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ChineseGrammarWiki


			
				
					
						
						
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<p>One of the most common words when <a href="comparing" class=
"uri" title="wikilink">comparing</a> things in Chinese is to use
<a href="%E6%AF%94" title="wikilink">比 (bǐ)</a>. 比 (bǐ) has
similarities to the English word "than," but it requires a word
order that's not so intuitive, so you'll want to practice it quite
a bit.</p>
<h2 id="basic-usage">Basic Usage</h2>
<p>You could think of 比 (bǐ) as meaning "than," except that it sits
between the two things being compared. The <a href="word_order"
title="wikilink">word order</a> will take a little getting used to,
but aside from that, the pattern is quite easy.</p>
<h3 id="structure">Structure</h3>
<p>To say that one thing is more <em>adjective</em> than another,
the structure is:</p>
<div class="jiegou">
<p>Noun 1 + 比 + Noun 2 + Adj.</p>
</div>
<p>The noun that's placed first is the one that comes out on top in
the comparison. So in the sentence:</p>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>小李 <em>比</em> 小张 <strong>高</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Xiǎo
Lǐ <em>bǐ</em> Xiǎo Zhāng <strong>gāo</strong> .</span><span class=
"trans">Xiao Li is taller than Xiao Zhang.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p>小李 (Xiǎo Lǐ) is taller. The same situation could be described
as</p>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>小张 <em>比</em> 小李 <strong>矮</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Xiǎo
Zhāng <em>bǐ</em> Xiǎo Lǐ <strong>ǎi</strong> .</span><span class=
"trans">Xiao Zhang is shorter than Xiao Li.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3 id="examples">Examples</h3>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>他 <em>比</em> 老师 <strong>聪明</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Tā
<em>bǐ</em> lǎoshī <strong>cōngming</strong>.</span><span class=
"trans">He is smarter than the teacher.</span></li>
<li>上海 <em>比</em> 纽约 <strong>大</strong> 吗 ？<span class=
"pinyin">Shànghǎi <em>bǐ</em> Niǔyuē <strong>dà</strong> ma?</span>
<span class="trans">Is Shanghai bigger than New York?</span></li>
<li>她 <em>比</em> 她 妈妈 <strong>漂亮</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Tā
<em>bǐ</em> tā māma <strong>piàoliang</strong> .</span><span class=
"trans">She is prettier than her mother.</span></li>
<li>星巴克 的 咖啡 <em>比</em> 这里 的 咖啡 <strong>贵</strong> 。<span class=
"pinyin">Xīngbākè de kāfēi <em>bǐ</em> zhèlǐ de kāfēi
<strong>guì</strong>.</span><span class="trans">The coffee at
Starbucks is more expensive than the coffee here.</span></li>
<li>地铁 <em>比</em> 公交车 <strong>方便</strong> 。<span class=
"pinyin">Dìtiě <em>bǐ</em> gōngjiāochē
<strong>fāngbiàn</strong>.</span><span class="trans">The subway is
more convenient than the bus.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<h2 id="common-errors">Common Errors</h2>
<p>Try not to make these mistakes:</p>
<p>The adjective used in the comparison should be positive, not
negative.</p>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>我 <em>比</em> 你 <strong>不 聪明</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ
<em>bǐ</em> nǐ <strong>bù cōngming</strong> .</span></li>
<li>你 <em>比</em> 我 <strong>聪明</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Nǐ
<em>bǐ</em> wǒ <strong>cōngming</strong> .</span><span class=
"trans">You are smarter than me.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p>比 (bǐ) is not used with 一样 (yīyàng). 比 (bǐ) is used when two
things are <em>not</em> the same.</p>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>我 <em>比</em> 你 <strong>一样</strong> 聪明 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ
<em>bǐ</em> nǐ <strong>yīyàng</strong> cōngming.</span></li>
<li>我 <strong>跟</strong> 你 <strong>一样</strong> 聪明 。<span class=
"pinyin">Wǒ <strong>gēn</strong> nǐ <strong>yīyàng</strong>
cōngming.</span><span class="trans">I am as smart as
you.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<h2 id="pattern-using-比-bǐ-and-更-gèng">Pattern Using 比 (bǐ) and 更
(gèng)</h2>
<p>This is a slight upgrade of the basic 比 (bǐ) comparison pattern,
adding in <a href=
"Expressing_&quot;even_more&quot;_with_&quot;geng&quot;" title=
"wikilink">更 (gèng) before the adjective</a>. 更 (gèng) means "even
more," so the idea is that while one thing is already quite
[adjective], this other thing is <strong><em>even
more</em></strong> [adjective]. Pretty simple!</p>
<h3 id="structure-1">Structure</h3>
<div class="jiegou">
<p>Noun 1 + 比 + Noun 2 + 更 + Adj.</p>
</div>
<p>The only new thing here is the addition of 更 (gèng) before the
