给 vs 为 (to/for vs for the sake of)

A recipient differs from acting on behalf of someone

You call a friend to speak directly to them.
I我wǒfor给gěihe / him他tāto make a telephone call打电话dǎ diàn huà。 — for给gěi marks the person receiving the call.

Practice

You call a friend to speak directly to them. What does 我给他打电话。 communicate?

给 marks the person receiving the call.
给他打电话 necessarily means calling someone else on his behalf.

Build the form

The pattern in this lesson is for给gěi vs for the sake of为wèi (to/for vs for the sake of). Locate it in the original interlinear examples below.
Keep the words in their demonstrated positions; the pattern must fit the intended situation as well as the sentence form.

I我wǒfor给gěiyou你nǐbuy买mǎi了lepresent礼物lǐ wù。

Practice

Using the lesson pattern in this demonstrated example: I bought you a present: 我 ____ 你买了礼物。

Read examples in context

this这zhèall都dōuis是shìfor the sake of为wèiyou你nǐgood好hǎo。

In the opening example, I我wǒfor给gěihe / him他tāto make a telephone call打电话dǎ diàn huà。: for给gěi marks the person receiving the call.
Explain who acts, what is described and which time or group is relevant before choosing an English paraphrase.

Practice

Which means “for your own good” (a benefit / motive)?

Know the boundary

for the sake of为wèihe / him他tāto make a telephone call打电话dǎ diàn huà can mean making a call on his behalf.
for给gěi and for the sake of为wèi can overlap in beneficiary contexts such as buying a gift, so this distinction is not an absolute separation of meanings.

Practice

给 often marks a recipient; 为 names the beneficiary / purpose.

Practice

给他打电话 necessarily means calling someone else on his behalf.

Use the distinction

Key idea

for给gěi marks the person receiving the call.
for the sake of为wèihe / him他tāto make a telephone call打电话dǎ diàn huà can mean making a call on his behalf. for给gěi and for the sake of为wèi can overlap in beneficiary contexts such as buying a gift, so this distinction is not an absolute separation of meanings.

Read the full reference: HSK 5 grammar — Comparing similar prepositions.

Practice

You call a friend to speak directly to them. Close the examples. Say a Mandarin response, then write it in Chinese. Explain briefly in English what the lesson’s pattern adds. Compare with the model, then change one detail and try again.