除了 (chúle)... 以外 (yǐwài), 还 (hái) is a common Chinese grammar construction used to indicate that there is something else besides what was first mentioned. It functions similarly to the English conjunctions “in addition to,” “besides,” and “as well as.”

除了 (chúle) ... 以外 (yǐwài), 还 (hái) typically follows the below pattern:

除了 (chúle) + Background Phrase + 以外 (yǐwài), + 还 (hái) + Additional Phrase

Note that the subject can be placed either at the beginning of the sentence or right before 还 (hái).

Let’s look at an example:

In the Chinese sentence, the subject, “living here,” (住在这儿; zhù zài zhèr) is introduced before the first part of the grammar construction (除了; chúle). The background phrase, situated between 除了 (chúle) and 以外 (yǐwài) indicates that the subject is not only “really convenient” (很方便; hěn fāngbiàn) and causes the reader to anticipate the mention of some other positive aspect of living in China later in the sentence.

The additional phrase, “also allows you to meet a lot of Chinese friends” (可以认识很多中国朋友; kěyǐ rènshi hěnduō Zhōngguó péngyou) positioned after 还 (hái) suggests that where the speaker lives is also a good place to meet Chinese friends.

Here, the speaker uses the 除了 (chúle)... 以外 (yǐwài), 还 (hái) grammar structure to convey that there is not only one, but two good things about the place he/she lives.

还 hái is also interchangeable with 也 (yě) when used within this grammar structure, as can be seen in the following pair of sentences:

In both example sentences above, the speaker uses the 除了 (chúle)... 以外 (yǐwài), 还 (hái) / 也 (yě) pattern to convey that in addition to eating Guilin rice noodles, he/she is also a fan of Peking duck.

只要 (zhǐyào) ... 就 (jiù) is Chinese grammar pattern that means “as long as… then.” This construction is frequently used to express the idea that as long as the necessary condition occurs, the result of the condition will also occur.

When used in a sentence, it typically follows this pattern:

只要 (zhǐyào) + Condition + 就 (jiù) + Result

In this sentence, “as long as” (只要; zhǐyào), is followed by the necessary condition “you work hard” (你努力; nǐ nǔlì). After “then” (就; jiù) comes the result, “you’ll be able to improve your Chinese” (可以提高你的中文; kěyǐ tígāo nǐ de zhōngwén). Here, the speaker implies that working hard is an effective and essential way to improve your Chinese.

Let’s look at another example:

In this sentence, the speaker uses 只要 (zhǐyào) ... 就 (jiù) to state that as long as we have the time, we always go hiking together.

一边 (yībiān) … 一边 (yībiān) is a Chinese grammatical construction used to demonstrate that two active, ongoing actions are happening at the same time.

When used in a sentence, it typically follows this pattern:

Subject + 一边 (yībiān) + Verb Phrase 1 + 一边 (yībiān) + Verb Phrase 2

Note that the subject of both of the verb phrases must be consistent when using this construction.

Let’s look at an example:

In this sentence, the subject, “we” (我们; wǒ men), clarifies who is doing the actions represented by the verbs that follow. The subject is followed by two verb phrases, “ate” (吃; chī) and “chatted” (聊天儿; liáotiānr), positioned within the grammatical construction 一边......一边. This conveys that the speaker and his/her companions were eating and chatting at the same time.

Note that the order of the two actions may differ between the English and Chinese translations although the meaning remains the same. This is because in English, the second verb listed after “while” in a statement usually provides context for the first verb, whereas this is not necessarily the case in Chinese.

Let’s look at another example:

In this sentence, the speaker uses the 一边 (yībiān) … 一边 (yībiān) grammar pattern to emphasize that the subject, Grandpa, likes drinking black tea at the same time as he reads the newspaper.

Sometimes in spoken Chinese, speakers shorten 一边 (yìbiān)… 一边 (yìbiān)… to just 边 (biān)… 边 (biān)… to give the expression a more conversational tone. For example: