<!DOCTYPE html> <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> <head> <meta name="generator" content= "HTML Tidy for HTML5 for Linux version 5.2.0" /> <title></title> </head> <body> <p>Both <a href="%E7%A6%BB" title="wikilink">离 (lí)</a> and <a href="%E4%BB%8E" title="wikilink">从 (cóng)</a> can be translated into English as “from.” In Chinese however, their meanings are different. 从 is used in cases where the subject's position relative to a fixed location changes. 离 expresses a “static” distance, or a distance that is unchanging. Both can be used in defining distance or time, however 从 has more meanings than 离.</p> <h2 id="从-as-from-time">从 as "from" (time)</h2> <h3 id="structure">Structure</h3> <div class="jiegou"> <p>从 + Time + 开始 / 起 / 以来 ⋯⋯</p> </div> <h3 id="examples">Examples</h3> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li><em>从</em> 明天 开始，我 不 抽烟 了。 <span class="pinyin"><em>Cóng</em> míngtiān kāishǐ, wǒ bù chōuyān le.</span> <span class= "trans">Starting tomorrow, I will not smoke.</span></li> <li><em>从</em> 有 了 女朋友 以后，他 不 泡妞 了。 <span class= "pinyin"><em>Cóng</em> yǒu le nǚ péngyou yǐhòu, tā bù pàoniū le.</span> <span class="trans">After he gets a girlfriend, he won’t hit on women.</span></li> </ul> </div> <h2 id="从-as-from-place">从 as "from" (place)</h2> <h3 id="structure-1">Structure</h3> <div class="jiegou"> <p>从 + Place + 到 / 向 + Place</p> </div> <h3 id="examples-1">Examples</h3> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li>他 <em>从</em> 地上 拿 起来了 一百 块。 <span class="pinyin">Tā <em>cóng</em> dìshàng ná qǐláile yībǎi kuài.</span> <span class= "trans">He picked up one hundred RMB from the ground.</span></li> </ul> </div> <h2 id="从-as-from-amount">从 as "from" (amount)</h2> <h3 id="examples-2">Examples</h3> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li><em>从</em> 学生 到 老师 都 放假 了。 <span class="pinyin"><em>Cóng</em> xuéshēng dào lǎoshī dōu fàngjiàle.</span> <span class= "trans">Everyone, from the students to the teachers, are on holiday.</span></li> </ul> </div> <h2 id="从-as-from-change">从 as "from" (change)</h2> <h3 id="examples-3">Examples</h3> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li>他 <em>从</em> 最 差 的 学生 变成 了 最 认真 的 学生。 <span class="pinyin">Tā <em>cóng</em> zuì chà de xuéshēng biànchéng le zuì rènzhēn de xuéshēng.</span> <span class="trans">He went from being the worst student to the best student.</span></li> </ul> </div> <h2 id="离-as-from-distance">离 as "from" (distance)</h2> <h3 id="structure-2">Structure</h3> <div class="jiegou"> <p>离 + Place + Distance</p> </div> <h3 id="examples-4">Examples</h3> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li>我 的 学校 <em>离</em> 你家 很远。 <span class="pinyin">Wǒ de xuéxiào <em>lí</em> nǐ jiā hěn yuǎn.</span> <span class="trans">My school is far from your house.</span></li> </ul> </div> <h2 id="离-as-from-time">离 as "from" (time)</h2> <h3 id="structure-3">Structure</h3> <div class="jiegou"> <p>离 + Event + [Time Duration]</p> </div> <h3 id="examples-5">Examples</h3> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li>第一次 世界 大战 <em>离</em>第二次 世界 大战 不到 50年。 <span class= "pinyin">Dì-yī cì shìjiè dàzhàn <em>lí</em> dì èr cì shìjiè dàzhàn bù dào 50 nián.</span> <span class="trans">World War I and World War II are less than 50 years apart.</span></li> </ul> </div> <h2 id="sources-and-further-reading">Sources and further reading</h2> <h3 id="books">Books</h3> <p>现代汉语虚词俐释 (pp. 335)</p> <p>实用对外汉语教学语法 (pp. 263)</p> <p><a href="Category:grammar_comparison" title= "wikilink">Category:grammar comparison</a></p> </body> </html>