Chinese Verbs - Coverbs

Coverbs

A special class of verbs called coverbs take the place of prepositions or postpositions in other languages. Sometimes, these coverbs can stand alone as a verb in its own right. One example is 给 (gěi), which can be used in both manners:

Preposition-like usage:

我给你打电话.
(Wǒ gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà.)
(I'll give you a telephone call.)

Verb:

请给我一杯可乐.
(Qǐng gěi wǒ yī bēi kělè.)
(Please give me a glass of cola.)