Basic comparisons with "bi"

Revision as of 02:51, 13 August 2015 by Luojie (talk | contribs)
Also known as: 比字句 (bǐ zì jù).

One of the most common words when comparing things in Chinese is to use 比 (bǐ). 比 (bǐ) draws similarities to the English word "than" when making comparisons between things.

Basic Pattern Using 比

You could think of 比 (bǐ) as meaning "than," except that it sits between the two things being compared. The word order will take a little getting used to, but aside from that, the pattern is quite easy.

Structure

To say that one thing is more adjective than another, the structure is:

Noun 1 + 比 + Noun 2 + Adjective

The noun that's placed first is the one that comes out on top in the comparison. So in the sentence:

  • 小李 小张 Xiǎo Lǐ Xiǎo Zhāng gāo .Xiao Li is taller than Xiao Zhang.

小李 (Xiǎo lǐ) is taller. The same situation could be described as

  • 小张 小李 Xiǎo Zhāng Xiǎo Lǐ ǎi .Xiao Zhang is shorter than Xiao Li.

Examples

  • .She is older than me.
  • pàng .I'm fatter than you.
  • 美国 英国 Měiguó Yīngguó .The U.S. is bigger than the U.K.
  • 这 个 地方 那 个 地方 Zhè gè dìfāng nàgè dìfāng hǎo .This place is better than that place.
  • 纽约 上海 Niǔyuē Shànghǎi lěng .New York is colder than Shanghai.
  • 咖啡 Kāfēi chá .Coffee is more bitter than tea.
  • 猪肉 好吃 zhūròu hǎo chī .Fish tastes better than pork.
  • 伦敦 的 房子 上海 的 Lúndūn de fángzi Shànghǎi de guì .The apartments in London are more expensive than in Shanghai.
  • 上海 别 的 城市 方便Shànghǎi bié de chéngshì fāngbiàn .Shanghai is more convenient than other cities.
  • 中文 英语 有意思Zhōngwén Yīngyǔ yǒuyìsi .Chinese is more interesting than English.

Common Errors

Try not to make these mistakes:

The adjective used in the comparison should be positive, not negative.

  • 不 聪明bù cōngming .I am not smarter than you. (incorrect)
  • 聪明cōngming .You are smarter than me. (correct)
  • bèn .I am dumber than you. (correct)

比 (bǐ) is not used with 一样 (yīyàng). 比 (bǐ) is used when two things are not the same.

  • 一样 聪明 。yīyàng cōngming.I am as smart as you. (incorrect)
  • 一样 聪明 。gēnyīyàng cōngming.I am as smart as you. (correct)

Pattern Using 比 and 更

This is a slight upgrade of the basic 比 (bǐ) comparison pattern, adding in 更 (gèng) before the adjective. 更 (gèng) means "even more," so the idea is that while one thing is already quite [adjective], this other thing is even more [adjective]. Pretty simple!

Structure

Noun 1 + 比 + Noun 2 + 更 + Adjective

The only new thing here is the addition of 更 (gèng) before the adjective.

  • 小李 小张 更 高Xiǎo Lǐ Xiǎo Zhāng gèng gāo .Xiao Li is even taller than Xiao Zhang.

The implication is that while Xiao Zhang is tall, 小李 (Xiǎo lǐ) is even taller.

Examples

  • 更 大gèng dà .She is even older than me.
  • 更 胖gèng pàng .I'm even fatter than you.
  • 美国 英国 更 大Měiguó Yīngguó gèng dà .The U.S. is even bigger than the U.K.
  • 这 个 地方 那 个 地方 更 好Zhè gè dìfāng nàgè dìfāng gèng hǎo .This place is even better than that place.
  • 你 妈妈 更 漂亮 nǐ māmā gèng piàoliang .You are prettier than your mom.
  • iPhone iPad 更 贵iPhone iPad gèng guì .iPhone is more expensive than iPad.
  • 中文 法语 更 难Zhōngwén Fǎyǔ gèng nán .Chinese is more difficult than French.
  • 海南 香港 更 热Hǎinán Xiānggǎng gèng rè .Hainan is hotter than Hong Kong.
  • 我 现在 以前 更 开心Wǒ xiànzài yǐqián gèng kāixīn .I am happier now than before.
  • 我 的 钱 你 的钱 更 多Wǒ de qián nǐ de qián gèng duō .I have more money than you.

See also

Finally, to express "not as... as," use 没有, and to express "not more... than" use 不比 (the negative cousin of 比).

Check these elementary comparison patterns out as well:

When you're read for more, we also have a good overview of comparisons in Mandarin Chinese which spans all levels.

Sources and further reading

Books

Websites