Learn Hardcore Chinese: tā de zhōngwén gēn nǐ de yíyàng hǎo.

中文 (zhōngwén)
- Literally “Chinese writing/language”.
- Very common in everyday speech when talking about ability:
  - 我中文不好。 – My Chinese is not good.
- Often refers to Chinese in general, not distinguishing spoken vs written.
汉语 (hànyǔ)
- Literally “language of the Han people”.
- More formal / linguistic; common in textbooks, exams, course names.
- You can say: 他的汉语跟你的汉语一样好。 (grammatically fine, just a bit more formal.)
普通话 (pǔtōnghuà)
- Literally “common speech”; means Standard Mandarin specifically.
- Use it when you want to be explicit about Mandarin (as opposed to other Chinese dialects).
- e.g. 他的普通话跟你的普通话一样好。

In this sentence, 中文 is natural and colloquial. You can swap in 汉语 or 普通话, but 中文 feels the most neutral and everyday.

What does 跟 mean in this sentence, and can I replace it with 和 or 比?

Here 跟 (gēn) functions like “with / compared with” and marks the thing you’re comparing to:

他的中文跟你的(中文)一样好。
≈ “His Chinese, compared with yours, is equally good.”

About replacements:

跟 vs 和

You can usually replace 跟 with 和 (hé) here:
- 他的中文和你的(中文)一样好。
In this comparison pattern, 跟 and 和 are basically interchangeable in modern spoken Mandarin.
跟 feels slightly more colloquial; 和 a bit more neutral/formal.

跟/和 vs 比

You cannot use 比 with 一样 in the same way:

✗ 他的中文比你的中文一样好。 → incorrect
With 比 (bǐ) the structure changes:
- 他的中文比你的中文好。 – His Chinese is better than yours.
  (This expresses inequality, not “as good as”.)

So:

For “as … as …”: use A 跟/和 B 一样 + Adj.
For “better than”: use A 比 B + Adj.

How does the pattern A 跟 B 一样 + adjective work to mean “as … as …”?

The core idea is: “A and B are equally (adjective).”

Structure:

A 跟 B 一样 + Adjective

他的中文跟你的(中文)一样好。
- A = 他的中文 (his Chinese)
- B = 你的(中文) (your Chinese)
- 一样 = the same / equally
- 好 = good
  → “His Chinese and your Chinese are equally good” → “His Chinese is as good as yours.”

Other examples:

这本书跟那本书一样贵。
This book is as expensive as that one.
我跟他一样忙。
I am as busy as he is.

So 一样 + Adjective = “equally + adjective”, and 跟 B introduces what you’re comparing to.

Why is there a 的 after 你, even though no noun follows it?

Here 你的 is a short form for 你的中文.

In Mandarin, X 的 can stand for “X’s something” when the noun is obvious from context:

这是我的。 – This is mine. (我的 = “my one / my thing”)
我喜欢红的，不喜欢白的。 – I like red ones, not white ones.

In the same way:

Full: 他的中文跟你的中文一样好。
Shortened: 他的中文跟你的(中文)一样好。

So the final 的 lets 你 act like “yours” instead of “you”, and the word 中文 is simply omitted to avoid repetition.

Can I say 他中文跟你一样好 without that second 的? Does it change the meaning?

Yes, 他中文跟你一样好 is also natural and very commonly said.

他中文跟你一样好。
Literally: “His Chinese, compared with you, is equally good.”

In practice:

跟你的 → emphasizes “your Chinese”.
跟你 → literally “with you”, but clearly means “as good as you (are at Chinese)”.

Nuance:

跟你的(中文)一样好 = as good as your Chinese.
跟你一样好 = as good as you (in Chinese).

In real conversation, both are used, and most speakers won’t feel a big difference here. Both are acceptable.

What exactly does 一样 mean here, and where does it have to go in the sentence?

一样 (yíyàng) literally means “the same / identical”.

In this structure, it functions like “equally” and goes directly before the adjective:

一样好 – equally good / the same level of good
一样高 – equally tall
一样贵 – equally expensive

Pattern:

A 跟 B 一样 + Adjective

So in your sentence:

跟你的(中文) = compared with yours
一样好 = equally good
→ “(It is) equally good compared with yours.”

