English organizes a many-part answer with "as for X…" — you settle one thing, then front the next item and comment on it: "The date's fixed; as for the venue, we're still looking." Mandarin has a crisp equivalent in 至于 (zhìyú). It grabs a sub-topic — usually a noun or an embedded question — hauls it to the front of the clause, drops a pause, and then delivers the comment. This is a topic-management device: it signposts that you've dealt with one thing and are now turning to another. It leans slightly formal and thrives in organized speech and writing. Two things make it tricky for English speakers: it is not the same as the conversational hinge 那 "so / in that case", and it hides a completely unrelated fixed idiom — 不至于 — that you must learn to tell apart. It builds on the broader topic–comment structure of Chinese.
What 至于 does: front the next sub-topic
The shape is fixed: 至于 + [topic]，[comment]. The topic is what you're turning to; the comment is what you have to say about it. The comma is a real pause. Crucially, 至于 needs prior content — it pivots away from something already handled toward the next item on the list.
至于价格，我们以后再谈。
zhìyú jiàgé, wǒmen yǐhòu zài tán
As for the price, let's discuss it later. (neutral) — fronts 价格, then comments.
我同意去，至于什么时候，还没定。
wǒ tóngyì qù, zhìyú shénme shíhou, hái méi dìng
I agree to go; as for when, that's not settled yet. (neutral) — the sub-topic is an embedded question 什么时候.
房子我很满意，至于装修，可以慢慢来。
fángzi wǒ hěn mǎnyì, zhìyú zhuāngxiū, kěyǐ mànman lái
I'm happy with the house; as for the renovation, we can take our time. (neutral) — one point settled, then pivot to the next.
报告我来写，至于谁去汇报，你们决定。
bàogào wǒ lái xiě, zhìyú shéi qù huìbào, nǐmen juédìng
I'll write the report; as for who presents it, you decide. (neutral) — divides a task into handled vs. still-open parts.
至于 vs 那: organizing your own message vs. answering the other person
Both can be glossed loosely as "so / as for," and English speakers blur them. The split is about whose talk they attach to. Discourse 那 hinges off the other speaker's previous turn ("You're tired? Then let's go home"). 至于 organizes your own multi-part message, fronting the next sub-topic you personally want to address. 那 is reactive; 至于 is structural.
| 至于 "as for" | 那 "so / in that case" | |
|---|---|---|
| pivots off | a sub-topic in your own message | the other person's previous turn |
| needs prior content? | yes — an earlier point to move on from | yes — the utterance it reacts to |
| what follows it | a fronted topic + comment | a conclusion, question, or suggestion |
| register | slightly formal, organized | conversational, everyday |
前两个问题都解决了，至于第三个，还得再研究。
qián liǎng ge wèntí dōu jiějué le, zhìyú dì-sān ge, hái děi zài yánjiū
The first two problems are solved; as for the third, it still needs more study. (neutral) — 至于 marches through your own list of items.
菜我点好了，至于喝什么，你自己看吧。
cài wǒ diǎn hǎo le, zhìyú hē shénme, nǐ zìjǐ kàn ba
I've ordered the food; as for what to drink, that's up to you. (informal) — handing off one remaining sub-topic.
Beware the false friend: 不至于 / 至于吗
Chinese has a separate, fixed use of 至于 that has nothing to do with topic management: 至于 meaning "reach the point of / go so far as." It shows up mainly in the negative 不至于 ("it won't come to that") and the rhetorical 至于吗？ ("is it really worth such a fuss?"). Here 至于 is a verb-like unit, not a topic-fronter — there is no fronted noun after it, and it can't be translated "as for."
不至于吧，他不会那么小气。
bú zhìyú ba, tā bú huì nàme xiǎoqì
It won't come to that — he's not that petty. (informal) — 不至于 = 'it won't go that far.'
至于吗？不就是迟到几分钟。
zhìyú ma? bú jiùshì chídào jǐ fēnzhōng
Is that really necessary? He was only a few minutes late. (informal) — 至于吗 questions an overreaction.
至于 vs 关于: turning-to vs. naming the subject
One more neighbour worth pinning down: 关于 (guānyú) "about / regarding." 关于 names the subject matter of something and can open cold — 关于这个问题… ("Regarding this issue…") as the very first line of a talk. 至于 can't do that; it always pivots to a further sub-topic after earlier ones. Rule of thumb: 关于 introduces a theme; 至于 moves the discussion onward.
关于这本书，我想说三点；至于作者，下次再谈。
guānyú zhè běn shū, wǒ xiǎng shuō sān diǎn; zhìyú zuòzhě, xià cì zài tán
Regarding this book, I have three points to make; as for the author, we'll talk next time. (formal) — 关于 opens the theme, 至于 pivots onward.
Common Mistakes
1. Using 至于 to answer the other speaker where 那 belongs. Reacting to someone's turn needs the hinge 那, not the structural 至于.
❌ ——今天去哪儿？——至于去公园吧。
Wrong — this reacts to a question, so use the hinge 那: 那去公园吧.
✅ ——今天去哪儿？——那去公园吧。
— jīntiān qù nǎr? — nà qù gōngyuán ba
— Where shall we go today? — Then let's go to the park. — 那 hinges off the question.
2. Forgetting to front the topic. 至于 must be immediately followed by the sub-topic, not buried mid-clause.
❌ 我们至于以后再谈价格。
Scrambled — front the topic after 至于: 至于价格，我们以后再谈.
✅ 至于价格，我们以后再谈。
zhìyú jiàgé, wǒmen yǐhòu zài tán
As for the price, let's discuss it later. — topic 价格 fronted right after 至于.
3. Reading 至于吗 as "as for." The rhetorical 至于吗 means "is it worth that?" — no topic is being fronted.
✅ 至于吗，多大点事。
zhìyú ma, duō dà diǎn shì
Is it really that big a deal? It's nothing. — the fixed 'go that far' 至于, not 'as for.'
4. Opening a talk cold with 至于. With no earlier point to pivot from, use 关于 to name the subject instead.
❌ 至于这个项目，我先介绍一下背景。
No prior topic to pivot from — to introduce the subject, use 关于: 关于这个项目，…
✅ 关于这个项目，我先介绍一下背景。
guānyú zhège xiàngmù, wǒ xiān jièshào yíxià bèijǐng
Regarding this project, let me first give some background. — 关于 opens a theme cold; 至于 could not.
Key Takeaways
- 至于 = "as for / when it comes to" — it fronts a named sub-topic (至于 + topic，comment) that you're turning to next.
- It organizes your own multi-part message, unlike 那, which reacts to the other speaker's turn.
- It needs prior content to pivot from — it can't open a conversation cold.
- Don't confuse it with the fixed idiom 不至于 / 至于吗 ("go that far / is it worth it"), which fronts no topic at all.
- To merely name a subject at the start, use 关于 ("regarding"); 至于 always moves the discussion onward, and it leans slightly formal.
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- 另外/此外 — Besides, In AdditionHSK 4 — 另外 and 此外 add a SEPARATE item, not just 'and also': the determiner 另外 (另外一个 'another, separate one'; 另外买一个 'buy a different one'), the discourse opener 另外 launching a new point (另外，我还想说一件事), and the formal 此外 'furthermore'. Contrast 另外 (a specific different one) with 别的 (some other, unspecified).
- Topic-Comment: Chinese as a Topic-Prominent LanguageHSK 3 — Chinese sentences set up a TOPIC and then comment on it — 这本书我看过 'this book, I've read it' — so the first slot holds given, definite information that need not be the grammatical subject.