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A2 Intermediate Sentence Structure

跟 (gēn): How to Say “With” (Doing Things Together)

跟 (gēn) is the everyday word for doing something “with” a person: Subject + 跟 + Person + Verb (我跟朋友吃饭 = “I eat with friends”). The catch — the “with” phrase comes before the verb, and a few verbs (见面, 结婚, 聊天) can't do without it.

Why this trips learners up

To do something with someone, Chinese uses 跟 (gēn) — but the word order is the reverse of English. The “with” phrase comes before the verb: Subject + 跟 + Person + Verb. 我跟朋友吃饭 is literally “I / with / friends / eat”, not “I eat with friends”. Add 一起 (yìqǐ, “together”) for warmth: 我跟朋友一起吃饭 (“I eat together with friends”) — the two pair up constantly.

The trap is a handful of verbs that must take 跟 — above all 见面 (“to meet”), 结婚 (“to marry”) and 聊天 (“to chat”). They feel transitive in English (“meet you”, “marry her”), so learners reach for a direct object — but in Chinese the person rides up front on 跟: 跟你见面 (“meet with you”), never 见面你. And 跟 isn't only “together”: on its own it can point one way — “to / from” a person. 跟他说 is “speak to him”; 跟朋友借钱 is “borrow money from a friend”.

The structure

Subject 跟 gēn ObjectVerb
Colour key

Each colour marks one grammatical role — and the same colour means the same role on every page in the Lab.

Pattern Subject Verb Object Time Place Adverb Function word Measure word

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 gēn 跟 Pattern māma 妈妈 Object qù 去 Verb chāoshì 超市 Place

I'm going to the supermarket with my mom.

nǐ 你 Subject gēn 跟 Pattern wǒ 我 Object lái 来 Verb

Come with me.

wǒ 我 Subject xiǎng 想 Function word gēn 跟 Pattern nǐ 你 Object liáotiān 聊天 Verb

I want to chat with you.

zhōumò 周末 Time wǒ 我 Subject gēn 跟 Pattern péngyou 朋友 Object yìqǐ 一起 Adverb dǎ 打 Verb lánqiú 篮球 Object

On weekends I play basketball together with friends.

tā 他 Subject míngtiān 明天 Time yào 要 Function word gēn 跟 Pattern kèhù 客户 Object jiànmiàn 见面 Verb

He's meeting a client tomorrow.

nǐ 你 Subject kěyǐ 可以 Function word gēn 跟 Pattern lǎoshī 老师 Object jiè 借 Verb yì běn 一本 Measure word shū 书 Object

You can borrow a book from the teacher.

wǒ jiějie 我姐姐 Subject xià gè yuè 下个月 Time yào 要 Function word gēn 跟 Pattern tā nánpéngyou 她男朋友 Object jiéhūn 结婚 Verb

My older sister is marrying her boyfriend next month.

yǒukòng de shíhou 有空的时候 Time wǒ 我 Subject chángcháng 常常 Adverb gēn 跟 Pattern jiārén 家人 Object yìqǐ 一起 Adverb zuòfàn 做饭 Verb

When I have time, I often cook together with my family.

Common mistakes

Avoid: 我想见面你。 wǒ xiǎng jiànmiàn nǐ.
Say this: 我想跟你见面。 wǒ xiǎng gēn nǐ jiànmiàn.

Why it happens: 见面, 结婚 and 聊天 feel transitive in English, but in Chinese the person can't be their direct object — it has to ride on 跟, before the verb. “I want to meet you” is 我想跟你见面, never 我想见面你.

Avoid: 我去商店跟妈妈。 wǒ qù shāngdiàn gēn māma.
Say this: 我跟妈妈去商店。 wǒ gēn māma qù shāngdiàn.

Why it happens: The “with” phrase goes before the verb, not trailing after it like English. “I'm going to the store with my mom” is 我跟妈妈去商店 — 跟妈妈 first, then 去商店 — not 我去商店跟妈妈.

Avoid: 我跟同事吃饭一起。 wǒ gēn tóngshì chīfàn yìqǐ.
Say this: 我跟同事一起吃饭。 wǒ gēn tóngshì yìqǐ chīfàn.

Why it happens: 一起 (“together”) belongs right before the verb too, just after 跟 + person — not tacked on at the end. It's 我跟同事一起吃饭, not 我跟同事吃饭一起.

