This has been saved from the original site. Thanks Kaibo
Something I started years ago but it got lost. I might learn some Chinese finally
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Common words and expressions.a word for measurements - zhāng
zhāng is a word for measurements that applies to paper and tickets. It is used together with a number, eg. yī zhāng piào, one ticket, liǎng zhāng piào, two tickets.
a word used when giving measurements - gè
This is the most commonly used word when giving measurements. It goes between a number and a noun. For example, sān gè mángguǒ, three mangos.
At the end of the street - zhè tiáo jiē dào tóu
at/in - zài
Zài means 'at/in' and goes before the noun. So the sentence Wǒ zài gōngsī gōngzuò literally means 'I in a company work'.
can - huì
Huì means 'can' and goes in front of a verb. If you want to ask 'Can you speak English?', say Nǐ huì shuō Yīngwén ma? If someone asks you Nǐ huì shuō Zhōngwén ma?, Do you speak Chinese?, and you want to say 'Yes', simply say huì, 'can'. Please note that the Chinese phrases for 'yes', shì de, and 'no', bù shì, are not frequently used when answering questions.
Can I walk there? - bù xíng kě yǐ ma?
Can we eat? - kě yǐ chī ma?
Can we have breakfast? - kě yǐ chī zǎofān ma?
Can you repeat that? - nín néng zài shuō yī biàn ma?
car, bus, taxi, bike, or train - chē
In Chinese, anything with wheels is called chē. For example, qìchē, vehicle, gōnggòng qìchē, public bus, chūzūchē, taxi, zìxíngchē, bicycle, huǒchē, train. All the above words can be shortened to chē. Therefore, depending on the context, chē can mean a car, bus, taxi, bike, or train.
common speech - Putonghua
Pǔtōnghuà, literally 'common speech', is the standard form of the Chinese language and is known as Mandarin Chinese. It is based on the Northern dialect. Putonghua is taught in schools and spoken by TV and radio presenters in China. The Northern dialect has many sub-divisions which are spoken by the majority of the population. The differences between northern sub-divisions are not huge, but the differences between southern dialects are enormous. The major southern dialects are Cantonese, Shanghai dialect, Fujian dialect and Zhejiang dialect. All these dialects share the same script.
Could you write it down? - nín néng xiě xià lái ma?
Do you accept credit cards? - nǐ mén shōu xìn yòng kǎ ma?
Do you have ...?' or 'Is there ... ? - Yǒu ... ma?
When you want to ask 'Do you have ... ?' or 'Is there ... ?' simply use the construction yǒu ... ma? To ask for rooms in a hotel say Yǒu fángjiān ma? The answer could be yǒu, we have, or méi yǒu, we haven't. Please note that the Chinese phrases for 'yes', shì de, and 'no', bù shì, are not frequently used when answering questions.
Do you speak English? - nín huì shuō yīng yǔ ma?
Does anyone speak english? - yǒu rén huì shuō yīng yǔ ma?
Don't / No / - bù
This is a very important negative word which you can place in front of the word (usually a verb). For example, wǒ bù chī yú means 'I don't eat fish'. Wǒ bù shuō Zhōngwén means 'I don't speak Chinese'.
Don't be polite or Don't mention it - bù kèqì
Kèqì means 'polite'. Bù kèqì literally 'do not be polite', is the response to xièxie, thank you.
Don't want or No - Bu Yao.
This is the best term to use for touts - street hawkers who approach you at every tourist stop to ask you to buy things. Bu Yao....will stop them in their track.
Excuse Me - Jie Guo
There is always a crowd in touristy areas. There are so many Chinese who wants to see the same monuments too. Rather than push your way through the crowd, using the term Jie Guo may just open the path ahead for you!
Fine, and you? - hǎo, nǐ ne?
flower tea - huā chá
Literally, huā chá means 'flower tea'. Because Jasmine tea is the most famous flower-scented tea, many people use the term huā chá to refer to Jasmine tea.
For dessert - tián diǎn shì
Good Bye or See You Again - zài jiàn
Well, I guess this is another term that will be easily understood even if the English word is used.
Good evening - wǎn shàng hǎo
Good morning - zǎo shàng hǎo
has already happened - le
To indicate that something has already happened you can add le after the verb or at the end of the sentence. For example, wǒ jiéhūn le, I'm already married.
have not, did not - méi
This is a negation word and means 'have not, did not'. It goes before the verb it's making negative, eg. wǒ méi jiéhūn, I 'have not' been married.
