Difference between revisions of "Expressing "for" with "wei""
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*我们 都 <em>为</em> 你 <strong>高兴</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒmen dōu <em>wèi</em> nǐ <strong>gāoxìng</strong>.</span><span class="trans">We are all happy for you.</span> | *我们 都 <em>为</em> 你 <strong>高兴</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒmen dōu <em>wèi</em> nǐ <strong>gāoxìng</strong>.</span><span class="trans">We are all happy for you.</span> | ||
*谁 <em>为</em> 我 <strong>考虑</strong> 过 ？<span class="pinyin">Shéi <em>wèi</em> wǒ <strong>kǎolǜ</strong> guo?</span><span class="trans">Is there anyone who's ever thought about me?</span> | *谁 <em>为</em> 我 <strong>考虑</strong> 过 ？<span class="pinyin">Shéi <em>wèi</em> wǒ <strong>kǎolǜ</strong> guo?</span><span class="trans">Is there anyone who's ever thought about me?</span> | ||
| − | *你们 可以 来 <em>为</em> 我们 <strong>加油</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Nǐmen kěyǐ lái <em>wèi</em> wǒmen <strong>jiāyóu</strong>.</span><span class="trans">You guys can come to cheer us | + | *你们 可以 来 <em>为</em> 我们 <strong>加油</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Nǐmen kěyǐ lái <em>wèi</em> wǒmen <strong>jiāyóu</strong>.</span><span class="trans">You guys can come to cheer us on.</span> |
*她 是 <em>为</em> 美国 政府 <strong>工作</strong> 的 。<span class="pinyin">Tā shì <em>wèi</em> Měiguó zhèngfǔ <strong>gōngzuò</strong> de.</span><span class="trans">She works for the United States government.</span> | *她 是 <em>为</em> 美国 政府 <strong>工作</strong> 的 。<span class="pinyin">Tā shì <em>wèi</em> Měiguó zhèngfǔ <strong>gōngzuò</strong> de.</span><span class="trans">She works for the United States government.</span> | ||
*这个 生日 蛋糕 是 <em>为</em> 你 <strong>准备</strong> 的 。<span class="pinyin">Zhège shēngrì dàngāo shì <em>wèi</em> nǐ <strong>zhǔnbèi</strong> de.</span><span class="trans">This birthday cake is prepared for you.</span> | *这个 生日 蛋糕 是 <em>为</em> 你 <strong>准备</strong> 的 。<span class="pinyin">Zhège shēngrì dàngāo shì <em>wèi</em> nǐ <strong>zhǔnbèi</strong> de.</span><span class="trans">This birthday cake is prepared for you.</span> | ||
Revision as of 08:30, 19 April 2018
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Keywords
When you work for a company, or do other sorts of physical (and even mental) activities for another party, you're likely to use the Chinese preposition 为 (wèi), which is often translated into English as "for," a translation which is often unnatural or unnecessary, depending on the particular phrase. The super common Mao-era phrase, 为人民服务 ("serve the people"), doesn't need the word "for" in English, for example.
Don't confuse this preposition with 为了, which is a bit different.
Structure
为 + Party + Verb / Adj.
Examples
- 我们 都 为 你 高兴 。We are all happy for you.
- 谁 为 我 考虑 过 ？Is there anyone who's ever thought about me?
- 你们 可以 来 为 我们 加油 。You guys can come to cheer us on.
- 她 是 为 美国 政府 工作 的 。She works for the United States government.
- 这个 生日 蛋糕 是 为 你 准备 的 。This birthday cake is prepared for you.
- 父母 都 要 为 家庭 付出 很 多 。Parents all need to do a lot for their family.
- 你 不 为 自己 的 孩子 担心 吗 ？Aren't you worried about your child?
- 谢谢 你 为 我们 提供 这么 多 资源 。Thank you for providing us with so many resources.
- 他 为 公司 的 发展 贡献 了 很多 。He contributed a lot for the development of the company.
- 很多 人 都 在 为 那些 孩子 祈祷 。Lots of people are praying for those children.
See also
Sources and further reading
Books
- Chinese Grammar - Broken down into 100 items - Basic and Intermediate Levels (汉语语法百项讲练 - 初中级) (pp. 238) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
- Practicing HSK Grammar (语法精讲精炼) (pp. 76) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
- Boya Chinese Lower Intermediate 1 (博雅汉语准中级加速篇) (pp. 203) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
Websites
- Yale Chinese Usage Dictionary: Uses of 为 and 为了