Compare & contrast

跟 … 一起 — doing it together (both sides)跟 (no 一起) — aimed one way (to / from)The difference
我跟他一起去。wǒ gēn tā yìqǐ qù.我跟他说。wǒ gēn tā shuō.我跟他一起去 = “I go together with him” — you both go. 我跟他说 = “I speak to him” — the words run one way.
跟朋友一起玩gēn péngyou yìqǐ wán跟朋友借钱gēn péngyou jiè qián跟朋友一起玩 = “hang out with friends” (everyone joins in). 跟朋友借钱 = “borrow money from a friend” — it flows from them to you.
Rule of thumbAdd 一起 when both people do the same thing together (一起去, 一起吃饭). Drop it — just 跟 + person — when the action runs one way: speaking TO, borrowing FROM, or learning FROM someone (跟他说, 跟他借, 跟他学).

Try it yourself

Say “I cook together with my mom” (跟…一起) — tap the words into order.

Related patterns

和How to Say “And” with 和 (hé)

跟 and 和 overlap: both can mean “with”. 和's main job is joining nouns (“A and B”); 跟 leans on a verb (“do X with someone”).

 我吃饭How to Build a Basic Chinese Sentence

跟 + person is a coverb phrase — it slots in before the main verb, bending the basic word order.

 离合词Separable Verbs in Chinese (离合词): Why You Can't Say 见面你

跟 is the standard fix for a separable verb: since 见面 / 结婚 / 道歉 already contain their object, the person you meet, marry or apologize to goes in a 跟 phrase before the verb (跟你见面).

 离离 (lí): How to Say “Far From” and Talk About Distance

Another coverb that goes before the predicate: 离 measures distance (A 离 B 远), 跟 marks the companion (A 跟 B + verb).

 一样一样 (yīyàng): How to Say “The Same As” / “As … As”

This is the 跟 inside A 跟 B 一样 — the comparison frame is built on “with”.

 比比 (bǐ): How to Say “…-er Than…” (Comparisons)

跟…一样 (as…as) is what you reach for when 比 doesn't fit — A 比 B for “more than”, A 跟 B 一样 for “the same as”.

 一起How to Say “Together” with 一起 (yīqǐ)

跟 names the companion; 一起 marks the action joint. They team up: 跟你一起去 (“go together with you”).

 互相How to Say “Each Other” with 互相 (hùxiāng)

跟 names the other party (跟他…); 互相 marks the action as mutual — they often pair up: 我们跟邻居互相照顾.

 关于How to Say “About” with 关于 (guānyú)

Both are coverbs that front their phrase: 关于 marks the topic (关于这件事), where 跟 marks the companion (跟他). And note 聊/谈 already mean “talk about,” so no 关于 follows them.

 给你买How to Say “For” (Doing Something for Someone) with 给 (gěi)

Two coverbs before the verb: 跟 marks who you do something with (跟他聊), 给 marks who you do it for (给他做饭).

 为你高兴How to Say “For” (Dedication and Feeling) with 为 (wèi)

Another coverb before the verb: 跟 marks who you do something with (跟他一起做), 为 marks who you act or feel for (为他骄傲).

 往前走How to Say “Toward” with 往 (wǎng)

Two coverbs that sit before the verb: 跟 marks who you do something with (跟他去), 往 marks which way you head (往那边去).

 向前看How to Say “Towards” with 向 (xiàng)

Two coverbs that take a person: 跟 marks who you do something with (跟他说), 向 marks who you direct it at (向他说). With versus towards.

 对我笑How to Use 对 (duì) with Verbs: “To,” “At” and “About”

Two coverbs that take a person: 跟 marks who you do something with (跟他聊), 对 marks who an action or feeling is aimed at (对他笑, 对他失望).

 倍How to Say “Times as Many” in Chinese (倍)

倍 adds a precise multiple to comparison: 跟…一样 says two things match, while 比…多一倍 says one is twice the other. The “how many times” end of the comparison family.

 跟……比How to Say “Compared With” in Chinese (跟……比)

Same word 跟, a second job: here 跟 means “with” (跟他去), but 跟……比起来 uses 跟 to bracket a comparison (“compared to him, ...”). Companion versus comparison frame.

 差很多How to Say “Very Different” with 差很多 (chà hěn duō)

A predicate 跟 sets up. 跟 (or 和) pairs A and B for comparison (A跟B…); 差很多 is the verdict that follows, that they're very different (我跟我父母差很多). 跟 links the two sides; 差很多 says they're worlds apart.
Quick reference card
Merry Mandarin 跟 (gēn): How to Say “With” (Doing Things Together) grammar.merrymandarin.com

A pocket summary — print it and keep it by your desk.

Structure
Subject + 跟 + Object + Verb
Example
我跟妈妈去超市
I'm going to the supermarket with my mom.
Watch out
✗ 我想见面你。  →  ✓ 我想跟你见面。