Headword
Language Mandarin · sixth language of borrow · one root 借 jiè · the Borrower is the subject · the Theme is the thing · the Source is 向 or 跟 · the other direction is the same root, with 给 or 借给 · a bare person after 借 is the split · the lend filing of this root is lend · 借. The first language is borrow · leihen. The second is borrow · emprunter. The third is borrow · pedir prestado / tomar prestado. The fourth is borrow · prendere in prestito. The fifth is borrow · 借りる. No English page.
One root · the coverb sets the direction · Duration unranked · Mandarin cloth · working claim, revisable
借 · borrower · Voice[Borrower] + Source向/跟+NP + Theme · seventh edition sense 1, glossed 借进 · 向他借书 · 跟人借钱
借给 · lender · Recipient then Theme · or 借 + Theme + 给 + Recipient · sense 2, glossed 借出 · 借书给他 · 借钱给人 · CC-CEDICT 借给 “to lend to sb” · see lend · 借
Bare person after 借 · the double object · Li & Thompson 1981:363, as Sun and Saxon quote it, gloss the bare person as the Source · Wiktionary and 國語辭典 gloss a bare person as the Recipient · the root does not choose
A borrowing, on this reading, has a Borrower, a Theme, and a Source. The seventh edition of 现代汉语词典 files both directions on one root, 借 jiè. Sense 1 is 暂时使用别人的物品或金钱；借进, examples 向他借书, 跟人借钱, and 把笔借给我用一下. Sense 2 is 把物品或金钱暂时供别人使用；借出, examples 借书给他 and 借钱给人. The wording 暂时 is the definition’s. This page quotes it and does not give it a further label. Voice adds the Borrower, or the Lender, as the subject. The root’s object is the Theme. On the borrower frame the other person is 向 or 跟. On the lender frame the other person is 给, or the Recipient of the headword 借给. A stretch of time sits in 暂时. It is not ranked as an argument or as an adjunct.
What is different from English X borrows Y from Z, and from Japanese 借りる. English uses one simple verb, and the source is from. A different English verb, lend, takes the other direction, with a bare recipient or to. Mandarin uses 借 for both. The root does not set the direction. The coverb does. 向他借书 and 跟人借钱 are the borrower frame. 借书给他 and 借钱给人 are the lender frame. CC-CEDICT glosses the character 借 as “to borrow”, and glosses “to lend” as the combination with 给 or 出. The same file’s headword 借给 is “to lend to sb”. Japanese 借りる and 貸す are two roots. On 借りる, に marks the Source, and the same particle marks the Recipient of 貸す. Switching に for から keeps the clause a borrowing. Switching 向 or 跟 for 给 on 借 is how the seventh edition separates sense 1 from sense 2. French emprunter puts the Source in à, the Recipient preposition of prêter, and the verb fixes the direction. Spanish pedir prestado puts the lender in a or dative le. Italian prendere in prestito puts the Source in da, a different preposition from the Recipient’s a. pożyczyć and lenen keep both directions on one lemma, and the adposition selects the direction. Mandarin is that kind of one-root split. The marker is 向 or 跟 against 给. There is no case ending on the noun. Which phrase is the object when 给 is in the clause is the note Causative templates and argument selection. This page does not edit that note.
The seventh edition does not put a borrower, a lender, a thing, and both a 向-phrase and a 给-phrase in one clause of 借. Sense 1 is the get frame. Sense 2 is the give frame. Sun and Saxon quote Li and Thompson 1981:363 for three shapes of the same verb: 借给 with the person as goal, a bare person read as the source, and 跟 of the source. No printed dictionary line stacks 我向他借了一本书 as one citation. That fuller clause is constructed on 向他借书.
