How to Say “For” (Doing Something for Someone) with 给 (gěi)
给 (gěi) is the everyday “for”: Subject + 给 + Recipient + Verb Phrase = do something for someone. 妈妈给我做早饭 (“Mum makes breakfast for me”), 我给你倒杯水 (“I'll pour you a glass of water”). The 给 + person goes before the verb, not after as in English. It's the same 给 as “give,” sorted out by what follows: a thing means give, a verb means for.
Why this trips learners up
You know 给 (gěi) as “give.” It has a second, just as common job: the preposition “for.” The frame is Subject + 给 + Recipient + Verb Phrase, and it means you do the action for / on behalf of that recipient. 妈妈给我做早饭 (“Mum makes breakfast for me”), 我给你倒杯水 (“I'll pour you a glass of water”), 护士给病人量体温 (“the nurse takes the patient's temperature”).
The word order is the first thing to get right: the 给 + recipient phrase comes before the verb, not trailing at the end the way English “for you” does. English says “I'll clean the room for you” (at the end); Chinese says 我给你打扫房间 (“I for-you clean the room”). The recipient is usually a person, but it doesn't have to be: it can be an animal, a place or an organisation, 给小狗洗澡 (“give the dog a bath”), 给花园浇水 (“water the garden”).
Because it's the same character as “give,” you tell the two jobs apart by what follows the recipient. A noun means “give”: 我给你一杯咖啡 = “I give you a coffee.” A verb phrase means “for”: 我给你买一杯咖啡 = “I'll buy you a coffee.” So if you want to do something for someone, you need the verb, 给你买, not just 给你.
One more note on register. 给 is the informal, everyday “for”; its more formal cousin is 为 (wèi), which carries a weightier “for the sake of” (为人民服务, “serve the people”). For ordinary favours and services, 给 is what you'll reach for, and which one a given verb takes is often just convention.
The structure
Colour key
Each colour marks one grammatical role — and the same colour means the same role on every page in the Lab.
Examples in context
Real-world sentences, easiest first. Toggle pinyin or the translation, tap any word to see its role, or play the audio.
Tap a word to see its grammatical role.
wǒ 我 Subject gěi 给 Pattern nǐ 你 Object dào bēi shuǐ 倒杯水 Verb
I'll pour you a glass of water (给 + recipient + verb).
māma 妈妈 Subject měitiān 每天 Time gěi 给 Pattern wǒ 我 Object zuò zǎofàn 做早饭 Verb
Mum makes breakfast for me every day (给我 before the verb).
nǐ 你 Subject kěyǐ 可以 Function word gěi 给 Pattern wǒ 我 Object liú yí gè zuòwèi 留一个座位 Verb ma 吗 Function word
Could you save a seat for me? (a polite request with 给).
zhōumò 周末 Time wǒ 我 Subject dǎsuàn 打算 Function word gěi 给 Pattern bàba 爸爸 Object guò shēngrì 过生日 Verb
This weekend I'm planning to throw Dad a birthday (给爸爸 + verb).
hùshi 护士 Subject zhèngzài 正在 Adverb gěi 给 Pattern bìngrén 病人 Object liáng tǐwēn 量体温 Verb
The nurse is taking the patient's temperature (给病人, a service done for them).
wǒ 我 Subject měi zhōu 每周 Time gěi 给 Pattern huāyuán 花园 Object jiāo shuǐ 浇水 Verb
I water the garden every week (the recipient doesn't have to be a person).
bù hǎoyìsi 不好意思 Other néng ，能 Function word gěi 给 Pattern wǒ 我 Object huàn yí gè gānjìng de bēizi 换一个干净的杯子 Verb ma 吗 Function word
Excuse me, could you swap this for a clean cup for me? (给我 in a request).
nǐ dì-yī cì lái 你第一次来 Other wǒ ，我 Subject gěi 给 Pattern nǐ 你 Object jièshào jièshào zhège chéngshì 介绍介绍这个城市 Verb
Since it's your first time here, let me show you around the city (给你 + verb).
Common mistakes
Why it happens: The 给 + recipient phrase goes before the verb, not at the end like English “for you.” “I'll clean the room for you” is 我给你打扫房间, not 我打扫房间给你. Put 给 + the person first, then the verb.
Why it happens: 给 + recipient + a noun means “give”; to do something for them you need the verb. 我给你一杯咖啡 means “I give you a coffee” (handing it over); “I'll buy you a coffee” needs the verb, 我给你买一杯咖啡.
Why it happens: Most verbs can't take a beneficiary as a bare object the way give-verbs do. “I'll buy you a coffee” is 我给你买咖啡, not 我买你咖啡, because only true give/tell-type verbs (给, 送, 告诉) put the recipient straight after the verb; everyone else needs 给.
Compare & contrast
| 给 + recipient + thing = give | 给 + recipient + verb phrase = for | The difference |
|---|---|---|
| 我给你一本书wǒ gěi nǐ yì běn shū | 我给你买一本书wǒ gěi nǐ mǎi yì běn shū | 我给你一本书 = “I give you a book”: a noun follows 给你, so it's handing something over. 我给你买一本书 = “I'll buy a book for you”: a verb follows, so it's doing something for you. Same 给你, opposite job. |
| 他给我一杯咖啡tā gěi wǒ yì bēi kāfēi | 他给我买咖啡tā gěi wǒ mǎi kāfēi | 他给我一杯咖啡 = “he gives me a coffee” (give). 他给我买咖啡 = “he buys coffee for me” (for). A noun after the recipient = give; a verb = for. |
Try it yourself
Say “Mum makes breakfast for me.” Put 给 + the person before the verb.
Related patterns
Quick reference card
How to Say “For” (Doing Something for Someone) with 给 (gěi) grammar.merrymandarin.com A pocket summary — print it and keep it by your desk.