Have you any vegetarian dishes? - wǒ chī sù yǒu sù cài ma?
Hello - nǐ hǎo
here - zhè lǐ
How are You? - Ni Hao Ma
Also commonly shorten to Ni Hao. This is likely to be the first Chinese words that you will ever need to learn. Useful as a greeting or a ice-breaker. Suitable for use with all ages and professions. Remember to use the Chinese phrase, Ni Hao, whenever you meet a Chinese friend or neighbour.
How do I get to ..? - wǒ zěn me néng dào ..?
how much money? - Duō shǎo qián?
Literally, it means 'how much money?' If you want to be specific, for example, to find out how much yī jīn pútao, half a kilo of grapes, costs, you can put the phrase for 'half a kilo of grapes' either at the beginning or at the end of the questions: Yī jīn pútao duō shǎo qián? or Duō shǎo qián yī jīn pútao?, lit. how much is it for half a kilo of grapes?
I can use chopsticks - wǒ huì yòng kuài zǐ
I can't use chopsticks - wǒ bù huì yòng kuài zǐ
I don´t understand what you are saying... - wǒ tīng bù dǒng
I don´t understand what you are talking about... - wǒ bù zhí dào
I don't eat meat - wǒ bù chī ròu
I don't speak Chinese - wǒ bù huì shuō hàn yǔ
I don't want - Wo Bu Yao.
Useful when refusing a tout or when offered a drink too many at the Dinner table.
I or me/ my - wǒ/wǒde
By adding de to wǒ, I/me, and nǐ, you, you get words such as wǒde, my, and nǐde, your. If the word following wǒde is a person, not an object, de can be dropped. For example, you can say wǒ nǚ'ér, my daughter, but not wǒ shū, my book. It has to be wǒde shū.
I want to buy .. - wǒ xiǎng mǎi ..
I would like to try this on - wǒ xiǎng shì chuān zhè gè
I'd like a refund - wǒ xiǎng tuì huò
I'll have .. - wǒ xiǎng yào
I'm a New Zealander - wǒ shì xīn xī lán rén
I'm American - wǒ shì měi guó rén
I'm Australian - wǒ shì ào dà lì yà rén
I'm Canadian - wǒ shì jiā ná dà rén
I'm Chinese - wǒ shì zhōng guó rén
I'm English - wǒ shì yīng guó rén
I'm Irish - wǒ shì ài ěr lán rén
I'm just looking - wo suí biàn kàn kàn
I'm Scottish - wǒ shì sū gé lán rén
I'm Welsh - wǒ shì wēi ěr shì rén
Is it far? - yuǎn ma?
Is it going to rain? - yào xià yǔ le ma?
Is there a .. nearby? - fù jìn yǒu ..ma?
It is delicious, but I'm full! - hěn hǎo chī, dàn wǒ chī bǎo le
It's cold - hěn lěng
It's freezing - dòng sǐ le
It's hot - hěn rè
It's rainy - xià yǔ
It's too expensive - tai guì le
It's windy - guā fēng
My name is .. - wǒ de míng zì jiào ..
No - bù shì
No Good - Bu Hao.
This is useful when there is a need to comment on a shoddy or incomplete job or task. Can also be used as a reply to Ni Hao Ma? but may not be such a good reply. Ni Hao Ma? (How are you?) Bu Hao (No Good)
On the left hand side - zài zuǒ shǒu biān
On the right hand side - zài yòu shǒu biān
Pardon or what? - shénme
Question words such as 'what' and 'where' don't have to begin the sentence. Eg Nǐjiào shénme? What is your name? (lit. you are called what?) or Nǐxìng shénme? What's your surname? (lit. you are surnamed what?)
person or people - rén
Rén means 'person' or 'people'. If you add rén to the name of a country or city, you form the word for the citizen of that country or the resident of that city. For example, add rén to Yīngguó, Britain, Zhōngguó, China and Běijīng, Beijing, and you get Yīngguórén, British, and Zhōngguórén, Chinese and Běijīngrén, Beijinger.
Please - qǐng
please ask or May I ask or Excuse me - qǐng wèn
Literally it means 'please ask', but really it's a polite way of asking a question. It's equivalent to 'Excuse me' or 'May I ask ... ?'
