How to use 跟
跟⋯⋯ + Verb
跟 can introduce the person involved with the subject in an action. Put 跟 and that person before the main verb phrase. This differs from many English sentences, where a phrase beginning with “with” naturally follows the action. Some verbs of meeting or communicating commonly use this arrangement.
一起 can appear after the companion phrase to make joint participation explicit. It is natural to use both 跟 and 一起, even where an English rendering needs only “with.” 和 can substitute in many companion phrases, but the words have other uses that do not always overlap. In particular, 跟 also relates to following someone, so interpret the whole action rather than equating every occurrence with 和.
Examples with pinyin and English
我昨天跟朋友去海滩了。
I went to the beach with friends yesterday.
不要跟我说话！
Don't talk to me!
我明天要跟新客户见面。
I'm going to meet new clients tomorrow.
你什么时候跟你女朋友结婚？
When are you gonna marry your girlfriend?
What to remember
- Place 跟 plus person before the verb.
- Add 一起 for shared activity.
- 和 overlaps in many companion phrases.
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Source and editorial notes
Explanation rewritten for Laowai. Examples are adapted from the Laowai English grammar curriculum, with editorial corrections where needed. The original curriculum credits AllSet Learning’s Chinese Grammar Wiki as used with permission. Read the retained source credits.
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