和 (hé) is the primary coordinating conjunction linking nouns and noun phrases in Mandarin. A key grammatical restriction is that 和 can only join nouns and pronouns - it cannot coordinate verb phrases or clauses the way "and" does in English. For clauses, Mandarin uses other connectors or simply juxtaposes them.

The character 和 originally depicted grain in a vessel, suggesting harmony and balance - meanings that persist in words like 和平 (hépíng, peace) and 和谐 (héxié, harmony). When used as a preposition meaning "with" (我和你一起去, "I'll go with you"), 和 is interchangeable with 跟 (gēn) in most contexts.