一来…，二来…
for one thing …, for another …
Structure
决定或事实 ， 一来 理由一 ， 二来 理由二
What it means
“For one thing …, for another …”: lists two reasons or purposes behind a decision or fact. A third is 三来.
How it is built
Decision，一来 + reason 1，二来 + reason 2: 我们没去月子中心，一来太贵，二来婆婆想自己照顾孩子 (we skipped the centre: it cost too much, and my mother-in-law wanted to look after the baby).
When to use it
Spoken and informal written style; the formal pair is 一则…二则…. The reasons usually follow what they explain. It can list purposes too: 一来看看父母，二来参加婚礼.
Watch out
✗ 第一来…第二来 ✓ 一来…二来. Do not pair 一来 with 其次. Do not confuse it with 这样一来 (“that being so”).
Examples
老规矩这么讲究，也有它的道理：一来过去家里没有暖气，二来干净的热水也很难得。
Strict as they are, the old rules had their reasons: for one thing, homes used to have no heating, and for another, clean hot water was hard to come by.
我们没去月子中心，一来太贵，二来婆婆想亲自照顾孩子。
We did not go to a postpartum centre: for one thing it was too expensive, and for another my mother-in-law wanted to look after the baby herself.
这次回老家，一来看看父母，二来参加同学的婚礼。
This trip home is partly to see my parents and partly for a classmate’s wedding.
Learn this in Lesson 43 · HSK 5–6: 坐月子与抓周 (A baby’s first year)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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