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HSK 1

和

and; with

conjunctionneutral
和
hé2nd tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
5
6
Pinyin
hé
Part of speech
conjunction
Level
HSK 1
Strokes
8
Register
neutral

Stroke order for 和

和 is written with 8 strokes. The animation replays automatically.

What does 和 mean?

和 (hé) is the standard Chinese word for 'and' when joining nouns or noun phrases, and for 'with' in phrases like 'I went with him.'

Crucial rule: 和 connects nouns, not whole sentences. 我和你 (I and you) is fine, but you cannot say '我吃饭和我睡觉' to mean 'I eat and I sleep' — that requires separate sentences or other connectors. 和 also serves as a preposition meaning 'with' in 我和朋友一起去 (I went with friends).

Two pronunciation notes: 和 is read hé as a conjunction, but the same character has other readings (huó 'mix,' hè 'echo / harmonize') in different words. In Taiwan, the conjunction 和 is commonly pronounced hàn.

Note: 和 is the everyday written and spoken form. In casual northern speech you may hear 跟 (gēn) used the same way; 与 (yǔ) is the formal/literary alternative for written Chinese.

Memory hook: 和 also means 'harmony' — when two things are joined harmoniously, they're 'and' together.

Example sentences

我和我哥哥都是学生。

Wǒ hé wǒ gēge dōu shì xuésheng.

My older brother and I are both students.

neutral

我喜欢苹果和香蕉。

Wǒ xǐhuan píngguǒ hé xiāngjiāo.

I like apples and bananas.

spoken

他和朋友去看电影。

Tā hé péngyou qù kàn diànyǐng.

He's going to see a movie with friends.

spoken

今天我和妈妈一起做饭。

Jīntiān wǒ hé māma yìqǐ zuò fàn.

Today I'm cooking together with mom.

spoken

Common phrases with 和

我和你wǒ hé nǐyou and I
和朋友hé péngyouwith friends
爸爸和妈妈bàba hé māmadad and mom
和…一起hé… yìqǐtogether with…

Synonyms

跟gēn

跟 is more colloquial, especially in northern Mandarin: 我跟他去 ('I'm going with him'). 和 is neutral and works in writing; 跟 leans spoken.

与yǔ

与 is formal / written / literary: 中国与美国 ('China and the US') in headlines, titles, contracts. Don't say 与 in casual speech — it sounds like a news anchor.

及jí

及 is formal and used in lists, especially in written/legal contexts: 苹果、香蕉及橙子. 和 is the everyday equivalent.

Don't confuse 和 with

或huò

或 means 'or' (alternatives), not 'and.' 茶或咖啡 = 'tea or coffee.' 茶和咖啡 = 'tea and coffee.' Beginner mix-up.

还hái

还 (hái) is an adverb meaning 'also / still / in addition,' used inside a single sentence. 和 connects nouns. 'Also drinks tea' = 也喝茶 or 还喝茶, not 和喝茶.

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