Usage note
“跟”可以用来表示‘与某人或某物一起’或者‘跟随某人或某物’。
gēn kě yǐ lái bǎo shí ‘yǔ měr huò mǒu wù yīqǐ’ huò ‘suí fú měr huò mǒu wù’.
"跟" can be used to mean 'with someone or something' or 'follow someone or something'.
Context note
“跟”常用于日常生活中的对话，比如和朋友一起玩或跟随老师学习。
gēn cháng yòng zài rì kāi shēn qíng zhōng de huà dá, bǐ 如 和 péng you yīqǐ wán huò suí fú lǎo shī xuéxí.
"跟" is commonly used in daily conversations, such as playing with friends or following a teacher to learn.
5 examples
我们跟朋友一起玩。
wǒ men gēn péng yǒu yì qǐ wán。
We play together with friends.
妈妈叫我跟她一起去超市。
mā ma jiào wǒ gēn tā yì qǐ qù chāo shì。
Mom calls me to go to the supermarket with her.
他跟老师学画画。
tā gēn lǎo shī xué huà huà。
He learns to draw by following his teacher.
我们跟爸爸一起去公园。
wǒ men gēn bà ba yì qǐ qù gōng yuán。
We go to the park together with Dad.
小狗跟着我跑。
xiǎo gǒu gēn zhe wǒ pǎo。
The little dog follows me as I run.
5 mini stories
小明跟妈妈去超市，买了很多好吃的东西。
xiǎo míng gēn mā ma qù chāo shì， mǎi le hěn duō hǎo chī de dōng xī。
Xiaoming goes to the supermarket with his mom and buys many delicious things.
小红跟爸爸去公园，看到了很多漂亮的花。
xiǎo hóng gēn bà ba qù gōng yuán， kàn dào le hěn duō piào liang de huā。
Xiaohong goes to the park with her dad and sees many beautiful flowers.
小华跟老师学画画，画了很多漂亮的画。
xiǎo huá gēn lǎo shī xué huà huà， huà le hěn duō piào liang de huà。
Xiaohua learns to draw with his teacher and draws many beautiful pictures.
小丽跟朋友一起玩，玩得很开心。
xiǎo lì gēn péng yǒu yì qǐ wán， wán dé hěn kāi xīn。
Xiaoli plays with her friends and has a lot of fun.
小刚跟妹妹一起去公园，看到了很多漂亮的鸟。
xiǎo gāng gēn mèi mei yì qǐ qù gōng yuán， kàn dào le hěn duō piào liang de niǎo。
Xiaogang goes to the park with his sister and sees many beautiful birds.
Mini dialogue
一起去玩
A
你想跟我去公园吗？
Nǐ xiǎng gēn wǒ qù gōngyuán ma?
Do you want to go to the park with me?
B
好啊，我跟你一起去。
Hǎo a, wǒ gēn nǐ yīqǐ qù.
Sure, I'll go with you.
跟着老师
A
请跟我读。
Qǐng gēn wǒ dú.
Please read after me.
B
好的，老师。
Hǎo de, lǎoshī.
Okay, teacher.
Related words and contrasts
similar
和
hé
and; with
跟 can mean 'with', similar to 和.
similar
跟随
gēn suí
to follow
跟 can mean to follow, 跟随 is a more formal way to say follow.