和 (hé): How to Say “And” in Chinese — Merry Mandarin Grammar Lab

Why this trips learners up

“And” is one of the most useful words in any language, so it's no surprise that learning how to say “and” in Chinese — 和 (hé) — feels like a quick win. You start dropping 和 between everything, exactly as you would in English.

Here's the catch: 和 only joins nouns. 你和我 (you and I), 茶和咖啡 (tea and coffee) — perfect. But “I got up and ate”, or “tired and hungry”? English happily uses “and” there too, yet 和 cannot. Link two actions by simply placing them in sequence, and link two adjectives with the 又…又 pattern. The trick is to keep asking: am I actually joining two nouns?

The structure

Object 和 hé Object

Colour key

Each colour marks one grammatical role — and the same colour means the same role on every page in the Lab.

Pattern Subject Verb Object Time Place Adverb Function word Adjective

Examples in context

Real-world sentences, easiest first. Toggle pinyin or the translation, tap any word to see its role, or play the audio.

Tap a word to see its grammatical role.

wǒ 我 Subject xǐhuan 喜欢 Verb māo 猫 Object hé 和 Pattern gǒu 狗 Object

I like cats and dogs.

wǒ gē 我哥 Subject hé 和 Pattern wǒ 我 Subject dōu 都 Adverb shì 是 Verb yīshēng 医生 Object

My brother and I are both doctors.

zǎocān 早餐 Time wǒ 我 Subject yào 要 Verb miànbāo 面包 Object hé 和 Pattern jīdàn 鸡蛋 Object

For breakfast I want bread and eggs.

zhōumò 周末 Time wǒ 我 Subject yào 要 Function word jiàn 见 Verb wǒ mā 我妈 Object hé 和 Pattern wǒ jiě 我姐 Object

This weekend I'm seeing my mom and my sister.

Zhōngwén 中文 Subject hé 和 Pattern Rìwén 日文 Subject dōu 都 Adverb hěn 很 Adverb yǒuyìsi 有意思 Adjective

Chinese and Japanese are both really interesting.

wǒ de hùzhào 我的护照 Subject hé 和 Pattern jīpiào 机票 Subject dōu 都 Adverb zài 在 Verb bāo lǐ 包里 Place

My passport and plane ticket are both in the bag.

Common mistakes

Avoid: 我去商店和买口香糖。 wǒ qù shāngdiàn hé mǎi kǒuxiāngtáng.

Say this: 我去商店买口香糖。 wǒ qù shāngdiàn mǎi kǒuxiāngtáng.

Why it happens: This is the classic 和 trap. English links the two actions — “went and bought” — but 和 only joins nouns, never verbs. In Chinese the verbs simply sit in sequence: 去商店买口香糖 (go-to-store buy-gum).

Avoid: 我累了和我想睡觉。 wǒ lèi le hé wǒ xiǎng shuìjiào.

Say this: 我累了，想睡觉。 wǒ lèi le, xiǎng shuìjiào.

Why it happens: 和 can't stitch two clauses together either. “I'm tired and I want to sleep” is two full statements — in Chinese, just separate them with a comma: 我累了，想睡觉. Save 和 for nouns.

Avoid: 他高和瘦。 tā gāo hé shòu.

Say this: 他又高又瘦。 tā yòu gāo yòu shòu.

Why it happens: For “and” between adjectives, Chinese uses the 又…又 pattern, not 和. “Tall and thin” is 又高又瘦 (both-tall-both-thin); 他高和瘦 sounds wrong to a native ear.

Compare & contrast

Nouns → 和	Verbs / adjectives → not 和	The difference
苹果和香蕉píngguǒ hé xiāngjiāo	洗手吃饭xǐ shǒu chī fàn	Two nouns take 和. Two back-to-back actions just sit in sequence — no 和 between them.
哥哥和妹妹gēge hé mèimei	又便宜又好吃yòu piányi yòu hǎochī	Two nouns take 和. For two adjectives, switch to the 又…又 pattern instead.

Rule of thumb和 is noun-glue, full stop. Two things (你和我, 茶和咖啡)? Use 和. Two actions? Say them in a row. Two adjectives? Use 又…又. When unsure, ask yourself: am I joining nouns?

Try it yourself

Say “I like tea and coffee” — tap the words into the right order.

Related patterns

Quick reference card

How to Say “And” with 和 (hé) grammar.merrymandarin.com

A pocket summary — print it and keep it by your desk.

Structure

Object + 和 + Object

Example

我喜欢猫和狗

I like cats and dogs.

Watch out

✗ 我去商店和买口香糖。 → ✓ 我去商店买口香糖。