In the daily conversation, the words 从and离are often seen being used before the words expressing places. However, the foreign students who take Mandarin learning courses need to know 从indicates the starting point of certain action while 离is to show the distance between two places. For examples, 我们从宿舍来and我家住在离 北京50里的地方.

The important points need the attention of the foreign students who come to study in China are as follows. The personal pronoun and appellation terms can’t act as the object of 从alone, or z这儿and那儿should be added. In addition, the prepositional structure composed of 从can’t be placed after verbs. The most frequently used structures for these two words are 从A到B and A离B.

Functioning as adverbs, both 到处and处处are placed before verbs and adjectives with the meaning of everywhere . However, the students who study in Chinese learning program may be told that 到处is applied when the verbs after it indicate the actual actions. In addition, 处处carries the meaning of all aspects . The following two examples might be helpful for those who learn Chinese in China. 祖国处处有亲人and你不要到处乱跑.

When talking with Chinese friends, the three conjunctions 但是, 可是and不过are often used by the foreign students who study Chinese to express the same meaning, especially the transition. From the aspect of manner of speaking, it decreases gradually from 但是 to可是and to不过. The best way to understand the application of the three words is to remember the words collocated with them. 但是is with 虽然and尽管 but 可是and不过can’t.

Of course, 但是can be used to connect conjunctions and phrases like我喜欢阳刚但是有责任心的男人. For 可是and不过, the students who learn Mandarin should know 可是can function as adverb to mean 的确如此 . 不过can also act as adverb, but it means 仅仅 to limit the scope like这不过是个小测试而已.