way that "On one hand..., on the other hand..." is in English.

Structure

一方面 + Aspect 1 + (另)一方面 + Aspect 2

The two aspects in the sentence can both be similar in tone, or as it is more common in English, they can be in direct opposition of each other.

Examples

• 智能 手机 一 方面 让 我们 的 生活 方便 了 很 多 ， 另 一 方面 也 浪费 了 我们 不少 时间 。 Zhìnéng shǒujī yī fāngmiàn ràng wǒmen de shēnghuó fāngbiàn le hěn duō, lìng yī fāngmiàn yě làngfèi le wǒmen bùshǎo shíjiān. One one hand, smart phone makes our life more convenient, but on the other hand, it wastes a lot of our time.
• 我们 一 方面 要 让 客户 满意 ， 另 一 方面 又 不 能 让 公司 有 损失 。 Wǒmen yī fāngmiàn yào ràng kèhù mǎnyì, lìng yī fāngmiàn yòu bù néng ràng gōngsī yǒu sǔnshī. One one hand, we need to make our clients satisfied, but on the other hand, we can't cause the company any loss.
• 他 一 方面很 想 创业 ， 另 一 方面 又 担心 风险 太 大 。 Tā yī fāngmiàn hěn xiǎng chuàngyè, lìng yī fāngmiàn yòu dānxīn fēngxiǎn tài dà.On one hand, he wants to start a business, but on the other hand, he's afraid the risk is too great.
• 开发 太阳能 一 方面 可以 减少 污染 ，一 方面也 可以 降低 成本 。 Kāifā tàiyángnéng yī fāngmiànkěyǐ jiǎnshǎo wūrǎn, yī fāngmiàn yě kěyǐ jiàngdī chéngběn. On one hand, developing solar power can reduce pollution, on the other, it could also reduce the cost.

See also

• Expressing Simultaneous Actions with "yimian"

Sources and further reading

Books

• Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide (pp. 271) →buy
• New Practical Chinese Reader 4 (新实用汉语课本4) (pp. 227) →buy
• 40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课下册） (p. 502)→buy