Please bring - Qǐng lái ...
A way of ordering in a tea house or restaurant is by saying Qǐng lái ..., Please bring. Please note that the word qǐng, please, is not used as frequently as in English. It never comes at the end of a sentence.
Please can I have a fork - qǐng gěi wǒ yī gè chā zǐ
Please can I have a knife - qǐng gěi wǒ yī bǎ cān dāo
Please can I have a spoon - qǐng gěi wǒ yī gè sháo zǐ
Please speak more slowly - qǐng nín màn diǎn shuō
Pleased to meet you - hěn gāo xīng rèn shí nǐ
question - ma
This word indicates a question. By adding ma to the end of a sentence, you turn it into a question, eg. Nǐ jiéhūn le ma?, are you married? Ma is a neutral tone. It means that it does not carry a tone.
Receipt - Fa Piao
Always ask for the receipt or Fa Piao at the shops or from a taxi. This may be useful if you need to complain about a fraud or shoddy product. Also useful if you leave behind your bag or camera in the taxi.
Romanization of Chinese characters - Pinyin
Chinese characters give no indication of how they are pronounced. A Romanization system called Pinyin was therefore devised in 1958 in China, and has since been adopted as a standard form to represent Chinese sounds
Sorry - duì bù qǐ
Straight on - zhí zǒu
Taxi - De Shi
De Shi is the correct term but you should be understood even if you use the English word for Taxi. They sound alike anyway.
Thank You - Xie Xie
Another polite term that is easy to remember and use.
That was delicious - nà gè zhēn hǎo chī
That's all, thanks - jiù zhè xiē,xiè xiè
That's enough, thanks - zhè zú gòu le, xiè xiè
The menu, please - qǐng gěi wǒ kàn cài dān
The weather is good - tiānqi hěn hǎo
there - nà lǐ
This is .. - zhè shì
This is beautiful . - Hen Piao Liang
Use this phrase to praise something that is nice or beautiful. May also be used when meeting a pretty girl too!
This is Mr Smith - zhè shì shǐ mì sī xiān shēng
This is Mrs Smith - zhè shì shǐ mì sī tai tai
This is my daughter - zhè shì wǒ nǚ ér
This is my husband - zhè shì wǒ xiān shēng
This is my son - zhè shì wǒ ér zǐ
This is my wife - zhè shì wǒ qīzi
this/ that - zhè/zhèi, nà/nèi
When shopping in China and you're a little unsure of the language you can always use the common trick of pointing and saying 'this' or 'that'. The word for 'this' can be pronounced zhè or zhèi. The word for 'that' can be pronounced nà or nèi. Both are commonly used. Ni Hao Ma? (How are you?)Ni Hao Ma? (How are you?)
to be - shì
This verb means 'to be'. Chinese verbs do not change their forms whether it is after wǒ, I, nǐ, you or tā, he/she. For example: Wǒ shì Zhōngguórén, I am Chinese, nǐ shì Zhōngguórén, you are Chinese, and tā shì Zhōngguórén, he/she is Chinese.
toward right turn - wǎng yòu guǎi
Literally it means 'toward right turn', turn right. When someone is giving you directions, watch out of the word wǎng, toward. The next word is important. For example, you may hear wǎng dōng guǎi, turn east or wǎng yòu guǎi, turn
Turn to the left - wǎng zuǒ guǎi
two - èr/liǎng
èr and liǎng both mean 'two'. èr is used for counting, while liǎng is used to quantify things such as liǎng gè mángguǒ, two mangos.
Very Expensive - Hen Gui.
When bargaining at the shops, this is the best term to use when driving a hard bargain.
Very Good - Hen Hao.
This is useful when giving praise for a job or task well done. Also useful as a reply to anyone who says "Ni Hao Ma?' to you. Hen Hao (Very Good)
What does .. mean? - ... shì shenme yisi?
What is it called in Chinese? - zhè gè yòng zhōng wén zěn me shuō?
What is your name? - nǐ jiào shén me míng zì?
What's the weather like? - tiān qì zěn me yàng?
Where is ..? - ... zài nǎr?
Where is the railway station? - huǒchē zhàn zài nǎr?
Will you change it? - nín néng gěi huàn huò ma?
Yes - shì de
you/ I or 'me' - nǐ/wǒ
nǐ means 'you' in its singular form and wǒ can mean 'I' or 'me'.
