跟 (gēn) — follow / with / and | Chinese (Mandarin) Grammar

跟 (gēn) starts life as a plain verb, "to follow" (its left half is the 足 "foot" radical). From "follow behind someone" it spreads outward to "go along with someone" — and that is where you'll use it most: 跟 is the everyday spoken coverb for "with," introducing the person you do something together with. It also does light duty as spoken "and" between nouns, and — less obviously to English speakers — marks the source you get something from. The unifying thread is a second person tied to the action; 跟 names them and, crucially, names them before the verb.

Sense 1: follow

The original verb. Someone or something moves along behind another.

跟我来，我带你去他的办公室。

gēn wǒ lái, wǒ dài nǐ qù tā de bàngōngshì

Follow me, I'll take you to his office.

那只小狗一直跟着他回了家。

nà zhī xiǎo gǒu yìzhí gēn zhe tā huí le jiā

That puppy followed him all the way home.

你走慢点儿，我跟不上。

nǐ zǒu màn diǎnr, wǒ gēn bu shàng

Walk a bit slower — I can't keep up.

Sense 2: with (co-participant coverb)

The high-frequency sense. 跟 + person goes before the main verb and marks the co-participant — the person you chat, argue, eat, or go somewhere with. Often paired with 一起 (yìqǐ) "together."

周末我常跟朋友一起去打球。

zhōumò wǒ cháng gēn péngyou yìqǐ qù dǎ qiú

On weekends I often go play ball with friends.

有什么问题，随时跟我说。

yǒu shénme wèntí, suíshí gēn wǒ shuō

If there's any problem, tell me anytime.

这件事我得跟老板商量一下。

zhè jiàn shì wǒ děi gēn lǎobǎn shāngliang yíxià

I need to talk this over with the boss.

Note that 跟…说 packages "say to / talk with": the addressee is marked by 跟 before 说, not after it.

Sense 3: and (joining nouns, spoken)

Between two nouns, 跟 works like 和 (hé) "and" — but it's distinctly spoken/informal. It joins nouns only, never clauses.

我跟我妹妹长得很像。

wǒ gēn wǒ mèimei zhǎng de hěn xiàng

My little sister and I look a lot alike.

桌子上有笔跟纸，你自己拿。

zhuōzi shàng yǒu bǐ gēn zhǐ, nǐ zìjǐ ná

There's pen and paper on the table — help yourself.

Sense 4: from (a source)

This one surprises English speakers: 跟 also marks the person you get something from — borrow from, learn from, ask from. English uses "from," but Chinese sees it as "acting with reference to that person."

我上个月跟同事借了点儿钱。

wǒ shàng ge yuè gēn tóngshì jiè le diǎnr qián

I borrowed some money from a colleague last month.

这个词我是跟你学的。

zhège cí wǒ shì gēn nǐ xué de

I learned this word from you.

And the useful negative frame 跟…没关系 "have nothing to do with…":

这件事跟他一点儿关系都没有。

zhè jiàn shì gēn tā yìdiǎnr guānxi dōu méiyǒu

This has absolutely nothing to do with him.

Key collocations

Phrase	Pinyin	Meaning
跟着	gēn zhe	following, along with
跟……说	gēn… shuō	tell / talk to sb
跟……商量	gēn… shāngliang	discuss with sb
跟……一起	gēn… yìqǐ	together with sb
跟……借	gēn… jiè	borrow from sb
跟……学	gēn… xué	learn from sb
跟……一样	gēn… yíyàng	the same as
跟……没关系	gēn… méi guānxi	have nothing to do with
跟不上	gēn bu shàng	can't keep up

Grammar notes

跟 is a coverb: the co-participant, source, or comparison standard is named before the main verb, never after. This is the single hardest habit for English speakers, whose "with you / from him" trails the verb. In comparison, the 跟…一样 frame ("the same as…") is covered on the 跟……一样 page.

Two distinctions matter. First, 跟 marks a mutual, two-way action, while 对 (duì) marks a one-directional attitude: 跟他聊天 "chat with him" (both talk) vs 对他好 "be good to him" (attitude aimed at him). Second, register: 跟 is spoken, 和 (hé) is neutral, and 同 (tóng) / 与 (yǔ) are formal or written — all four sorted out on the 和 vs 跟 vs 同 vs 与 page.

Common Mistakes

1. Putting the 跟-phrase after the verb. The companion is named before the verb.

❌ 我明天去跟你。

Incorrect — the 跟-phrase precedes the verb: 跟你去.

✅ 我明天跟你一起去。

wǒ míngtiān gēn nǐ yìqǐ qù

I'll go with you tomorrow.

2. Using 跟 for a one-directional attitude. "Treats me well" is an attitude aimed at me — that's 对, not 跟.

❌ 他跟我很好，经常照顾我。

Incorrect — 'is good/kind to me' is one-directional; use 对.

✅ 他对我很好，经常照顾我。

tā duì wǒ hěn hǎo, jīngcháng zhàogù wǒ

He's very good to me — he looks after me a lot.

3. Using 跟 to join two clauses. 跟 joins nouns only; for clauses, just juxtapose them (or use 而/并且).

❌ 我喜欢跳舞跟他喜欢唱歌。

Incorrect — 跟 joins nouns, not whole clauses.

✅ 我喜欢跳舞，他喜欢唱歌。

wǒ xǐhuan tiàowǔ, tā xǐhuan chàng gē

I like dancing, and he likes singing.

(More on this trap on the 跟/和 can't join clauses page.)

4. Confusing "borrow from" with "lend to." 跟他借 = borrow from him; 借给他 = lend to him.

❌ 我想借给他一本书。

Incorrect if you mean 'borrow from him' — 借给 means 'lend TO'.

✅ 我想跟他借一本书。

wǒ xiǎng gēn tā jiè yì běn shū

I want to borrow a book from him.

Key Takeaways

跟 fans out from "follow" to the spoken "with" (跟朋友聊天), "and" between nouns (我跟你), and "from" a source (跟他借钱).
The 跟-phrase always sits before the verb — never trail it as in English.
跟 = mutual, two-way action; 对 = one-directional attitude (跟他聊天 vs 对他好).
Register ladder: 跟 (spoken) < 和 (neutral) < 同 / 与 (formal, written).

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