Jīntiān wǒ búdàn kāihuì, érqiě yào mǎshàng gěi tā huí yóujiàn, wǒmen wǎnshang zài liáotiān.

不但...而且... is a very common pattern meaning not only... but also...

In this sentence:

• 我不但开会
• 而且要马上给她回邮件

the speaker is saying there are two things happening:

1. I have a meeting
2. I also need to reply to her email right away

So the structure is:

• 不但 + item 1
• 而且 + item 2

It links two related pieces of information and makes the second one feel like an added burden, emphasis, or extra point.

This is because of tone sandhi.

Normally 不 is fourth tone: bù.
But when 不 comes before another fourth-tone syllable, it changes to second tone.

• 但 is fourth tone: dàn
• so 不但 is pronounced búdàn

This only affects pronunciation, not meaning.

Other common examples:

• 不是 → bú shì
• 不对 → bú duì

No. It can connect:

• verbs
• adjectives
• noun phrases
• whole clauses

In this sentence, it connects two verb phrases / clauses:

• 开会
• 要马上给她回邮件

So it does not need to be two completely separate full sentences. It just needs two parallel pieces of information.

In Mandarin, time words often come near the beginning of the sentence, before the subject or right after it.

So 今天我... is very natural.

Common patterns:

• 今天我很忙。
• 明天他不来。
• 晚上我们再说。

English often puts time expressions in different places, but in Mandarin, putting them early helps set the time frame first.

Yes, literally 开 means open/start/hold, and 会 means meeting, but as a phrase 开会 simply means:

• to have a meeting
• to attend a meeting
• sometimes to hold a meeting, depending on context

So you should learn 开会 as a fixed expression.

Examples:

• 我下午要开会。 = I have a meeting this afternoon.
• 他们正在开会。 = They are in a meeting / having a meeting.

Good question. In Mandarin, if the subject is clear, it is often left out.

So after 而且, the subject 我 is understood:

• 我不但开会，而且（我）要马上给她回邮件。

Adding 我 again is possible, but not necessary.

You could also hear:

• 我不但开会，而且还要马上给她回邮件。

Adding 还 makes the also / in addition idea even clearer, but the original sentence is already correct.

Here 要 is closer to need to / have to / be going to, not just want to.

In this sentence:

• 要马上给她回邮件

it suggests something like:

• I need to reply to her email right away
• or I’m supposed to reply to her email right away

Because of 马上 and the context, it sounds more like an obligation or necessity than a personal desire.

马上 means immediately / right away.

It usually goes before the verb phrase it modifies.

Here:

• 要马上给她回邮件

So 马上 modifies the action 给她回邮件.

This placement is very normal in Mandarin:

• 我马上去。 = I’ll go right away.
• 你马上告诉他。 = Tell him immediately.

Mandarin adverbs usually come before the main verb.

Here 给 introduces the recipient of the action.

• 给她 = to her
• 回邮件 = reply to an email / send an email reply

So:

• 给她回邮件 = reply to her email / send her a reply email

In this sentence, 给 works like a preposition meaning to.

Pattern:

• 给 + person + verb + object

Examples:

• 给他打电话 = call him
• 给老师写信 = write a letter to the teacher
• 给她发消息 = send her a message

Yes. 回 can mean return, but in communication contexts it often means reply.

So:

• 回邮件 = reply to an email
• 回短信 = reply to a text message
• 回消息 = reply to a message

This is very common in modern Mandarin.

You may also hear:

• 回复邮件

That is a bit more formal.
回邮件 is common and natural in everyday speech.

Yes, with some differences.

Possible forms include:

• 给她回邮件
• 回她邮件
• 给她回信

Notes:

• 给她回邮件 is very natural and clearly shows the recipient.
• 回她邮件 is also possible, especially in speech.
• 回信 usually means reply to a letter, though it can sometimes sound a bit broader or more traditional.

For email specifically, 回邮件 is a very common choice.

This is a very important distinction.

• 再 = again, in the future, one more time
• 又 = again, for something that already happened or is repeating

Here, 晚上再聊天 means:

• chat again tonight
• talk later tonight

Since the chatting will happen later, 再 is correct.

Compare:

• 我们晚上再聊。 = We’ll talk again tonight / later tonight.
• 你又迟到了。 = You were late again.

So 再 looks forward; 又 often looks back.

Because the final part includes the listener.

Earlier, the speaker talks about their own schedule:

• 我不但开会，而且要马上给她回邮件

Then the sentence ends with:

• 我们晚上再聊天

This means the speaker and the listener will chat later. So 我们 is natural there.

Depending on tone and context, it can mean:

• We’ll chat tonight
• Let’s chat tonight instead
• We can talk again tonight

So the subject changes because the action changes.

It can suggest either, depending on context.

Most naturally, it feels like:

• Let’s chat again tonight
• We’ll talk tonight
• Let’s talk later tonight

Mandarin often leaves this kind of nuance unstated. The sentence can sound like a plan, suggestion, or friendly postponement.

For a stronger let’s, Mandarin might use:

• 我们晚上再聊吧。

Adding 吧 makes it sound more like a suggestion.

Yes, it can still be written as one sentence in Chinese.

Chinese punctuation often links related ideas with commas where English might use:

• a semicolon
• a conjunction
• or even a separate sentence

Here the comma marks a shift:

1. what the speaker is busy with now
2. the suggestion or plan to talk later

In English, you might translate it as two sentences, but in Chinese the comma is very normal.

Yes.

• 聊天 = chat, talk casually
• 说话 = speak / talk, very general
• 谈话 = talk/conversation, often more formal or serious

Here 聊天 is the best fit because it sounds casual and friendly.

Examples:

• 我们聊聊天吧。 = Let’s chat.
• 他说话很快。 = He speaks quickly.
• 老师要跟你谈话。 = The teacher wants to talk with you.
  This sounds more serious.

It is understandable and mostly natural, but many native speakers might say it a little more smoothly, for example:

• 今天我不但要开会，而且还要马上给她回邮件，我们晚上再聊吧。
• 今天我不但得开会，还得马上给她回邮件，晚上我们再聊天吧。

Why these may sound smoother:

• adding 要 before 开会 makes the two parts more parallel
• adding 还 after 而且 is common
• adding 吧 at the end makes the suggestion softer

Still, the original sentence is perfectly useful for learning the grammar.

Mandarin often relies on:

• word order
• context
• set patterns like 不但...而且...
• commas

instead of explicitly adding a separate word for and everywhere.

In this sentence, the relationships are already clear:

• 不但...而且... shows not only... but also...
• the final comma plus 晚上再聊天 shows a follow-up plan

So extra connectors are often unnecessary.

Yes, and that is a very good study method.

You can divide it like this:

• 今天我
• 不但开会
• 而且要马上
• 给她回邮件
• 我们晚上再聊天

Or by meaning:

1. 今天我不但开会
2. 而且要马上给她回邮件
3. 我们晚上再聊天

This helps you see:

• time first
• first action
• second action
• later plan

That chunking is often the easiest way to process longer Mandarin sentences.