首先……然后…… Ordered Steps in Chinese
首先……，然后……
首先……然后…… explicitly orders two or more steps in a process. 首先 introduces the first planned or actual stage, and 然后 presents the next stage. The pattern is useful for instructions and narratives, but it does not by itself express cause, contrast, or a stronger evaluation.
Published August 12, 2026
Reviewed August 12, 2026
01 / PATTERN
See the Structure
MODEL
首先 + Clause 1，然后 + Clause 2
Read the structure
首先……然后…… explicitly orders two or more steps in a process. 首先 introduces the first planned or actual stage, and 然后 presents the next stage. The pattern is useful for instructions and narratives, but it does not by itself express cause, contrast, or a stronger evaluation. Keep the model 首先 + Clause 1，然后 + Clause 2 visible while you compare each sentence.
同学们首先读了一遍课文，然后回答问题。
The students first read the text and then answered questions.
Choose the right context
Explain a process in chronological order. Give instructions with clear first and next steps. Organize a narrative or presentation.
我们首先找到方法，然后每天练习。
We first find a method and then practise every day.
Respect the boundary
Do not use it when the two clauses are simultaneous. Do not reverse the actual or intended order. Do not treat 然后 as a cause marker.
然后洗菜，首先切菜。
(Then wash, first cut.)
Repair the pattern
The order marker is reversed: 首先 must introduce the first step and 然后 the following step. Simultaneous actions are forced into a sequence: 一边……一边…… is the appropriate frame for simultaneous activities.
首先洗菜，然后切菜。
Use the repaired structure without changing the intended meaning.
02 / MAP
Read the Sentence
Read from left to right and notice the job performed by each part. The labels describe this example; they are not a rule that every Chinese sentence must copy.
同学们首先读了一遍课文，然后回答问题。
The students first read the text and then answered questions.
同学
首先
This part occupies the 首先 position in the model pattern.
们
Clause 1，然后
This part occupies the Clause 1，然后 position in the model pattern.
首先
Clause 2
This part occupies the Clause 2 position in the model pattern.
读了
首先
This part occupies the 首先 position in the model pattern.
一遍
Clause 1，然后
This part occupies the Clause 1，然后 position in the model pattern.
课文
Clause 2
This part occupies the Clause 2 position in the model pattern.
，
首先
This part occupies the 首先 position in the model pattern.
然后
Clause 1，然后
This part occupies the Clause 1，然后 position in the model pattern.
回答
Clause 2
This part occupies the Clause 2 position in the model pattern.
问题
首先
This part occupies the 首先 position in the model pattern.
03 / EXAMPLES
Examples You Can Reuse
Keep the structure stable while changing the people, objects, times, or conditions. Pinyin is shown as reading support; use the Chinese sentence and translation to confirm the grammar relationship.
同学们首先读了一遍课文，然后回答问题。
The students first read the text and then answered questions.
我们首先找到方法，然后每天练习。
We first find a method and then practise every day.
首先洗菜，然后切菜。
First wash the vegetables, then cut them.
他首先介绍计划，然后回答大家的问题。
He first introduced the plan and then answered questions.
04 / LIMITS
When to Use It — and When Not To
Use it when
- Explain a process in chronological order.
- Give instructions with clear first and next steps.
- Organize a narrative or presentation.
Do not use it when
- Do not use it when the two clauses are simultaneous.
- Do not reverse the actual or intended order.
- Do not treat 然后 as a cause marker.
05 / REPAIR
Compare Right and Wrong
Compare the smallest meaningful change. Each explanation identifies a placement, scope, form, or clause relationship instead of treating the whole sentence as one undifferentiated mistake.
然后洗菜，首先切菜。
首先洗菜，然后切菜。
The order marker is reversed
首先 must introduce the first step and 然后 the following step.
他首先边听音乐，然后边做作业。
他一边听音乐，一边做作业。
Simultaneous actions are forced into a sequence
一边……一边…… is the appropriate frame for simultaneous activities.
然后洗菜，首先切菜。
首先 must introduce the first step and 然后 the following step.
他首先边听音乐，然后边做作业。
一边……一边…… is the appropriate frame for simultaneous activities.
06 / PRACTICE
Practice the Grammar Point
Complete three short tasks in order: judge the pattern, repair a common error, and build the sentence. Feedback is fixed and reviewed, so these activities do not use a checker allowance.
1. Judge the sentence
2. Choose the correction
3. Build the sentence
Build a complete sentence with 首先……，然后…….
07 / APPLY
Apply It in Your Sentence
Write one original sentence with 首先……，然后……. Your draft moves to the checker through this browser session, selects this grammar point as the first review focus, and waits for you to submit.
08 / QUESTIONS
首先……然后…… Ordered Steps Questions
Can there be more than two steps?
Yes. 首先 can be followed by 接着、然后、最后 to organize a longer process. Each marker should match the intended order.
Does 首先……然后…… require a subject in both clauses?
No. The subject can be omitted when it remains the same and easy to recover from context.
09 / SOURCES
Sources and Review Notes
These references support different parts of the lesson. GF0025-2021 supports level placement only; professional grammar works support the explanation, limits, examples, and cross-checks. Their inclusion does not imply endorsement.
Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language Education (GF0025-2021)
Ministry of Education and State Language Commission · Ministry of Education of the PRC · 2021
Locator: Appendix A, Level 3 item 【三64】, PDF p. 208 (printed p. 202)
Lists 首先……然后…… and gives reading-then-answering and method-then-practice examples.
Official source现代汉语语法课程讲义
包头师范学院 · 包头师范学院 · 2024
Locator: Sequential and connective sentence groups, pp. 59–60
Explains explicit temporal ordering between clauses and the use of sequence markers in Chinese discourse.
Official source10 / CONTINUE
Continue with a Connected Rule
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连动句1：动作先后Serial Verbs for Sequential Actions
Continue from ordered verb phrases to explicit 首先……然后…… discourse sequencing.
Compare
一旦…就…一旦...就... (yídàn...jiù)
Contrast ordered steps with the immediate conditional relation 一旦……就…….
Easy to confuse
先……再/然后……先...再/然后...: Sequencing Actions
Compare 首先……然后…… with the shorter temporal sequence markers 先……再…….
Compare
以便…以便: So That / In Order To
Separate ordered stages from simultaneous activity marked by 一边……一边…….
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Continue from ordered verb phrases to explicit 首先……然后…… discourse sequencing.