Level 3 · Intermediate
First … then: 先…然后/再…
Subj. + 先 + Verb A，然后 / 再 + Verb B · Traditional: Subj. + 先 + Verb A，然後 / 再 + Verb B
To line actions up in order, put 先 (xiān, "first") before the first verb and open the next step with 然后 ("then") or 再: 我先做作业，然后吃饭 "first I do homework, then I eat". You can keep chaining: 先…然后…再….
Watch the position of 先: it's an adverb, so it goes AFTER the subject and before the verb — 我先做作业, never 先我做作业. For a not-yet-done sequence, 再 is the natural second step: 你先休息一下，再工作吧.
Examples
我先做作业，然后吃饭。
我先做作業，然後吃飯。
wǒ xiān zuò zuò yè rán hòu chī fàn
First I do my homework, then I eat.
我们先去买东西，然后去看电影。
我們先去買東西，然後去看電影。
wǒ men xiān qù mǎi dōng xi rán hòu qù kàn diàn yǐng
First we'll go shopping, then we'll go see a movie.
你先休息一下，再工作吧。
nǐ xiān xiū xi yī xià zài gōng zuò ba
Rest a bit first, then work.
他每天先运动，然后洗澡。
他每天先運動，然後洗澡。
tā měi tiān xiān yùn dòng rán hòu xǐ zǎo
Every day he exercises first, then showers.
Common mistakes
✗ 先我做作业，然后吃饭。
✓ 我先做作业，然后吃饭。
先 is an adverb — it goes after the subject, right before the verb.
Related grammar points
See it in a story
Read this pattern in context: Making dinner — free graded stories with tap-to-reveal pinyin and translations.
