一起 (together)

• Pinyin: yīqǐ
• Formation: Subject + (和/跟 + Person +) 一起 + Verb + Object
• Hanzi breakdown: 一 = single horizontal stroke (one); 起 = 走 (walk) + 己 (self)

Meaning

Use 一起 (yīqǐ) to express doing something 'together' with someone. It is placed before the verb to indicate that the action is performed jointly by multiple people.

一起 is the most common way to express joint action in Mandarin. It appears after the subject and before the verb phrase. When specifying who you are doing something with, use 和/跟 + Person + 一起 + Verb. For example, 我和朋友一起吃饭 means 'I eat together with my friend.' The word 一起 can also be used more broadly to mean 'at the same time' or 'at the same place,' as in 我们住在一起 (we live together). Note that 一起 differs from 一块儿 (yīkuàir), which has the same meaning but is more colloquial and typical of northern Chinese dialects. In formal writing, 共同 (gòngtóng) is sometimes preferred over 一起.

Examples

1. 周末我们一起去爬山吧。 Let's go hiking together this weekend.
2. 她经常和同事一起吃午饭。 She often eats lunch together with her colleagues.
3. 小时候我们总是一起玩。 When we were young, we always played together.

Usage Guide

Context: spoken, written, everyday

Tone: descriptive

Do Say

• 我们一起想办法解决这个问题。
• 你要不要跟我们一起去看电影？
• 全家人一起吃了一顿丰盛的晚餐。

Don't Say

• 我一起他去超市了。(一起 cannot be placed between the subject and the companion — use 我和他一起去超市了) → 我和他一起去超市了。
• 他们一起了吃饭。(了 should not be placed between 一起 and the verb — say 他们一起吃了饭) → 他们一起吃了饭。

Origin & History

The word 一起 literally means 'one rise' or 'one start,' conveying the idea of people starting or acting as one unit. This compound has been used in Chinese for centuries to express togetherness.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal