Chinese script in Chinatown, Singapore

Chinese script used altogether with Latin and Javanese script by Chinese Indonesians in Yogyakarta

This article is about Standard Mandarin Chinese. For Cantonese Chinese (official language in Hong Kong and Macau), see Cantonese phrasebook

Phrasebooks for other varieties of Chinese are listed at China#Talk.

Mandarin Chinese is the official language of mainland China, and one of the official languages of Taiwan and Singapore. Chinese is also one of the official languages in Hong Kong and Macau, although most local people speak Cantonese instead of Mandarin. In English, it is often just called "Mandarin" or "Chinese". While not an official language, it is also widely studied and spoken by the Chinese minorities in Malaysia, Brunei and Myanmar, and commonly heard in Chinatowns throughout the world. In China, it is called Pǔtōnghuà (普通ふつう话), meaning "common speech", while in Taiwan it is referred to as Guóyǔ (國語こくご), "the national language." In Indonesia, it is widely known as Zhōnghuáyǔ (中ちゅう华语), and in Singapore and Malaysia, it simply referred to as Huáyǔ (华语). It has been the main language of education in mainland China and Taiwan since the 1950s, so most non-elderly locals speak it regardless of what their native language or dialect is.

While the spoken Mandarin in the above places is more or less the same, the written characters are different. Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau all still use traditional characters, whereas Mainland China and Singapore use a simplified derivative. In Indonesia, the older Chinese generations tend to use the traditional characters, but younger generations tend to use the simplified one, though most of the time, the usage of Latin script is way more commonly practiced.

Understand

Map of Chinese Languages

China is host to a wide variety of related languages (often referred to as dialects), of which Standard Mandarin is just one. Within the Chinese language family, there are 7-10 major branches, each of which contain their own varieties of languages. Languages from different branches (such as Mandarin and Cantonese) are completely mutually unintelligible, whereas languages within the same branch (such as Standard Mandarin and Sichuanese) may have limited mutual intelligibility.

Despite the wide variance in Chinese languages, all speakers normally write the same standard form (using either traditional or simplified characters). This is possible because the Chinese writing system is logographic, meaning individual characters represent ideas as opposed to phonetic sounds. What this means is that one character that would be pronounced completely differently in any number of Chinese languages will be written identically and understood to mean the same thing. Therefore speakers of different Chinese languages who are completely unable to understand each others' speech can effectively communicate via writing. The challenge with a logographic writing system, however, is the huge number of characters required to adequately represent different words: the average Chinese dictionary indexes around 20,000 characters, with an educated Chinese person likely knowing around 8,000, while a typical newspaper requires the reader to know at least 3,000 characters.

A (related) tale from Chinese Wikipedia In the early days of Chinese Wikipedia, radical supporters of both traditional and simplified Chinese characters vandalized the site by converting the opposing writing system into their favored one. The problem was essentially resolved by creating an automatic translator that converts between traditional and Chinese characters (including vocabulary differences between multiple regions), allowing users to read and edit an article in whichever variety they wish. It's not a perfect system, as there are about 100 characters that don't have a one-to-one mapping, and tens of thousands of words that need to be translated differently depending on context. And there are still issues that can't be fixed with software, such as writing from a neutral global point of view. But it broadly succeeded at solving the vandalism problem, consolidated Chinese Wikipedia into a single version rather than separate ones for China and Taiwan, and paved the way for automatic translators for other languages that can be written in multiple scripts.

Following the establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC), formal simplifications were made to a large number of common characters in order to reduce the number of strokes required to write them, with the aim of increasing literacy. This has led to two current standards for Chinese writing: Simplified and Traditional characters. Simplified characters are the standard for Singapore and mainland China, whereas Traditional characters are retained as the standard in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. The use of traditional or simplified characters can have controversial political connotations, particularly in Hong Kong. Traditional characters are generally preferred in calligraphy, even in mainland China, due to their superior aesthetic value.

About one fifth of the world's population speak some form of Chinese as their native language. It is a tonal language that is related to Burmese and Tibetan. In addition, the Dungan language, which is spoken in some parts of the former Soviet Union, is considered to be a variant of Mandarin but uses the Cyrillic alphabet instead of Chinese characters.

The writing system is used by other countries as well, although the languages are not related. The Korean writing system historically used Chinese characters, but completely abandoned them in favor of their own 'Hangul' system since the 1950s. South Koreans still learn the basics of Chinese characters, and some basic Chinese characters are still occasionally used and widely understood; Japanese uses a mixed writing system comprising of Chinese characters and its own 'kana' system, although over time the meaning of some characters has diverged significantly from those used in Chinese: see this Wiktionary page for a list of similar words with different meanings in Chinese and Japanese language. The Vietnamese language (which uses a distinctive version of the Latin alphabet) has borrowed many words from Chinese, and prior to the French colonisation used Chinese and Chinese-like characters as well.

Standard Mandarin is based on the Mandarin dialect of the Beijing area, and is almost universally understood and spoken (in conjunction with local languages) across mainland China and Taiwan as a result of being the primary language of education and the media. Travelers headed to the special administrative regions (SARs) of Hong Kong or Macau will largely encounter native Cantonese speakers. Mandarin is largely understood in the SARs, though speaking ability varies widely, and in Hong Kong, the use of Mandarin is a touchy political issue. Those heading for Taiwan or South Fujian may find the Minnan dialect useful as well.

Difficulties

In the West, Chinese has a reputation for difficulty. In fact, its difficulty to learn once led to calls to replace Chinese characters and grammar with Latin script and English grammar during the 1920s by some intellectuals and writers. These opinions eventually died out, but they certainly influenced the ruling communist party's policy on simplified Chinese characters.

The language is more dense than European languages, meaning considerably more can be said in a text message with the same number of characters. Each character corresponds to a syllable, and each syllable can have multiple meanings depending on the tone with which it is pronounced. Compared to, say, Japanese or Korean, Chinese contains many fewer loan words from European languages such as English, meaning that more effort will have to be made to acquire vocabulary. The grammar, however, may strike a Westerner as pretty simple. Verbs and adjectives are static regardless of subject and whether they are referring to the past, present or future. Nouns do not have genders like most European languages, and there is no separate form for plurals. The main difficulties are the five tones, numerous consonants that are not found in European languages, and the numerous characters.

Mandarin, like Vietnamese and Thai, is a tonal language that uses different pitches in syllables and words to indicate different meanings. "Ma" could mean mother, horse, numb, or blame, depending on the tone. Homophones are also common; the same sound at the same pitch can have dozens of meanings. "Zhōng" ("Zhong" with the 1st tone) can mean China/central/centre (中なか), loyalty (忠ただし), clock (钟), chime (钟), finish (终), a bowl (盅), etc. All of them come with different Chinese characters, just the same sound at the same pitch. While homophones are rarely a problem in most everyday conversations, it is common for Chinese to ask how to write someone's name by identifying the characters one by one. "My name is Wang Fei (王菲うぉんふぇい). Wang is the "wang" with four strokes, Fei is the "fei" in "shifei" (gossip), with a grass on top."

Written Chinese looks like a mysterious secret code to some, but if you can recognize so many commercial logos (usually not logically related), you will be impressed with your capacity to memorize so many characters - most of which are logically related and formed based on certain rules.

There are, in theory, more than 50,000 Chinese characters. The good news is that more than 85% have become obsolete, or are rarely used. Like native speakers of many languages, most Chinese couldn't tell you how many characters are required to read a book and never bother to count how many characters they know. One may argue that junior students are supposed to learn at least 2000 characters and university graduates 5000 characters.

Pronunciation guide

A calligraphy brush for visitors to historic Tainan

To bridge the gap between recognizing characters and reading out loud, Hanyu pinyin was developed, which uses Latin script as an aid to teaching Chinese. Pronouncing pinyin is not intuitive as certain letters and consonant clusters are used to represent sounds not present in European languages and are thus not pronounced as an English speaker would expect. Nonetheless, learning pinyin at even a basic level has enormous practical value for the traveller. Written pinyin is less useful as most Chinese will not recognize place names or addresses in pinyin, and the same pinyin can be shared by different Chinese characters; it is always better to use characters for written communication.