You generally don’t move 一样 somewhere else like:

✗ 他中文跟你好的一样。 – incorrect
✓ 他中文跟你一样好。 – correct

The safe pattern is: 一样 + Adjective as a unit.

Why does 好 come at the end? Is 好 describing 中文 or 一样?

好 is the adjective describing 中文 (“good”), and 一样 is an adverb-like word modifying 好 (“equally good”).

Logical breakdown:

中文 – Chinese (his Chinese)
好 – good (describes his Chinese)
一样 – “to the same degree / equally”

So 一样好 together is “equally good”. The reason 好 is at the end is that:

Adjectives in Chinese usually come after the noun they describe when used as predicates:
- 中文很好。 – (His) Chinese is very good.
The pattern for “as … as …” is 一样 + Adjective, so the adjective naturally ends up at the very end:
- 跟你的(中文)一样好.

You generally don’t say 一样的好 here. You either say:

一样好 (predicate pattern), or
一样的好处 (adjective before a noun: “the same advantages”).

How would I say “His Chinese is not as good as yours” in Chinese?

Common, natural ways:

Use 没(有) to show “not as … as …”:

他的中文没有你的(中文)好。
tā de zhōngwén méi yǒu nǐ de (zhōngwén) hǎo.
Literally: “His Chinese does not have your (Chinese) good.”
→ His Chinese is not as good as yours.

Use 不如 (bùrú):

他的中文不如你的(中文)好。
Literally: “His Chinese is not as good as yours.”

Colloquial, with 那么:

他的中文没你那么好。
Literally: “His Chinese is not as good as you (are, at Chinese).”

Note that simply saying:

✗ 他的中文跟你的不一样好。

is not the usual way to express “not as good as yours.” Native speakers strongly prefer patterns like 没有 … 好 or 不如 … 好 for this meaning.

How do I turn this into a yes/no question, like “Is his Chinese as good as yours?”

Two common ways:

Add 吗 at the end:

Statement: 他的中文跟你的一样好。
Question: 他的中文跟你的一样好吗？
tā de zhōngwén gēn nǐ de yíyàng hǎo ma?
→ “Is his Chinese as good as yours?”

Use an A-not-A pattern on the adjective:

他的中文跟你的一样好不好？
tā de zhōngwén gēn nǐ de yíyàng hǎo bù hǎo?
Literally: “His Chinese, compared with yours, equally good or not good?”
→ “Is his Chinese as good as yours or not?”

Both are natural; …好吗？ is slightly simpler and very common.

How do I pronounce the whole sentence correctly, including tones and tone changes?

Pinyin with tones:

他的中文跟你的一样好
tā de zhōngwén gēn nǐ de yíyàng hǎo

Word by word:

他 (tā) – 1st tone
的 (de) – neutral tone
中 (zhōng) – 1st tone
文 (wén) – 2nd tone
跟 (gēn) – 1st tone
你 (nǐ) – 3rd tone
的 (de) – neutral tone
一 (yí) – 2nd tone here (tone sandhi)
样 (yàng) – 4th tone
好 (hǎo) – 3rd tone

Tone sandhi point:

一 (yī) changes tone:
- Before a 4th tone, it becomes 2nd tone → yíyàng (not yīyàng).
So you say: yíyàng, smooth and quick, almost like one unit.

Also, 的 is always in a neutral tone here (very light, almost unstressed).

Are there other common ways to say “as good as you” in Chinese, using different patterns?

Yes. A few useful variations (all natural):

Add the verb 说 (“to speak”) to be more specific:

他中文说得跟你一样好。
tā zhōngwén shuō de gēn nǐ yíyàng hǎo.
→ He speaks Chinese as well as you (do).

Pattern: V + 得 + 跟 B 一样 + Adj

Use 和 instead of 跟:

他的中文和你的一样好。
Same meaning as with 跟; just slightly different word choice.

Use 不比…差 (“not worse than …”) to imply “at least as good as”:

他的中文不比你的差。
tā de zhōngwén bù bǐ nǐ de chà.
Literally: “His Chinese is not worse than yours.”
→ His Chinese is at least as good as yours.

All of these are high-frequency, natural ways to express “(someone’s Chinese) is as good as yours / as good as you (are at Chinese).”