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<p>The word <span class="hanzi">给</span> (<span class="pinyin">gěi</span>) literally means "<b>to give</b>," but is frequently used in Chinese to indicate the target of a verb. The target is who or what the verb is aimed or directed at.</p>
<h2>Contents</h2>
<ol>
<li>Structure<br/></li>
<li>Examples<br/></li>
<li>See also<br/></li>
<li>Sources and further reading<br/></li>
<ol>
<li>Books<br/></li>
</ol>
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<h2 id="structure">Structure</h2>
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<div class="deux">
Subj. + <span class="hanzist">给</span> + Target + Verb + Obj.
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<h2 id="examples">Examples</h2>
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<li><span class="vert"><span class="hanzi">我 给 他 打 电话 了。</span> Literally, "I give him hit phone."</span><span class="pinyin"> Wǒ gěi tā dǎ diànhuà le.</span><br/><span> I gave him a phone call.</span></li>
<li><span class="hanzi">请 给 我 回 电话。</span> <span class="pinyin">Qǐng gěi wǒ huí diànhuà.</span><br/><span> Please return my phone call.</span></li>
<li><span class="hanzi">我 给 你 发 了 一 封 邮件。</span> <span class="pinyin">Wǒ gěi nǐ fā le yī fēng yóujiàn.</span><br/><span> I sent you a letter.</span></li>
<li><span class="hanzi">我 要 给 你 看 我们 的 新 产品。</span> <span class="pinyin">Wǒ yào gěi nǐ kàn wǒmen de xīn chǎnpǐn.</span><br/><span> I want you to take a look at our new product.</span></li>
<li><span class="hanzi">给 女朋友 买 什么 礼物 呢？</span> <span class="pinyin">Gěi nǚpéngyou mǎi shénme lǐwù ne?</span><br/><span> What gift should I buy for my girlfriend?</span></li>
<li><span class="hanzi">给 我 说 说 这 件 事情。</span> <span class="pinyin">Gěi wǒ shuō shuō zhè jiàn shìqing.</span><br/><span> Talk about this matter with me.</span></li>
<li><span class="hanzi">小 时候，妈妈 每天 都 给 我 讲 故事。</span> <span class="pinyin">Xiǎo shíhou, māma měitiān dōu gěi wǒ jiǎng gùshi.</span><br/><span> When I was young, every day my mother would tell me stories.</span></li>
<li><span class="hanzi">你 应该 给 他 道歉。</span><span class="pinyin">Nǐ yīnggāi gěi tā dàoqiàn.</span><br/><span>You should apologize to him.</span></li>
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<p>Chinese speakers use <span class="hanzi">给</span> (<span class="pinyin">gěi</span>) in some interesting ways, similar to how English speakers use "<b>to give</b>," as in "<b>to give someone a phone call</b>" or "<b>to give someone a reply</b>."</p>
<h2 id="alternative-structure">Alternative Structure</h2>
<p>Although the structure above is the best one to learn first, some verbs frequently use <span class="hanzi">给</span>, but have the <span class="hanzi">给 </span>coming after the verb, rather than before. It's best to think of these as exceptions to the rule above, and you can learn more about these exceptions by reading about <a href=""Gei"_following_verbs" title="wikilink">"gei" following verbs</a>.</p>
<h2 id="see-also">See also</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href=""Gei"_following_verbs" title="wikilink">"Gei" following verbs</a></li>
<li><a href="Expressing_"with"_with_"gen"" title="wikilink">Expressing "with" with "gen"</a></li>
<li><a href="Using_"dui"" title="wikilink">Using "dui"</a></li>
<li><a href="Complements_with_"dao,"_"gei"_and_"zai"" title="wikilink">Complements with "dao," "gei" and "zai"</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="sources-and-further-reading">Sources and Further Reading</h2>
<h3 id="books">Books</h3>
<ul>
<li>Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition (pp. 170)</li>
<li>Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 154)</li>
<li>New Practical Chinese Reader 1 (<span class="hanzi">新实用汉语课本1</span>) (pp. 143)</li>
<li>New Practical Chinese Reader 1 (<span class="hanzi">新实用汉语课本1</span>)(2nd ed) (pp. 165)</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="websites">Websites</h3>
<ul>
<li>Chinesegrammar.info: <a href="http://chinesegrammar.info/structure/gei3-directly-after-verb/">When 给 (gěi) comes directly after verbs in Mandarin Chinese (verb-给 compounds)</a></li>
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