<p>一面 (yìmiàn) is a more formal than 一边, but is used in the same way to express two simultaneous actions. It is used in the following way:</p> <h2 id="structure">Structure</h2> <div class="jiegou"> <p>一面 + Verb + 一面 + Verb</p> </div> <h2 id="examples">Examples</h2> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li>他 喜欢 <em>一面</em> 吃 东西 ， <em>一面</em> 看 电影 。<span class="trans">He likes to eat and watch movies at the same time.</span></li> <li>我 告诉 你 多少 次 了，别 <em>一面</em> 躺 在 床上 <em>一面</em> 吃 零食！弄得 床上 都 是 碎屑!<span class="trans">I told you so many times, don't eat while laying on the bed. The "clean" bed now has crumbs all over it!</span></li> <li>他们 一 家人 <em> 一面</em> 赏月<em> 一面</em> 吃 月饼。<span class="trans">They enjoy the moon and eat mooncakes together as a family.</span></li> <li>你 会 <em>一面</em> 拍头 <em>一面</em> 揉 肚子 吗？<span class="trans">Can you pat your head and rub your belly at the same time?</span></li> </ul> </div> <p>一面 cannot be shortened in the way while 一边 can:</p> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li>我 <em>面</em> 工作 <em>面</em> 学习。</li> <li>我 <em>边</em> 工作 <em>边</em> 学习。<span class="trans">I work and study at the same time.</span></li> </ul> </div> <p>一面 can also be used to express two aspects of a situation, which are not necessarily being enacted simultaneously. This is the same as the structure: <a href="Expressing_various_aspects_with_"yi_fangmian"" title="wikilink">"一方面...一方面..." or the English "on the one hand...one the other hand"</a></p> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li>政府 <em>一面</em> 要 控制 通货膨胀， <em>一面</em> 也 要 保证 一定 的 经济 增长 速度。<span class="trans">On one hand, the government is going to control inflation, but on the other hand, it's definitely going to protect economic growth.</span></li> </ul> </div> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul> <li><a href="Simultaneous_tasks_with_"yibian"" title="wikilink">Simultaneous tasks with "yibian"</a></li> <li><a href=""Along_with…"_using_"suizhe"" title="wikilink">"Along with…" using "suizhe"</a></li> <li><a href="Expressing_various_aspects_with_"yi_fangmian"" title="wikilink">Expressing various aspects with "yi fangmian"</a></li> </ul> <h2 id="sources-and-further-reading">Sources and further reading</h2> <h3 id="books">Books</h3> <ul> <li><a href="Chinese_Grammar_-_Broken_down_into_100_items_-_Basic_and_Intermediate_Levels_(汉语语法百项讲练_-_初中级)" title="wikilink">Chinese Grammar - Broken down into 100 items - Basic and Intermediate Levels (汉语语法百项讲练 - 初中级)</a> (pp. 323-5) <a href="http://www.amazon.cn/gp/product/B004WA6JSQ/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-23&linkCode=as2&camp=536&creative=3132&creativeASIN=B004WA6JSQ">→buy</a></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p><a href="Category:_B2_grammar_points" title="wikilink">Category: B2 grammar points</a></p>