Using "yi... wei..."

Revision as of 09:14, 21 March 2013 by Guomubai (talk | contribs)
Chinese-grammar-wiki-wei.jpg

One of the most elegant grammar patterns is "以A为B". It is often found in formal writing and speech, and it is also one of the classical Chinese forms that is still in use today. In short, it means "Using A as B" or "taking A as B."

Structure

This grammar pattern is as versatile as "using/taking A as B" is in English. We might say "take his example as our standard", "use this piece as an example", or "take charity as our central tenet."

以 + A + 为 + B


Look to the following for some examples of how this pattern can be used

Examples

  • 先进科技中心
  • 许多外国企业在中国快速发展,麦当劳例,2000年有50家,现在有500家。
  • 在我们公司,所有的服务是客户主。

Commonly used expressions with 以

This grammar structure is often used with couplets and proverbs. Here are a few examples

  • 民生
  • 服务人民

Phrases like this are often used in government reports, newspapers, and academia.

Sources and further reading

Books