Prepositions 给 and 跟 Before the Verb
Use 给 to say who receives an action, like 给妈妈打电话, and 跟 to say who you do something with, like 跟朋友一起去.
Pattern
Subject + 给 + person + verb (+ object); Subject + 跟 + person (+ 一起) + verb
给 points the action at someone; 跟 brings someone along with you, and both go before the verb.
晚上我给你打电话。
When to use Prepositions 给 and 跟 Before the Verb
给 and 跟 put a person into the sentence, and the phrase “给/跟 + person” comes before the main verb. 给 marks the person who receives the action or gets something from it: 给妈妈打电话 “call Mom”, 给我买书 “buy a book for me”. 跟 marks the person you do it with: 跟朋友一起去 “go with a friend”. Unlike English, you cannot just put the person after the verb: say 我给他写信, not 我写信他.
他给我买了一本书。
He bought me a book.
我跟同学一起学习汉语。
I study Chinese with my classmates.
你跟谁一起去？
Who are you going with?
妈妈每天给我做早饭。
Mom makes breakfast for me every day.
Common traps
- Say 我给他写信, not 我写信他: the person who receives the action needs 给, and 给 + person normally goes before the verb.
- Say 我没给他打电话, not 我给他没打电话: 不 and 没 go before 给 or 跟.
- Say 我跟朋友一起去, not 我一起跟朋友去 or 我去跟朋友一起: 一起 comes right after 跟 + person.
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