adjective.</p>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>小李 <em>比</em> 小张 <strong>更 高</strong> 。<span class=
"pinyin">Xiǎo Lǐ <em>bǐ</em> Xiǎo Zhāng <strong>gèng gāo</strong>
.</span><span class="trans">Xiao Li is even taller than Xiao
Zhang.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p>The implication is that while Xiao Zhang is <em>tall</em>, 小李
(Xiǎo Lǐ) is <em>even taller</em>.</p>
<h3 id="examples-1">Examples</h3>
<div class="liju">
<ul>
<li>我 哥哥 <em>比</em> 我 <strong>更 高</strong> 。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ
gēge <em>bǐ</em> wǒ <strong>gèng gāo</strong>.</span><span class=
"trans">My big brother is even taller than me.</span></li>
<li>你 男朋友 <em>比</em> 我男朋友 <strong>更 帅</strong> 。<span class=
"pinyin">Nǐ nánpéngyou <em>bǐ</em> wǒ nánpéngyou <strong>gèng
shuài</strong>.</span><span class="trans">Your boyfriend is even
more handsome than mine.</span></li>
<li>这里 的 冬天 <em>比</em> 纽约 的 冬天 <strong>更 冷</strong> 。<span class=
"pinyin">Zhèlǐ de dōngtiān <em>bǐ</em> Niǔyuē de dōngtiān
<strong>gèng lěng</strong>.</span><span class="trans">The winter
here is even colder than it is in New York.</span></li>
<li>中文 语法 <em>比</em> 汉字 <strong>更 好玩</strong> 。<span class=
"pinyin">Zhōngwén yǔfǎ <em>bǐ</em> Hànzì <strong>gèng
hǎowán</strong>.</span><span class="trans">Chinese grammar is even
more fun than Chinese characters.</span></li>
<li>你的 问题 <em>比</em> 我的 问题 <strong>更 麻烦</strong>。<span class=
"pinyin">Nǐ de wèntí <em>bǐ</em> wǒ de wèntí <strong>gèng
máfan</strong>.</span><span class="trans">Your problem is even more
troublesome than mine.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<h2 id="see-also">See Also</h2>
<p>Check these other comparison patterns out as well:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="Basic_comparisons_with_&quot;meiyou&quot;" title=
"wikilink">Basic comparisons with "meiyou"</a></li>
<li><a href="Basic_comparisons_with_&quot;bu_bi&quot;" title=
"wikilink">Basic comparisons with "bu bi"</a></li>
<li><a href="Comparing" class="uri" title="wikilink">Comparing</a>
(patterns across all levels)</li>
</ul>
<h2 id="sources-and-further-reading">Sources and further
reading</h2>
<h3 id="books">Books</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href="Basic_Patterns_of_Chinese_Grammar" title=
"wikilink">Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar</a> (pp. 61-3)
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1933330899/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=allset-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399373&amp;creativeASIN=1933330899">
→buy</a></li>
<li><a href="Chinese:_An_Essential_Grammar,_Second_Edition" title=
"wikilink">Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition</a> (p.
53) <a href=
"http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415372615/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=allset-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369&amp;creativeASIN=0415372615">
→buy</a></li>
<li><a href=
"New_Practical_Chinese_Reader_2_(%E6%96%B0%E5%AE%9E%E7%94%A8%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%E8%AF%BE%E6%9C%AC2)"
title="wikilink">New Practical Chinese Reader 2 (新实用汉语课本2)</a> (pp.
65-6) <a href=
"http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561911297/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=allset-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369&amp;creativeASIN=7561911297">
→buy</a></li>
<li><a href="Integrated_Chinese:_Level_1,_Part_2_(3rd_ed)" title=
"wikilink">Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (3rd ed)</a> (pp.
6-8) <a href=
"http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887276709/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=allset-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369&amp;creativeASIN=0887276709">
→buy</a></li>
<li><a href=
"New_Practical_Chinese_Reader_3_(%E6%96%B0%E5%AE%9E%E7%94%A8%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%E8%AF%BE%E6%9C%AC3)"
title="wikilink">New Practical Chinese Reader 3 (新实用汉语课本3)</a> (pp.
184-5) <a href=
"http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/756191251X/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=allset-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369&amp;creativeASIN=756191251X">
→buy</a></li>
</ul>
<h3 id="websites">Websites</h3>
<ul>
<li>Yale Chinese Usage Dictionary: <a href=
"http://comet.cls.yale.edu/chineseusagedictionary/0220.html">Usage
of 跟 and 比</a></li>
</ul>
<p><a href="Category:A2_grammar_points" title=
"wikilink">Category:A2 grammar points</a> <a href=
"Category:Comparison" class="uri" title=
"wikilink">Category:Comparison</a></p>
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