Printed borrower frame · Source 向 or 跟 · Theme after 借
✓ 暂时使用别人的物品或金钱；借进：向他借书｜跟人借钱｜把笔借给我用一下。 现代汉语词典第7版 · 借 ¹ · sense 1 · 向他 is the Source · 跟人 is the Source · the 把 line is numbered here
✓ 她又跟我借钱。 Li & Thompson 1981:363 · as Sun and Saxon print it · pinyin Ta you gen wo jie qian · gloss “She again borrowed money from me” · 跟 is the Source
English from is this 向 or 跟 · the root stays 借
Printed lender frame · 给 of the Recipient · two orders
✓ 把物品或金钱暂时供别人使用；借出：借书给他｜借钱给人。 第7版 · sense 2 · Theme then 给 then the person
✓ 她借给我五块钱。 Li & Thompson 1981:363 · as Sun and Saxon print it · pinyin Ta jie gei wo wu kuai qian · gloss “She lent five dollars to me” · 借给 then the Recipient then the Theme
✓ 借给 CC-CEDICT · “to lend to sb” · the lend combination the file names beside bare 借
English lend … to · the subject hands the thing over · the lend page is 借
Bare person after 借 · the double object · the sources do not assign one role
✓ 她借了我五块钱。 Li & Thompson 1981:363 · as Sun and Saxon print it · pinyin Ta jie le wo wu kuai qian · gloss “She borrowed five dollars from me” · the bare person is the Source on that gloss
✓ 你能借我一本吗？ English Wiktionary · 借 · “to lend” · 我 is bare · no 给 · the book is 一本
✓ 这支笔借你用一下。 國語辭典 · sense 2 · 你 is bare · the pen precedes the verb
the root is the same · one quotation reads the bare person as the Source · the other dictionaries read a bare person as the Recipient · 向, 跟, or 给 is what separates the seventh-edition senses
Compounds the dictionaries print · not further pages
✓ 借别人的东西来使用：借用一下你的铅笔。 第7版 · 借用 sense 1 · the pencil is 你的铅笔 · no 向 · no 跟
✓ 借（钱）：借贷无门。 第7版 · 借贷 · verb sense · the example has no person
✓ 借贷 · 借钱 CC-CEDICT · 借贷 “to borrow or lend money” · 借钱 “to borrow money; to lend money” · both directions in the gloss · no frame
✓ 把借来的东西再借给别人。 第7版 · 转借 · 借来 is inside the definition · 借去 is not a headword in the CC-CEDICT file read here
借用 names a thing to use · 借贷 and 借钱 name money · they do not add a second root
| Role | Marking | Obligatoriness | What the sources print |
|---|---|---|---|
| Borrower | subject of sense 1 | the verb has a subject · the dictionary example can leave it unprinted | 第7版 向他借书 leaves the Borrower unprinted · Li & Thompson 她又跟我借钱 prints 她 |
| Theme | the thing after 借 · no case ending | the thing is named when the example names it | 第7版 书, 钱, 笔 · Li & Thompson 五块钱, 钱 · Wiktionary 一本, 你的书 |
| Source 向 | 向 + NP, before 借 | one source marker of sense 1 | 第7版 向他借书 · 借款 repeats 向人借钱 |
| Source 跟 | 跟 + NP, before 借 | the other source marker of sense 1 · also the marker in the Li & Thompson line | 第7版 跟人借钱 · Li & Thompson 跟我借钱 |
| Recipient of the lend frame | 给 + NP · or the person after 借给 | sense 2 · the subject hands the thing over | 第7版 借书给他, 借钱给人 · Li & Thompson 借给我五块钱 · CC-CEDICT 借给 · see lend · 借 |
| Bare person | no coverb | printed · the role is not the same across the sources | Li & Thompson gloss 借了我五块钱 as borrow · Wiktionary glosses 借我一本 as lend · 國語辭典 借你 is the give sense |
| 找 | unprinted on 借 | not a source coverb in the articles read · 找 ¹ is a verb of seeking | 第7版 找人 · no 找他借书 on the 借 article |
| 从 | unprinted on the seventh-edition 借 article | not constructed as a frame of this page | the 借 examples use 向, 跟, or 给 · Sun and Saxon’s 从 sentence sits after their Li & Thompson citation and is not filed here as that page |
| 借用 | Theme · possessive 的 on the printed line | a compound on this page · no Source particle | 第7版 借用一下你的铅笔 · CC-CEDICT “to borrow sth for another use” |
| 借贷 · 借钱 | money in the gloss | the seventh-edition example has no person · CC-CEDICT names both directions and prints no frame | 第7版 借贷无门 · CC-CEDICT 借贷, 借钱 |
| 借来 | inside 转借 | not a headword on this page · 借去 unprinted | 第7版 把借来的东西再借给别人 |
| Duration | the definition’s 暂时 | unranked · a numeral is unprinted on the sense lines of 借 | 第7版 sense 1 and sense 2 |
Marking map. Read the coverb, then the root. 向 or 跟 before 借 is the Source, and the subject takes. 给 after the Theme, or the person after 借给, is the Recipient, and the subject hands the thing over. A bare person after 借 is the shape the sources do not assign once. English from matches 向 and 跟. English to matches 给. The root matches both English verbs.
