Chinese word

跟上

Pronunciation

Pinyingēn shàng

Meaning

  • verbkeep up with

Example

我努力了，终于跟上了老师的进度。wǒ nǔ lì le zhōng yú gēn shàng le lǎo shī de jìn dù

I worked hard and finally managed to keep up with the teacher's pace.

Illustration for 跟上 (keep up with)

More examples

为了不被淘汰，公司必须跟上时代的步伐。wèi le bú bèi táo tài gōng sī bì xū gēn shàng shí dài de bù fá

To avoid being eliminated, the company must keep up with the times.

Core concept

Moving alongside a person or process until the same pace or stage is reached.

Common phrases

  • 跟上进度gēn shàng jìn dù

    keep up with progress

  • 跟上节奏gēn shàng jié zòu

    keep up with the pace

  • 跟上时代gēn shàng shí dài

    keep up with the times

Similar words

赶上gǎn shàng: Make up lost time or progress and reach the same point.
跟随gēn suí: Go after someone and follow their actions or movement.
赶超gǎn chāo: Overtake someone or something and move ahead of it.

Definition in Chinese

随着他人或事物的步伐调整自己，达到相同的速度或进度。suí zhe tā rén huò shì wù de bù fá tiáo zhěng zì jǐ dá dào xiāng tóng de sù dù huò jìn dù

Word origin

跟 (gēn, "follow") + 上 (shàng, "up; onto") joins accompanying movement with reaching a current position, which gives the word its sense of staying level with something that is moving.

Usage tips

  • The word applies to changing situations as well as physical movement, so it is useful when a speaker says that someone is no longer able to follow a fast conversation or a speaker's train of thought.

Other meanings

  • catch up withverb
  • match someone's paceverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word