The pronunciation guide below uses Hanyu pinyin, which is the official romanization of the People's Republic of China and Taiwan. Mainland China uses Hanyu pinyin almost universally, though a few older transliterations remain in names like Tsingtao Beer and Peking University. Taiwan used to use the Wade-Giles system, which is quite different, then in 2002 switched to Tongyong pinyin, only slightly different from Hanyu pinyin, and since 2009 uses Hanyu pinyin just like the People's Republic. However, many older transliterations remain in use in Taiwan, and you may well encounter multiple spellings of the same name (like Tamsui, Tamshui, and Danshui for the town in New Taipei).

Pinyin allows very accurate pronunciation of Mandarin for those who understand it, although the way that it uses letters like q, x, c, z and even i is not at all intuitive to the English speaker since some of these sounds do not exist in English or many other languages. Thus, studying the pronunciation guide below carefully is essential. After you master the pronunciation you will need to move on to the next challenge: using accurate tones whilst speaking.

Some pinyin vowels (especially "e", "i", "ü") can be tricky, so it is best to get a native speaker to demonstrate. Also, beware of the spelling rules listed in the exceptions below.

a

as in father; otherwise

a in ian and yan

as "e" in "bet" or "text" (just the English short "e" sound)

e

unrounded back vowel (IPA [ɤ]), similar to duh; in unstressed syllables, a schwa (IPA [ə]), like idea

i

as in see or key;
after ch, sh, zh, c, s, z or r, not really a vowel at all but just a stretched-out consonant sound

o

as in more
after b, p, m, or f, as in war

u

as in soon; but read ü in ju, qu, yu and xu

ü

as in French lune or German grün; pronounced like "ee" but with rounded lips

Vowel combinations

These are the most important vowel combinations in Chinese:

ai

as in pie

ao

as in pouch

ei

as in pay

ia

as in ya

ia in ian (but not iang)

as in 'yes

iao

as in meow

ie

as in yes

iong

as in Pyongyang

iu

as in yodel

ou

as in mow

ua

as in want

uo

as in war

Consonants

Chinese stops distinguish between aspirated and unaspirated, not unvoiced and voiced as in English, and Chinese lacks voiced stops. Aspirated sounds are pronounced with a distinctive puff of air as they are pronounced in English when at the beginning of a word, while unaspirated sounds are pronounced without the puff, as in English when found in clusters.

Place a hand in front of your mouth and compare pit (aspirated) with spit (unaspirated) to see the difference. Note that the list below only gives approximate pronunciations, as many of these consonants have no equivalent in English. As Mandarin does not have voiced stops or affricates, all the consonants listed in the "unaspirated" column should be pronounced unvoiced.

	Unaspirated		Aspirated
b	as in spot	p	as in pit
d	as in stop	t	as in tongue
g	as in skin	k	as in king
j	as in itchy	q	as in cheap
zh	as in jungle	ch	as in chore
z	as in pizza	c	as in rats

Here are the other consonants in Chinese:

m

as in mow

f

as in fun

n

as in none or none

l

as in lease

h

a throaty h sound as in as in Scottish loch/Spanish jefe (IPA: [x])

x

as in sheep, but softer than sh

sh

as in shoot

r

as in fair

s

as in sag

ng

as in sing

w

as in wing but silent in wu. Before a, ai, ang, eng, and/or o

y

as in yet but silent in yi, yu

If you think that is a fairly intimidating repertoire, rest assured that many Chinese people, particularly those who are not native Mandarin speakers, will merge many of the sounds above (especially c with ch and z with zh). Other sounds that you may hear merged, depending on the region, include s with sh, f with h, l with n, l with r, i with ü, and n with ng. These are particularly common in southern China, Taiwan and overseas Chinese communities.

Exceptions

There are a fairly large number of niggling exceptions to the basic rules above, based on the position of the sound:

wu-

as u-, so 五ご百ひゃく (五ご百ひゃく) wubai is pronounced "ubai"

yi-

as i-, so 一いち个 (一いち個こ) yige is pronounced "ige"

yu-

as ü-, so 豫よ园 (豫よ園えん) Yuyuan is pronounced "ü-üan"

Tones

How do I put my tone marks? If you are confused by how to put tone marks above the Hanyu Pinyin, follow the steps below: Always insert tone marks above the vowels. If there is more than one vowel letter, follow the steps below: (1) Insert it above the 'a' if that letter is present. For example, it is rǎo and not raǒ (2) If not, insert it above 'o'. For example, guó and not gúo (3) Insert it above the letter 'e' if the letters 'a' and 'o' are not present. For example, jué and not júe (4) If only 'i', 'u' and 'ü' are the only present letters, insert it in the letter that occurs last. For example, jiù and not jìu, chuí and not chúi. Note, if the vowel present is ü, the tone mark is put in addition to the umlaut. For example, lǜ