Each row lines up one English slot with a Mandarin slot, and names the Japanese, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, or Dutch slot where the direction split differs. The alignment type says what happens to the slot: = (same object status), or shift (English from ↔ 向 or 跟, or two English verbs ↔ one Mandarin root). Printed lines come first. Every other Mandarin sentence is constructed, modelled on a printed line. They show the working alignment, not frequency, and not a bilingual corpus.
| Slot | EN form | ZH form | Align | EN example | ZH example |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Borrower | SUBJ of borrow | subject of sense 1 | = the subject takes · the root also has the lender’s subject | She borrowed money from me. gloss of the Li & Thompson line | 她又跟我借钱 Li & Thompson 1981:363 |
| Theme | OBJ | the thing · no case ending | = | borrow a book · borrow money gloss | 书 · 钱 第7版 sense 1 |
| Source 向 / 跟 | from | 向 or 跟 + NP | shift · the coverb, not a second root | borrow a book from him gloss | 向他借书 第7版 · 跟人借钱 第7版 |
| Recipient | to of lend · a different verb | 给 · or the person of 借给 | the role matches English lend · the root is still 借 · two orders are printed | lend him a book gloss | 借书给他 第7版 · 借给我五块钱 Li & Thompson |
| Bare person | from or a bare object of lend · English uses two verbs | no coverb | shift · the sources split the role | borrow from me · lend me one the two English clothes | 借了我五块钱 Li & Thompson · borrow gloss · 借我一本 Wiktionary · lend gloss |
| Japanese 借りる | one simple verb · from | a different root from 貸す · Source に or から | Japanese uses two roots · に is shared · Mandarin uses one root · 向 / 跟 is not 给 | — | に / から borrow · Japanese |
| French emprunter | one simple verb · from | one simple verb · Source à | French reuses the Recipient preposition · the verb fixes the direction · Mandarin’s marker fixes it | — | emprunter qqch à qqn borrow · French |
| Spanish pedir prestado | one simple verb · from | a periphrasis · Source a or dative le | Spanish puts the lender in the Recipient’s dative · tomar uses de | — | pedir prestado borrow · Spanish |
| Italian prendere in prestito | one simple verb · from | a periphrasis · Source da | Italian keeps da for the Source and a for the Recipient of prestare | — | da + noun borrow · Italian |
| Polish pożyczyć | two verbs · lend / borrow | one lemma · dative vs od+genitive | the adposition sets the direction · Mandarin uses one root and a coverb · Japanese uses two roots | — | pożyczyć lend · Polish |
| Dutch lenen | two verbs · lend / borrow | one lemma · aan vs van | the preposition sets the direction · Mandarin uses one root and a coverb | — | lenen lend · Dutch |
EN · ZH · 向 / 跟
Borrow a book from him.
向他借书 · 跟人借钱
ZH · 第7版 · sense 1 · 向 and 跟 are the Source · the Theme follows 借
Move 向 and 跟 match English from · the subject of this sense takes
ZH · same root, lender frame
lend him a book · lend me five dollars
借书给他 · 借给我五块钱
ZH · 第7版 Theme then 给 · Li & Thompson 借给 then the Recipient then the Theme
Move the coverb fixes the role · the root stays 借 · the lend page is 借
ZH · bare person
borrow from me · lend me one
借了我五块钱 · 借我一本
ZH · Li & Thompson gloss the bare person as the Source · Wiktionary glosses 借我一本 as lend
Move no coverb · the quotations do not share a role · 向, 跟, or 给 is the resolution
JA · FR · ES · IT · PL · NL
two roots, or one lemma and a marker
借りる · emprunter · pożyczyć · lenen
JA · に is shared by two roots · FR · à · ES · a / le · IT · da · PL · od · NL · van
Move Mandarin keeps one root · 向 / 跟 against 给 sets the direction · Japanese に against から does not
Argument difference against English from, against the lend filing of 借, and against Japanese 借りる. English borrow from uses a separative preposition on a different verb from lend to. Lend · 借 files sense 2 as the give frame, with 给. This page files sense 1 as the borrower frame, with 向 or 跟. The root is one article. Japanese prints the two directions on 貸す and 借りる, and prints both the Source of 借りる and the Recipient of 貸す with に. Nothing in the Mandarin root turns sense 1 into sense 2. The coverb does.
