Prepositions are words that indicate the relationship between words, usually nouns, in a sentence and tell us where and when something is happening. There are 4 main types of prepositions: direction, time, location and space.
Below are the different types of Chinese prepositions and how to use them in a sentence.
Chinese Prepositions for Time, Direction and Place
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 从 | cóng | from |
| 自 | zì | from / since |
| 自从 | zì cóng | since |
| 于 | yú | from / in |
| 打 | dǎ | since / from |
| 到 | dào | to |
| 往 | wǎng | to / towards |
| 在 | zài | at |
| 当 | dāng | at |
| 朝 | cháo | towards |
| 向 | xiàng | towards |
| 顺着 | shùn zhe | to follow |
| 沿着 | yán zhe | to follow |
| 随着 | suí zhe | following |
| 对 | duì | towards |
从周一到周五 (cóng zhōu yī dào zhōu wǔ) From Monday to Friday
在健身房跑步 (zài jiàn shēn fáng pǎo bù) Running in the gym
Chinese Prepositions for Method and Grounds
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 按 | àn | according to |
| 照 | zhào | according to |
| 按照 | àn zhào | according to |
| 依 | yī | according to |
| 依照 | yī zhào | according to |
| 本着 | běn zhe | according to / based on |
| 经过 | jīng guò | through |
| 通过 | tōng guò | through |
| 根据 | gēn jù | according to |
| 以 | yǐ | according to |
| 凭 | píng | on the basis of |
依我看 (yī wǒ kàn) In my opinion
根据新的标准 (gēn jù xīn de biāo zhǔn) According to the new standards
Chinese Prepositions for Aims
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 为 | wèi | for |
| 为了 | wèi le | for; in order to |
| 为着 | wèi zhe | for; in order to |
为了追逐梦想，他选择了出国。(wèi le zhuī zhú mèng xiǎng, tā xuǎn zé le chū guó) In order to pursue his dreams, he chose to go abroad.
Chinese Prepositions for Reasons
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 因 | yīn | because |
| 由于 | yóu yú | due to |
| 因为 | yīn wèi | because |
| 只有 | zhǐ yǒu | only |
因为下雨，我们一整天都待在了家里。(yīn wèi xià yǔ, wǒ men yī zhěng tiān dōu zài le jiā lǐ) Because of the rain, we stayed at home for a whole day.
Chinese Prepositions for Objects and Range
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 对 | duì | to |
| 对于 | duì yú | regarding |
| 把 | bǎ | passive particle |
| 向 | xiàng | towards |
| 跟 | gēn | with |
| 与 | yǔ | with / to |
| 同 | tóng | with |
| 给 | gěi | for, to |
| 关于 | guān yú | regarding |
他把钱包丢了。(tā bǎ qián bāo diū le) He lost his wallet.
Chinese Prepositions for Exclusion
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 除 | chú | except; besides |
| 除了 | chú le | except; besides |
| 除去 | chú qù | except for |
| 除非 | chú fēi | except |
除了他，大家都回家了。(chú le tā, dà jiā dōu huí jiā le) Apart from him, everyone has gone home.
Chinese Prepositions for Passivity
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 被 | bèi | by |
| 叫 | jiào | by |
| 让 | ràng | by |
| 给 | gěi | by |
他让人揍了一顿。(tā ràng rén zòu le yī dùn) Someone beat him up.
Chinese Prepositions for Comparing
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 比 | bǐ | than |
| 和 | hé | with |
| 与 | yǔ | with |
| 同 | tóng | with |
这个苹果比那个大。(zhè ge píng guǒ bǐ nèi gè dà) This apple is bigger than that one.
Comparing Some Common Chinese Prepositions
对(于) \ 关于 \ 至于 About
对(于) (duì (yú)) is used to describe the object of an action or relevant people or things
我对他一无所知。(wǒ duì tā yī wú suǒ zhī) I don’t know anything about him.
对于这个问题，我们还要在讨论一下。(duì yú zhè ge wèn tí wǒ men hái yào zài tǎo lùn yī xià) We need to discuss this problem further.
关于 (guān yú) is used to describe the range of action. Sometimes it can be an alternative to 对(于).
关于(对于)你们的意见，我们会认真考虑。(guān yú (duì yú) nǐ men de yì jiàn, wǒ men huì rèn zhēn kǎo lǜ) We will think carefully about your advice.
