给 (gěi) is one of the busiest words in Chinese because it wears three different hats, and beginners often can't tell them apart. As a full verb it means "give" (给我钱, "give me money"). As a coverb it sits before the main verb and means "for / to" a beneficiary (给你打电话, "phone you"). As a resultative it attaches after the main verb to mark the thing reaching a recipient (送给他, "give to him"). The single most powerful idea on this page: it is not three different words — it is one word, and position tells you which role it's playing. Learn to read the position and 给 stops being confusing.
The three positions at a glance
| Role | Position | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full verb | 给 is the main verb | give | 给我钱 (give me money) |
| Coverb | 给 + person before main verb | for / to (beneficiary) | 给你打电话 (phone you) |
| Resultative | verb + 给 + person | to (recipient of the thing) | 送给他 (give to him) |
The test is mechanical: find the main action. If 给 is the action, it's the full verb. If 给 comes before the action verb, it's a coverb. If it comes after the action verb, it's a resultative.
给 as the full verb: "give"
This is the base case, covered in full on the 给 double-object page. 给 itself is the action, followed by recipient and thing.
快给我钱，我要迟到了。
kuài gěi wǒ qián, wǒ yào chídào le
Hurry up and give me the money, I'm going to be late. (informal) — 给 is the main verb; no other verb in the clause.
他给了我一本很好看的小说。
tā gěi le wǒ yì běn hěn hǎokàn de xiǎoshuō
He gave me a really good novel. (neutral) — 给 carries 了; it's the action itself.
给 as a coverb: "for / to" before the verb
When 给 + a person comes in front of another verb, 给 is no longer the action — it introduces the person the action is done for or to. This is the benefactive coverb use, and it's extremely common in daily speech. The real verb is what follows: 打电话 (make a call), 做饭 (cook), 看 (look/show).
我晚上给你打电话。
wǒ wǎnshang gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà
I'll call you tonight. (informal) — the action is 打电话; 给你 says who it's directed to.
妈妈每天给我们做饭。
māma měi tiān gěi wǒmen zuò fàn
Mom cooks for us every day. (informal) — 做饭 is the action; 给我们 marks the beneficiary.
你把照片给我看看。
nǐ bǎ zhàopiàn gěi wǒ kànkan
Show me the photo. (informal) — literally 'let me look'; 给我 before 看看 = show to me.
给 as a resultative: verb + 给 + recipient
Here 给 clips onto the back of an action verb — especially verbs of transfer like 送 (give), 卖 (sell), 递 (pass), 借 (lend), 还 (return), 交 (hand in) — to spell out that the thing lands with a recipient. This verb-给 unit is often used with 把 to front the thing.
我把这本书送给他了。
wǒ bǎ zhè běn shū sòng gěi tā le
I gave this book to him. (neutral) — 送给 = present-to; 他 is the recipient of the book.
他们把房子卖给了一个外国人。
tāmen bǎ fángzi mài gěi le yí ge wàiguó rén
They sold the house to a foreigner. (neutral) — 卖给 marks who the house went to.
请把盐递给我。
qǐng bǎ yán dì gěi wǒ
Please pass me the salt. (polite) — 递给 = pass-to; 我 receives the salt.
When both would work
Some verbs allow either the front coverb or the back resultative, with a slight difference in flavor. 给你写信 (write you a letter, coverb) and 写信给你 (write a letter to you, resultative) are both fine; the coverb foregrounds the person, the resultative foregrounds the letter's destination. What you cannot do is use both at once and pile up two 给.
我给你写信 / 我写信给你，都可以。
wǒ gěi nǐ xiě xìn / wǒ xiě xìn gěi nǐ, dōu kěyǐ
'I'll write you a letter' — both the coverb (给你写信) and resultative (写信给你) versions are fine. (neutral)
Common Mistakes
1. Stacking two 给 in one clause. Pick the coverb or the resultative, never both.
❌ 我给他送给一本书。
Incorrect — two 给 collide; use one.
✅ 我送给他一本书。
wǒ sòng gěi tā yì běn shū
I gave him a book. — one 给, in the resultative position (送给他).
2. Putting the "show" action after 给's object with no verb. "Show me" needs a real verb (看); 给 alone can't mean "show."
❌ 我看给你这张照片。
Incorrect — 'show you' is 给你看, coverb 给 before the verb 看.
✅ 我给你看这张照片。
wǒ gěi nǐ kàn zhè zhāng zhàopiàn
I'll show you this photo. — 给你 (coverb) before 看.
3. Dropping the resultative 给 after a transfer verb. 卖, 递, 送 usually need 给 to reach a named recipient.
❌ 请递我盐。
Marginal — pass-to a recipient wants 递给: 递给我盐 / 把盐递给我.
✅ 请把盐递给我。
qǐng bǎ yán dì gěi wǒ
Please pass me the salt. — 递给我 spells out the transfer.
Key Takeaways
- 给 is one word doing three jobs; position distinguishes them, not meaning-guessing.
- Full verb — 给 is the action: 给我钱 (give me money).
- Coverb — 给 + person before the main verb = "for/to" a beneficiary: 给你打电话, 给我做饭, 给你看.
- Resultative — verb + 给 + person = the thing reaches a recipient: 送给他, 卖给我, 递给我.
- Never stack two 给 in one clause; some verbs (写信) accept either the coverb or the resultative shape, with a subtle shift in emphasis.
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Start learning Chinese→Related Topics
- 给 (gěi): Double Object (给我一本书)HSK 1 — 给 (gěi) 'give' takes two objects in the order recipient + thing — 给我一本书 (give me a book) — making it the model verb for the whole double-object class.
- 给 (gěi): To / For (Recipient)HSK 1 — As a coverb, 给 (gěi) sits before the main verb to mark who receives or benefits from an action: 给你打电话 (call you), 给妈妈做饭 (cook for mom), 给大家介绍一下 (introduce it to everyone). The 给-phrase comes first — Chinese does not tack 'to you' onto the end.
- Double-Object Verbs (送, 借, 还, 教, 告诉)HSK 3 — A family of transfer and communication verbs — 送, 借, 还, 教, 告诉, 问 — share 给's recipient-before-thing frame; 借 even covers both 'lend' and 'borrow', sorted out by direction.
- 在 / 到 / 给 as Verb vs Coverb (Decision)HSK 3 — 在, 到 and 给 each live a double life — a full verb on their own and a coverb (or result complement) around another verb. The fix is a position test: before the main verb, after it, or standing alone.