Formal Mandarin Connectives: 然而, 因此, 于是 and 尽管
By Michael McGettrick and Wee Khang LinUpdated 12 October 2026
Written Mandarin swaps the spoken joins for formal ones that mean the same: (rán'ér) for (dànshì), (yīncǐ) for (suǒyǐ), (jǐnguǎn) for (suīrán). One pair is not about register at all: draws a conclusion, (yúshì) tells what happened next.
The whole system on one screen
Each everyday join has a written partner:
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| dànshì | but | everywhere | |
| rán'ér | however | writing | |
| suǒyǐ | so | everywhere | |
| yīncǐ | therefore | writing | |
| yúshì | and so, then | stories, writing | |
| suīrán | although | everywhere | |
| jǐnguǎn | although | writing | |
| yīnwèi | because | everywhere | |
| yóuyú | owing to | writing | |
| háishi | still | everywhere | |
| réngrán | still | writing |
- 不过 búguò: though
- 但是 dànshì: but
- 然而 rán’ér: however
Nothing in the written set is harder. It is the same join in a suit: say (rán'ér) to a friend and you sound as if you are reading out a report.
然而 (rán'ér): the written "however"
(rán'ér) means "but" or "however", and it makes a real turn: what follows goes against what the first half led you to expect.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
，。 | Tā hěn nǔlì, dànshì jiéguǒ bú tài hǎo. | He worked hard, but it didn't go well |
，。 | Tā hěn nǔlì, rán'ér jiéguǒ bú tài hǎo. | He worked hard; the result, however, was poor |
。，。 | Zhège jìhuà kàn qǐlái hěn jiǎndān. Rán'ér, zuò qǐlái hěn nán. | The plan looks simple. In practice, however, it is hard |
The last row is the pattern to copy for an essay: a full stop, then (rán'ér), then a comma, opening a new sentence.
One thought, three registers
The same objection, from a chat at a desk to a written report:
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
，。 | Zhège bànfǎ búcuò, búguò yǒudiǎn màn. | Not bad, though a bit slow (chat) |
，。 | Zhège bànfǎ búcuò, dànshì yǒudiǎn màn. | It's good, but slow (neutral) |
。，。 | Zhège bànfǎ yǒu yídìng de zuòyòng. Rán'ér, sùdù tài màn. | It has some effect. It is, however, too slow (report) |
Same content, three different voices. In the report, (yídìng) means "a certain": a certain effect.
因此 (yīncǐ) or 于是 (yúshì)?
English "so" covers two jobs that Mandarin keeps apart. (yīncǐ), literally "because of this", draws a conclusion from a fact:
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
，。 | Zhèlǐ kōngqì hěn gānjìng, yīncǐ hěn duō rén yuànyì zhù zài zhèlǐ. | The air is clean, so many want to live here |
，。 | Tā měitiān pǎobù, yīncǐ shēntǐ hěn hǎo. | He runs every day, so he's very fit |
(yúshì) tells a story: one event prompted the next.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
，。 | Tiān hēi le, yúshì wǒmen huíjiā le. | It got dark, so we went home |
，。 | Diànhuà méiyǒu rén jiē, yúshì wǒ zìjǐ qù le yí tàng. | Nobody answered, so I went round myself |
The test: if "and then" fits, use (yúshì); if "it follows that" fits, use (yīncǐ). needs an event or a change after it, so a plain state such as (shēntǐ hěn hǎo) takes ; a change is fine: (yúshì shēntǐ yuè lái yuè hǎo), and so he got fitter and fitter.
In a story is not wrong, just stiff: it makes going home sound like the end of an argument. In speech, (suǒyǐ) does both jobs.
尽管 (jǐnguǎn): a weightier 虽然 (suīrán)
(jǐnguǎn) concedes something that should have stopped what follows, like "despite the fact that". Like (suīrán), it usually takes a partner in the second clause: (háishi), (dànshì), (yě) or the written (réngrán), still.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
，。 | Suīrán tiānqì hěn lěng, tā háishi qù pǎobù le. | Although it was cold, he went running |
，。 | Jǐnguǎn tiānqì hěn lěng, tā háishi qù pǎobù le. | Despite the cold, he still went running |
，。 | Jǐnguǎn wǒmen yǐjīng jiěshì guo, wèntí réngrán méiyǒu jiějué. | Although we explained, it is still unsolved |
Writing can also put the (jǐnguǎn) clause second, as an afterthought: ，。 (Tā háishi qù le, jǐnguǎn tiānqì hěn lěng.), he went anyway, cold as it was.
Straight before a verb, (jǐnguǎn) is a different word: "feel free to". 。 (Yǒu wèntí jǐnguǎn wèn wǒ.) - If you have questions, feel free to ask me. No contrast, no second clause.
由于 (yóuyú): the written "because"
(yóuyú) is the written (yīnwèi): "owing to", "as". It opens the first clause, before a noun phrase or a whole clause, and (yīncǐ) or (suǒyǐ) can answer it:
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
，。 | Yóuyú tiānqì yuányīn, fēijī wǎn le liǎng ge xiǎoshí. | Owing to the weather, the plane was two hours late |
，。 | Yóuyú shíjiān bú gòu, yīncǐ wǒmen zhǐ jiǎng le yí bàn. | As time was short, we covered only half |
，。 | Tā méi lái, shì yóuyú shēntǐ bù hǎo. | He didn't come; it was because he was unwell |
(yīnwèi) can follow the main clause, as English "because" does; (yóuyú) cannot, unless (shì) comes before it, as in the last row. More of the (yú) family is on the 于 prepositions.
Mistakes English speakers make
| Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
，。 | ，。 | a state is a conclusion: (yīncǐ) |
，。 | ，。 | (yóuyú) opens its clause |
，。 | ，。 | (jǐnguǎn) concedes; a cause is (yóuyú) |
What to do next
- Do the drill below.
- Take a paragraph you wrote with
(dànshì) and(suǒyǐ), and rewrite it with(rán'ér) and(yīncǐ). - Then read the 于 (yú) prepositions, the other half of formal written Mandarin.