Comparing "jianyi" and "tujian"

建议 and 推荐 both are verbs that can be used in informal and formal settings to mean to suggest. In this sense, 建议 is more closely correlated to “to propose“, whereas 推荐 is more closely related to “to recommend”. A key difference between these words is that 建议 can also be used as a noun.

A2HSK2ASV4567

	建议 (jiànyì)	推荐 (tuījiàn)
Meaning	to suggest, to propose, a suggestion	to suggest, to recommend
Part of Speech	noun and verb	verb
Formality	flexible	flexible

:Yes

To say to suggest oftentimes both 建议 and 推荐 can be used interchangeably.

Common Phrases

In the following examples both 建议 and 意见 can be used.

• 我～
• 你～
• 这本书～
• ～一下

To say to raise a suggestion use 建议.

Common Phrases

In the following examples only 建议 can be used.

• 提建议

To say a suggestion use 建议.

Common Phrases

In the following examples only 建议 can be used.

• 我的建议
• 很多建议
• 建议很多

To say a recommender or letter of recommendation use 推荐.

Common Phrases

In the following examples only 推荐 can be used.

• 推荐信
• 推荐人