Express multitasking with “一边…一边…”

It's not uncommon to do more than one active task at once in daily life. In fact, this should be something you do often if you want to improve your Chinese, simply try to listen to Chinese audio while doing other things!

日常生活中，同时做一件以上的事并非罕见。实际上，如果你想提高中文水平，你就应该经常这样做，一边听着中文音频，一边做其他事情。

This article will look at how to express two simultaneous activities or tasks with Chinese phrase 一边… 一边… (yìbiān…yìbiān…). Note that this pattern can sometimes be shortened to just 边… 边…, and that 一边 (yìbiān) can be used alone and means "one side". Below, we're going to look at the most common form 一边… 一边…. (yìbiān… yìbiān…).

本文将讲解如何用中文短语"一边…一边…"来表达两项同时发生的活动或任务。注意，这个句型有时可以简化为"边…边…"，而且"一边"也可以单独使用，字面意思为 "one side"。下面我们将讲一下"一边…一边…"最常见的形式。

Use "一边… 一边…." to express simultaneous activities

用"一边… 一边…."表达同时发生的活动

Let's look at a few examples of how to use 一边… 一边…. (yìbiān… yìbiān…) to express simultaneous activities.

一起看看这些使用"一边…一边…"表达同时发生的活动的例子。

一边跑步，一边听中文广播

yìbiān pǎobù, yìbiān tīng zhōngwén guǎngbō.

Listening to a Chinese broadcast while running.

一边做饭，一边听中文有声书

yìbiān zuòfàn, yìbiān tīng zhōngwén yǒushēngshū.

Listening to a Chinese audio book while cooking.

一边刷碗，一边听中文播客

yìbiān shuā wǎn, yìbiān tīng zhōngwén bōkè.

Listening to a Chinese podcast while washing up the dishes.

Note that both tasks have to be simultaneous and ongoing activities, so even though "while" is the most common translation of 一边… 一边…. (yìbiān… yìbiān…), you can't used it to say that something happened while something else went on.

注意，该句型中的两项任务必须是同时发生并且是正在进行的活动，因此，虽然"一边…一边…"最常见的翻译是"while"，但你不能用这个句型表达"某事已经发生而其他事正在发生"。

他喜欢一边洗澡，一边唱歌

tā xǐhuan yìbiān xǐzǎo, yìbiān chànggē.

He likes singing while showering (or just singing in the shower).

我不能一边工作，一边听音乐

wǒ bùnéng yìbiān gōngzuò, yìbiān tīng yīnyuè.

I can't listen to music while working.

他一边玩手机，一边听他女朋友讲话

tā yìbiān wán shǒujī, yìbiān tā nǚpéngyou jiǎnghuà.

He played with his mobile phone while listening to his girlfriend talk.

When not to use 一边… 一边…. (yìbiān… yìbiān…)

什么时候不能用"一边…一边…"

If you want to express that something happens while something else is going on, you can used 的时候 instead. Like so:

如果你想表达"某事发生时其他事情正在发生"的话，你可以使用"的时候"。比如：

她昨天看电视的时候，门铃响了

tā zuótiān kàn diànshì de shíhou, ménlíng xiǎng le.

While she was watching television yesterday, the door bell rang.

Translated from: mandarin.about.com