There are five tones in Mandarin that must be followed for proper pronunciation. Never underestimate the importance of these tones. Consider a vowel with a different tone as simply a different vowel altogether, and you will realize why Chinese will not understand you if you use the wrong tone — mǎ is to mā as "I want a cake" is to "I want a coke". Be especially wary of questions that have a falling tone, or conversely exclamations that have an "asking" tone (eg jǐngchá, police). In other words, pronounced like does not imply meaning. While Mandarin speakers also vary their tone just like English speakers do to differentiate a statement from a question and convey emotion, it is much more subtle. Do not try it until you have mastered the basic tones.

1. first tone ( ā )

"high tone": flat, high pitch that is more sung instead of spoken.

2. second tone ( á )

"rising tone": low to middle, rising pitch that is pronounced like the end of a question phrase (Whát?).

3. third tone ( ǎ )

"low tone" or "falling-rising": mid-low to low. For two consecutive syllables in the third tone, the first syllable is pronounced as if it is in the second tone. For example, 打だ扰 dǎrǎo is pronounced as dárǎo. (When stressed, the third tone is sometimes pronounced mid-low to low to high, dipping pitch.)

4. fourth tone ( à )

"falling tone": high to low, rapidly falling pitch that is pronounced like a command (Stop!).

5. neutral tone ( a )

"toneless": short, unstressed syllable; rarely used by itself (except for phrase particles) but frequently occurs as the second part of a phrase.

Regional differences

A phrase spoken a Chinese

While standard Mandarin in mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong/Macau is fundamentally similar, and speakers from these regions can generally communicate with each other with no major issues, there are several terms which differ. These differences mainly stem from stronger influences from southern Chinese dialects and Japanese in Taiwanese Mandarin, as well as differing translations for some post-1949 modern concepts.

These differences are generally understandable to Chinese speakers from different places, if not serving as a hint of the speaker's background. Some Taiwanese and Hongkongers shun mainland Chinese words and view them as attempts at cultural assimilation. This is particularly true for translations in arts and entertainment.

The following is a list of some common terms that differ among different areas.

English	Mainland China	Taiwan	Hong Kong	Macau	Singapore	Indonesia	Notes
taxi	出で租车 (出で租車) chū zū chē	计程车 (計けい程ほど車しゃ) jì chéng chē	的まと士し (的まと士し)	的まと士し (的まと士し)	德とく士し (德とく士し) dé shì	捡起车 jiǎn qǐ chē
metro / subway	地ち铁 (地ち鐵てつ) dì tiě	捷とし运 (捷とし運うん) jié yùn	地ち铁/港みなと铁 (地ち鐵てつ/港みなと鐵てつ)	地ち铁 (地ち鐵てつ)	地ち铁 (地ち鐵てつ) dì tiě		港みなと铁 (港みなと鐵てつ) unambiguously refers to Hong Kong's Mass Transit Railway.
light rail	轻轨 (輕けい軌) qīng guǐ	轻轨 (輕けい軌) qīng guǐ	轻铁 (輕けい鐵てつ)	轻轨 (輕けい軌)	轻轨 (輕けい軌) qīng guǐ
bicycle	自じ行くだり车 (自じ行くだり車しゃ) zì xíng chē	脚あし踏车 (腳踏車しゃ) jiǎo tà chē	单车 (單車たんしゃ)	单车 (單車たんしゃ)	脚あし踏车 (腳踏車しゃ) jiǎo tà chē / 脚あし车 (腳車) jiǎo chē	桨车 jiăng chē
air conditioning	空そら调 (空調くうちょう) kōng tiáo	冷ひや气 (冷氣れいき) lěng qì	冷ひや气 (冷氣れいき)	冷ひや气 (冷氣れいき)	冷ひや气 (冷氣れいき) lěng qì	空そら温ぬる kōng wēn
potato	土ど豆まめ (土ど豆まめ) tǔ dòu	马铃薯いも (馬鈴薯じゃがいも) mǎ líng shǔ	薯いも仔こ (薯いも仔こ)	薯いも仔こ (薯いも仔こ)	马铃薯いも (馬鈴薯じゃがいも) mǎ líng shǔ	荷に兰红薯いも hé lán hóng shǔ	土ど豆まめ (土ど豆まめ) refers to peanuts in Taiwan
pineapple	菠萝 (菠蘿) bō luó	凤梨 (鳳おおとり梨なし) fèng lí	菠萝 (菠蘿)	菠萝 (菠蘿)	黄き梨なし (黃き梨なし) huáng lí
boxed meal	盒饭 (盒飯) hé fàn	便びん当とう (便びん當とう) biàn dāng	饭盒 (飯盒はんごう)	饭盒 (飯盒はんごう)	便びん当とう (便びん當とう) biàn dāng / 饭盒 (飯盒はんごう) fàn hé	便びん当とう盒 biàn dang hé
text message / SMS	短信たんしん (短信たんしん) duǎn xìn	简讯 (簡訊) jiǎn xùn	短たん讯 (短たん訊)	短たん讯 (短たん訊)	简讯 (簡訊) jiǎn xùn
spoon	勺しゃく子こ (勺しゃく子こ) sháo zi	汤匙 (湯ゆ匙さじ) tāng chí	匙さじ羹あつもの (匙さじ羹あつもの)	匙さじ羹あつもの (匙さじ羹あつもの)	汤匙 (湯ゆ匙さじ) tāng chí	勺しゃく sháo