Since 对(于) focuses on the object, and 关于 focuses on the range, in the following sentence, 关于 cannot be an alternative to 对于.
关于这个小岛，还有一段鲜为人知的的传说。(guān yú zhè ge xiǎo dǎo, hái yǒu yī duàn xiǎn wéi rénzhī de chuán shuō) There is an obscure legend about the island.
至于 (zhì yú), 关于 (guān yú) and 对于 (duì yú) can all be used to lead into a topic. The difference is that 至于 (zhì yú) leads to another topic when one already exists.
这部电影将于下半年上线，至于具体时间，还没有公布。(zhè bù diàn yǐng jiāng yú xià bàn nián shàng xiàn, zhì yú jù tǐ shí jiān, hái méi yǒu gōng bù) The movie will be online in the 2nd half of the year, but the exact time has yet to be announced.
对 \ 朝 \ 向 \ 往 To
Sometimes, 对 (duì) \ 朝 (cháo) \ 向 (xiàng) can be used alternately, to mean the object of the action.
她对(朝 \ 向)我笑了笑。(tā duì (cháo/xiàng) wǒ xiào le xiào) She grinned at me.
朝 (cháo) \ 向 (xiàng) \ 往 (wǎng) can be used to describe the direction of the actions, but 对 (duì) can not.
她朝（向 \ 往）学校的方向跑了去。(tā cháo (xiàng / wǎng) xué xiào de fāng xiàng pǎo le qù) She ran in the direction of the school.
向 (xiàng) \ 往 (wǎng) can be used after a verb to make up a preposition phrase, but 朝 (cháo) can not.
开往深圳 (kāi wǎng shēn zhèn) Heading for Shenzhen
奔向梦想 (bēn xiàng mèng xiǎng) Run towards a dream
朝 (cháo) \ 向 (xiàng) is not only used to describe the direction of the action, but also the object of the action. They can work with a noun, including people and places. However, 往 (wǎng) is only for the direction of the action, so in the following two examples, we can not use 往 (wǎng).
他朝我挥了挥手。(tā cháo wǒ huī le huī shǒu) He waved to me.
他向我简单介绍了这个国家的历史。(tā xiàng wǒ jiǎn dān jiè shào le zhè ge guó jiā de lì shǐ) He simply briefed me the history of the country.
Different from the 对 (duì) in the above section, here 对 (duì) means “to” so it can not be changed to 对于 (duì yú) .
你还有什么话要对我说吗？(nǐ hái yǒu shén me huà yào duì wǒ shuō ma?) Is there anything else you want to say to me?
按 \ 按照 \ 根据 \ 据 According to
按 (àn) \ 按照 (àn zhào) work as prepositions, which means to follow a standard, for example:
按时完成 (àn shí wán chéng) Finish on time
按照计划行事 (àn zhào jìhuà xíng shì) According to the plan
据 (jù) means ‘according to some basis’, whereas 根据 (gēn jù) means ‘to take something or actions as preconditioned or a foundation’.
据理力争 (jù lǐ lì zhēng) Make one’s utmost efforts to fight for one’s point of view
根据他的报告，我们对销售计划进行了一些调整。(gēn jù tā de bào gào, wǒ men duì xiāo shòu jì huà jìn xíng le yī xiē tiáo zhěng) According to his reports, we need to make some adjustments to the marketing plan.
Words That Can Be Both a Verb and Preposition
| Preposition | Pinyin | Meaning (preposition) | Meaning (verb) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 在 | zài | in | exist / be living / stay / remain |
| 为 | wèi | for / by / to | do / act |
| 比 | bǐ | than; to | compare |
| 到 | dào | to | arrive / reach |
| 给 | gěi | to | give |
| 朝 | cháo | towards | face / look |
| 经过 | jīng guò | through | pass by |
| 通过 | tōng guò | through | pass through |
Verb: 他在学校。(tā zài xué xiào) He is in the school.
Preposition: 他在墙上画画。(tā zài qiáng shàng huà huà) He is drawing on the wall.
Verb: 这趟火车经过武汉。(zhè tàng huǒ chē jīng guò wǔ hàn) This train passes Wuhan.
Preposition: 经过一番认真的考虑，他决定辞职。(jīng guò yī fān rèn zhēn de kǎo lǜ, tā jué dìng cí zhí) After careful consideration, he decided to quit.