Dictionary frames and lines · checked · quoted as printed
【借】¹ jiè 〈动〉❶暂时使用别人的物品或金钱；借进：向他～书｜跟人～钱｜把笔～给我用一下。❷把物品或金钱暂时供别人使用；借出：～书给他｜～钱给人。 现代汉语词典第7版 · hanzi8 · 借 · the same senses are on dict.cucldk.com · 借
Ta jie gei wo wu kuai qian. “She lent five dollars to me.” · Ta jie le wo wu kuai qian. “She borrowed five dollars from me.” · Ta you gen wo jie qian. “She again borrowed money from me.” Li & Thompson 1981:363 · quoted by Sun and Saxon, Verb, complement, and case in Mandarin · the source prints pinyin
借 to borrow / (used in combination with 给 or 出) to lend · 借给 to lend to sb · 借出 to lend · 出借 to lend; to put out a loan CC-CEDICT · MDBG UTF-8 export, file dated 2026-10-09
你能借我一本吗？ · 我可以借你的书吗？ English Wiktionary · 借 · “to lend” · “to borrow” · the borrow line has 你的书 and no 向
这支笔借你用一下。 國語辭典 · hanzi8 · 借 · 國語辭典 · sense 2 · bare 你
借别人的东西来使用：借用一下你的铅笔。 · 借（钱）：借贷无门。 · 把借来的东西再借给别人。 第7版 · 借用 · 借贷 · 转借
Strings below are constructed, modelled on the printed lines, except where a tag says the line is printed. They are not spontaneous-speech citations and not dictionary lines. 我 and 他 continue the persons already in 向他借书 and in the Li and Thompson lines. A name does not spell a case ending. There is no case ending on the noun.
✓ 向他借书
第7版 sense 1 · 向 is the Source · the Borrower is unprinted in this example
✓ 跟人借钱
第7版 sense 1 · 跟 is the other Source marker · swapping 向 for 跟 keeps the borrower frame
✓ 她又跟我借钱
Li & Thompson 1981:363 · characters for the printed pinyin · 跟 Source · gloss “borrowed money from me”
✓ 我向他借了一本书
constructed · 向他借书 is the seventh-edition line · 我, 了, and 一本 are not in that line · the coverb keeps the Source
✓ 借书给他
第7版 sense 2 · Theme then 给 · the same root · the lend page is 借
✓ 她借给我五块钱
Li & Thompson 1981:363 · characters for the printed pinyin · 借给 then Recipient then Theme · gloss “lent five dollars to me” · CC-CEDICT 借给 “to lend to sb”
✓ 他借给我一本书
constructed · order modelled on Li & Thompson 借给我五块钱 · the book is the seventh-edition theme 书 · 借给 keeps the Recipient
✓ 她借了我五块钱
Li & Thompson 1981:363 · the gloss they are quoted with reads the bare person as the Source · no 向 · no 跟 · no 给
✓ 你能借我一本吗
Wiktionary · “to lend” · the same bare shape · this gloss reads the person as the Recipient · 國語辭典 这支笔借你用一下 is the same role
✓ 我借了他一本书
constructed · the bare double object · modelled on 借了我五块钱 and on 借我一本 · those two printed lines do not share a role · 向他 or 借给 is what resolves the clause · this string does not
✓ 借用一下你的铅笔
第7版 · 借用 sense 1 · no Source coverb · the other person is inside 的 · not a page
Each sketch is a working drawing, not a locked analysis. The drawing gives the Borrower to Voice and the Theme to the root. On the borrower frame the Source stays in 向 or in 跟. The lender drawing gives 给 to the Recipient and names the subject the Lender, on the same root. The bare-person drawing does not choose. Open one sketch at a time.