Also note that while the term 小しょう姐あね (小しょう姐あね) xiǎo jiě is often used to address young women and waitresses in Taiwan (and in Singapore and Malaysia), it is a euphemism for "prostitute" in mainland China, and thus would be considered an insult. In mainland China, the corresponding word for addressing a young woman would be 女おんな士し (女おんな士し) nǚ shì (which can be used for women of all ages), while the word for addressing a waitress would be 服ふく务员 (服務ふくむ員いん) fú wù yuán (which is used for waitstaff of both sexes).

Another term that can cause confusion is 冲凉 (沖おき涼すずか) chōng liáng, which means "to take a cold shower" in China, but refers to taking any kind of shower in Malaysia and Singapore. Similarly 做工 (做工) zuò gōng means "to work", but it refers specifically to doing manual labour in mainland China and Taiwan, while it refers to doing any kind of work in Malaysia and Singapore.

The Chinese names for several countries and locations also differ between Mainland China and Taiwan, as shown in the table below. Hong Kong uses a blend of Mainland Chinese and Taiwanese names, plus indigenous place names (especially for UK place names) derived from Cantonese.

Country/Location	Mainland China	Taiwan	Hong Kong	notes
Australia	澳大利おおとし亚 (澳大利おおとし亞あ) Ào dà lì yà	澳洲 (澳洲) Ào zhōu	澳洲 (澳洲)
Bangladesh	孟はじめ加か拉ひしげ国こく (孟はじめ加か拉ひしげ國こく) Mèng jiā lā Guó	孟はじめ加か拉ひしげ (孟はじめ加か拉ひしげ) Mèng jiā lā	孟はじめ加か拉ひしげ (孟はじめ加か拉ひしげ)	In Mainland China, 孟はじめ加か拉ひしげ (孟はじめ加か拉ひしげ) refers to the entire Bengal region covering Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal. In Hong Kong may also be a slang for idiot/fool, depending on the context.
Georgia (European country)	格かく鲁吉亚 (格かく魯吉亞あ) Gé lǔ jí yà	乔治亚 (喬たかし治おさむ亞あ) Qiáo zhì yà	格かく鲁吉亚 (格かく魯吉亞あ)
Laos	老ろう挝 (老ろう撾) Lǎo wō	寮りょう国こく (寮りょう國こく) Liáo guó	老ろう挝 (老ろう撾)
New Zealand	新西しんにし兰 (新西しんにし蘭らん) Xīn xī lán	纽西兰 (紐ひも西にし蘭らん) Niǔ xī lán	新西しんにし兰 (新西しんにし蘭らん)
North Korea	(北きた)朝ちょう鲜 ((北きた)朝鮮ちょうせん) Cháo xiǎn	北きた韩 (北韓ほっかん) Běi hán	北きた韩 (北韓ほっかん)	The Korean peninsula is always referred as 朝あさ鲜半岛 (朝鮮半島ちょうせんはんとう) regardless of location, except in South Korean official statements where it is referred as 韩半岛 (韓かん半島はんとう).
Qatar	卡塔尔 (卡塔爾なんじ) Kǎ tǎ 'ěr	卡达 (卡達) Kǎ dá	卡塔尔 (卡塔爾なんじ)
Saudi Arabia	沙すな特とく (沙すな特とく) Shā tè	沙すな乌地 (沙すな烏がらす地ち) Shā wū dì	沙すな特とく阿おもね拉ひしげ伯はく (沙すな特とく阿おもね拉ひしげ伯はく)
South Korea	韩国 (韓國かんこく) Hán guó	南みなみ韩 (南みなみ韓かん) Nán hán	南みなみ韩/韩国 (南みなみ韓かん/韓國かんこく)	In Taiwan and sometimes in Hong Kong, 韩国 (韓國かんこく) refers to the entire Korea before its division.
