In short

Coverbs (介词, jiècí) are little verb-like words - 从 (cóng, “from”), 给 (gěi, “to/for”), 跟 (gēn, “with”), 对 (duì, “toward”), 离 (lí, “from” of distance), 往 (wǎng, “toward”), 为 (wèi, “for”) - that grab a noun to build a prepositional phrase. That phrase always sits before the main verb, never after it: 我给你打电话。 (Wǒ gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà.) = I’ll call you, literally “I to-you make-call.”

The rule

A coverb is called 介词 (“introducing word”) because it introduces a noun - a source, a person, a destination - ahead of the action. Most of them are borrowed from real verbs (给 also means “give”, 跟 “follow”, 往/对 “head toward, face”), but as coverbs they lean on a following main verb and behave like English prepositions. The skeleton is:

Subject + Coverb + Noun + Main Verb + (rest)

Step 1 - build the coverb phrase. Put the coverb in front of its noun: 从北京 (cóng Běijīng, “from Beijing”), 跟朋友 (gēn péngyou, “with a friend”), 对老师 (duì lǎoshī, “toward the teacher”).

Step 2 - place the whole phrase before the verb. This is the opposite of English word order. English says “come from Beijing” (phrase last); Mandarin says 从北京来 (from-Beijing come). So 我从北京来 (Wǒ cóng Běijīng lái) = I come from Beijing, never 我来从北京.

Step 3 - negate and modify in front of the coverb. Adverbs and negation (不 bù, 没 méi, 也 yě, 都 dōu, 常 cháng) attach to the coverb, because the coverb phrase and its verb form one unit: 我不给你打电话 (Wǒ bù gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà, “I won’t call you”), 我常跟他见面 (Wǒ cháng gēn tā jiànmiàn, “I often meet with him”).

What each coverb marks. 从 = a starting point you move away from, in space or time (从三点 cóng sān diǎn, “from three o’clock”). 给 = the recipient or beneficiary of the action. 跟 = the other party you do something with or to (跟他说 gēn tā shuō, “say to him”). 对 = the target of an attitude or action (对我笑 duì wǒ xiào, “smile at me”; 对身体好 duì shēntǐ hǎo, “good for the body”). 往 = the direction motion heads in. 为 = the person or cause something is done for.

Two special frames. The paired 从……到…… (cóng…dào…, “from A to B”) spans a range: 从这儿到那儿 (cóng zhèr dào nàr, “from here to there”). And 离 is the odd one out - it usually takes no action verb, just a distance or a 近/远 (jìn/yuǎn, near/far): A + 离 + B + 近/远, as in 我家离公司很近 (Wǒ jiā lí gōngsī hěn jìn, “my home is close to the office”). The same frame measures a gap in time, with 还有 or 只剩 in the distance slot: 离上课还有十分钟 (Lí shàngkè hái yǒu shí fēnzhōng, “there are ten minutes left before class”).

Forms & patterns

The seven coverbs at a glance:

Negation and adverbs go in front of the coverb, not in front of the main verb:

Examples

Common mistakes

• 我来从北京。 -> 我从北京来。 (Wǒ cóng Běijīng lái.) - The coverb phrase (从北京) goes before the main verb, not after it as in English.
• 我家从火车站很近。 -> 我家离火车站很近。 (Wǒ jiā lí huǒchēzhàn hěn jìn.) - Distance (near/far) uses 离; 从 only marks a point you move away from.
• 我给他不打电话。 -> 我不给他打电话。 (Wǒ bù gěi tā dǎ diànhuà.) - Negation attaches to the coverb, so 不/没 sit in front of 给, not in front of the main verb.
• 他很好对我。 -> 他对我很好。 (Tā duì wǒ hěn hǎo.) - “nice to me” reverses in Mandarin: the 对 phrase comes first, then the predicate 很好.
• 我一起跟你去。 -> 我跟你一起去。 (Wǒ gēn nǐ yīqǐ qù.) - The coverb phrase 跟你 leads; the adverb 一起 sits right before the verb 去.

Tips

• Coverbs are “half-verbs”: remember that 给/对/跟/往/为 can be full verbs elsewhere, but here they form a from / with / to / for phrase that always lands before the real verb. Chinese front-loads the preposition.
• 从 vs 离: 从 = the point you start from and move away (从 A 到 B, 从三点), so it pairs with a verb of motion; 离 = the gap between two fixed points, so it pairs with 近/远, a distance, or 还有 + a stretch of time, and usually has no action verb. No movement -> use 离.
• Anything that modifies the action - 不, 没, 也, 都, 常 - clamps onto the front of the coverb, not the verb: 不给你打电话, 也跟他去, 都对我好.
• Don’t confuse coverb 为 (wèi, “for the sake of someone”) with 为了 (wèile, “in order to”) + a purpose - that construction belongs to Purpose clauses (为了/为…而). Note too that 为 has a second reading, wéi (as in 认为), which is not this coverb.