One external argument · 向 and 跟 are the Source · one of the two
[VoiceP 我 Voice ← Borrower · subject
[VP
[向/跟 [ 他 ]] ← Source · 第7版 向他 · 跟人
[√借-
[Theme 书 ]]]] ← 向他借书
向他借书 第7版
她又跟我借钱 Li & Thompson 1981:363
The subject takes. The other person is the Source on this frame. 向 and 跟 are where the seventh edition puts that person. The drawing does not put the Recipient of sense 2 on this frame.
Sense 2 · 给 is the Recipient · two printed orders · working, revisable
[VoiceP 她 Voice ← Lender · not the Borrower
[VP
[√借-
[Theme 书 ]
[给 [ 他 ]]]]] ← 借书给他 · 第7版
[借给
[Recipient 我 ]
[Theme 五块钱 ]] ← Li & Thompson · the other order
✓ 借书给他 第7版
✓ 她借给我五块钱 Li & Thompson 1981:363
This is the frame lend · 借 describes. The direct object can be the same book or the same money. 给 on this frame is the Recipient. 向 and 跟 on sense 1 are the Source. Japanese shares に and splits the roots. Mandarin splits the marker and keeps the root.
The sources do not file one role · working, revisable
[VoiceP 她 Voice
[VP
[√借-
[ 我 ] ← bare · Li & Thompson: Source
[Theme 五块钱 ]]]] ← Wiktionary’s 借我: Recipient
← the drawing does not pick
她借了我五块钱 Li & Thompson · borrow gloss
你能借我一本吗 Wiktionary · lend gloss
The coverb is what the seventh edition uses to separate the senses. This sketch leaves the bare person unlabelled. 我借了他一本书 is the constructed string of that shape. It is not a citation.
Working paper · October 2026 · Mandarin micro-entry · Beyond Index 2
Borrowing in Mandarin is 借. The root is direction-neutral. The Borrower is the subject of sense 1. The Theme is the thing. The Source is 向 or 跟. The lender frame of the same root is 给 or 借给. A bare person after 借 is the split: one quotation reads it as the Source, and other dictionaries read a bare person as the Recipient. 借用, 借贷, and 借钱 stay notes. A time phrase is not a co-argument.
Not a flat grid of four sisters. Voice adds the subject. The root takes the Theme. 向 or 跟 adds the Source of the borrower frame. 给 adds the Recipient of the lender frame, on the same root. A bare person is the shape the sources do not file once. A time expression stays unranked.
What Mandarin changes, against English borrow from, is the root and the source marker. English has one simple verb and from, and a different verb for the other direction. Mandarin has 借, and the Source is 向 or 跟. What Mandarin changes, against Japanese 借りる, is that the direction is a choice of coverb on one root. Japanese に versus から is a choice of Source marker on 借りる, and the Recipient’s に belongs to the other root. What Mandarin changes, against French à and Spanish a / le, is that the source marker is not the recipient marker. 给 is reserved for the lender frame.
Dictionary frames: the seventh edition of 现代汉语词典 for 借, 借用, 借贷, 转借, 借款, and 找, as served on hanzi8 and on dict.cucldk.com; CC-CEDICT, MDBG UTF-8 export, file dated 2026-10-09, under 借, 借给, 借出, 出借, 借用, 借贷, and 借钱; English Wiktionary under 借; the 國語辭典 block on the hanzi8 character page. Li and Thompson’s three sentences are taken from Sun and Saxon’s quotation of page 363, not from a copy of the book opened here. The 给 string of sense 2 is the lend frame. ABC Chinese-English Dictionary was not opened. Index 2 does not list the verb. Index 2 lists Mandarin only under Risk / Betting (赌).
Records the subject Borrower, the Theme, and the 向 or 跟 Source of 借. Records that the same root, with 给 or 借给, is the lender frame. Records the bare double object as the split between the Li and Thompson borrow gloss and the lend gloss of a bare person in Wiktionary and 國語辭典. Records 借 as one root, against Japanese 貸す and 借りる. Records 借用, 借贷, and 借钱 as notes. Does not open an English page.