Comparing "fan'er" and “xiangfan"

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反而 (fǎn'ér) is an adverb, while 相反 (xiāngfǎn) 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。Hǎo hǎo gōngzuò jiù huì shēng zhí, xiāngfǎn, bù hǎohǎo gōngzuò shì bù huì shēng zhí de.If you work hard, you will be promoted. Contrarily, you will not be promoted if you don't work hard.
  • 老板 没有 生气,反而 表扬 了 我。Lǎobǎn méiyǒu shēngqì, fǎn'ér biǎoyáng le wǒ.The boss isn't angry. On the contrary, he praised me.
  • 老板 没有 生气,相反,他 还 表扬 了 我。Lǎobǎn méiyǒu shēngqì, xiāngfǎn, tā hái biǎoyáng le wǒ.The boss isn't angry. Actually, he praised me.

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。Zhè shì liǎng gè wánquán xiāngfǎn de jiéguǒ.These are two completely opposite results.
  • 你 应该 朝 相反的 方向 走。Nǐ yīnggāi cháo xiāngfǎn de fāngxiàng zǒu.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Zhè liǎng zhǒng yìshù de biǎoxiàn xíngshì xiāngfǎn.These two art pieces have completely different forms.
  • 我们 的 看法 是 相反 的。Wǒmen de kànfǎ shì xiāngfǎn de.Our perspectives are not the same.
  • 老板 的 想法 跟 我 的 相反Lǎobǎn de xiǎngfǎ gēn wǒ de xiāngfǎn.The boss's way of thinking and mine don't match up.
  • 现在 的 观念 和 以前 的 相反Xiànzài de guānniàn hé yǐqián de xiāngfǎn.The views of today are different from what they were in the past.

See Also

Sources and further reading

Books

Dictionaries