Georgia, United States	佐治さじ亚 (佐治さじ亞あ) Zuǒ zhì yà	乔治亚(州しゅう) (喬たかし治おさむ亞あ(州しゅう)) Qiáo zhì yà (zhōu)	佐治さじ亚 (佐治さじ亞あ)	To prevent confusion, the suffix "州しゅう" (state) may be added to distinguish the American state with the European country.
Virginia, United States	弗どる吉よし尼に亚 (弗どる吉よし尼に亞あ) Fú jí ní yà	维吉尼あま亚 (喬たかし治おさむ亞あ) Wéi jí ní yà	维珍尼あま亚 (維珍尼あま亞あ)
British Columbia, Canada	不ふ列れつ颠哥伦比亚 (不ふ列れつ顛哥倫りん比ひ亞あ) Bù liè diān Gē lún bǐ yà	英えい属ぞく哥伦比ひ亚 (英えい屬ぞく哥倫比ひ亞あ) Yīng shǔ Gē lún bǐ yà	卑诗 (卑詩)	卑诗 (卑詩) is the local name used by Chinese communities in BC.
Aberdeen, United Kingdom	阿おもね伯はく丁ひのと Ā bó dīng	亚伯丁ひのと (亞あ伯はく丁ひのと) Yà bó dīng	鸭巴甸 (鴨かも巴ともみ甸)

Phrase list

All phrases show both the simplified characters (used in mainland China, Singapore, and Indonesia) and the traditional characters (used in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau) in the following format:

English phrase

Simplified characters (Traditional characters) Hanyu Pinyin

Basics

Pronouns Chinese pronouns are relatively straightforward. 我わが wǒ is the standard first person pronoun, while 你 nǐ is the standard second person pronoun, though 您 nín is a more respectful pronoun that should be used when addressing people of higher status, and is also sometimes used by shop assistants to address customers. The equivalent of the third-person pronouns "he", "she" and "it" are 他た, 她 and 它 respectively, all pronounced tā. Plurals are relatively straightforward, and are formed by adding a 们 (們) men behind the singular pronoun, so 我わが们 (我わが們) wǒmen means "we", 你们 (你們) nǐmen is the equivalent of the plural "you" and 他た们 (他た們) tāmen means "they". In Northern China, 咱们 (咱們) zámen is used as the inclusive "we" (i.e. if the subject includes the person(s) you are talking to), and 我わが们 (我わが們) is used as the exclusive "we" (i.e. if the subject does not include the person(s) you are talking to), though this distinction is not made in southern China, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore, which only use 我わが们 (我わが們).

Have you eaten? The literal translation of "how are you", Nǐ hǎo ma?, will be understood but may sound stilted and foreign. When greeting someone, it's more natural to ask some variation of 你吃饭了吗？ (你吃飯めし了りょう嗎） Nǐ chī fàn le ma? (Have you eaten?). You can answer like this: Yes, I've eaten. 已やめ经吃了りょう (已やめ經けい吃ども了りょう) Yǐjīng chī le No, I haven't yet. 还没吃ども (還かえ沒ぼっ吃ども) Hái méi chī

Hello.

你好。 (你好。) Nǐ hǎo.

Hello. (only on the telephone)

喂。 (喂。) Wéi. (In Malaysia and Singapore, the English "hello" is typically used instead)

How are you?

你好吗？ (你好嗎？) Nǐ hǎo ma? (In Indonesia, it is often shortened as Nǐ hăo?)

Not bad

还不错。 (還かえ不ふ錯。) Hái búcuò.

Fine, thank you.

很好, 谢谢。 (很好，謝しゃ謝しゃ。) Hěn hǎo, xièxie.

May I please ask, what is your name?

请问你叫什么名字みょうじ？ (請問你叫什麼いんも名字みょうじ？) Qǐngwèn nǐjiào shěnme míngzì?

What is your name?

你叫什么名字みょうじ？ (你叫什麼いんも名字みょうじ？) Nǐ jiào shénme míngzì?

My name is ______ .

我わが叫さけべ _____ 。 (我わが叫さけべ _____ 。) Wǒ jiào ______ .

Nice to meet you.

很高兴认识你。 (很高興きょう認識にんしき你。) Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ. / 幸こう会かい。 (幸こう會かい。) Xìng huì.

Please.

请。 (請。) Qǐng.

Thank you.

谢谢。 (謝しゃ謝しゃ。) Xièxie.

You're welcome.

不ふ客きゃく气。 (不ふ客氣かっき。) Bú kèqi.

Excuse me. (getting attention)

请问。 (請問。) qǐng wèn.

Excuse me. (begging pardon)

打だ扰一下か。 (打だ擾一下か。) Dǎrǎo yixià / 麻あさ烦您一いち下か。 (麻あさ煩はん您一下か。) Máfan nín yíxià.

Excuse me. (coming through)

对不起おこり。 (對たい不ふ起おこり。) ‘’Duìbùqǐ’’ / 请让一いち下か。 (請讓一いち下か。) Qǐng ràng yixià

I'm sorry.

对不起おこり。 (對たい不ふ起おこり。) Duìbuqǐ.

It's okay. (polite response to "I'm sorry")

没ぼつ关系。 (沒ぼつ關せき系けい。) méiguānxi.

Goodbye

再さい见。 (再さい見み。) Zàijiàn

Goodbye (informal)

拜はい拜はい。 (拜はい拜はい。) Bai-bai (Byebye) (In Indonesia, the more common phrase is Dà-dà)

I can't speak Chinese.

我わが不ふ会かい说汉语。 (我わが不ふ會かい說せつ漢語かんご。) Wǒ bú huì shuō hànyǔ.

Do you speak English?

你会说英语吗？ (你會說せつ英語えいご嗎？) Nǐ huì shuō Yīngyǔ ma?

Is there someone here who speaks English?

这里有人ゆうじん会かい说英语吗？ (這裏有人ゆうじん會かい說せつ英語えいご嗎？) Zhèlĭ yǒu rén hùi shuō Yīngyǔ ma?

Help! (in emergencies)

救命きゅうめい！ (救命きゅうめい!) Jiùmìng!

Good morning.

早はや安やす。 (早はや安やす。) Zǎo'ān.

Good evening.

晚ばん上じょう好このみ。 (晚ばん上じょう好このみ。) Wǎnshàng hǎo.

Good night.

晚ばん安やす。 (晚ばん安やす。) Wǎn'ān.

I don't understand.

我わが听不懂。 (我わが聽不懂。) Wǒ tīng bu dǒng. (when listening) / 我わが看み不ふ懂。 (我わが看み不ふ懂。) Wǒ kàn bu dǒng. (when reading) (In Indonesia, the more common phrase is 我わが不知ふち道どう Wǒ bù zhī dào)

Where is the toilet?

厕所在ざい哪里？ (廁所在ざい哪裡？) Cèsuǒ zài nǎlǐ?

Where is the bathroom（polite)?

洗あらい手しゅ间在哪里？ (洗あらい手間てま在ざい哪裡？) Xǐshǒujiān zài nǎlǐ?

How do you say ____?

____ 怎么说？ (____ 怎麼說せつ？) ____ zěnme shuō?

Problems

Hanging Monastery in Datong

To be or not to be? Chinese does not have words for "yes" and "no" as such; instead, questions are typically answered by repeating the verb. Here are common examples: To be or not to be 是ぜ (是ぜ) shì, 不ふ是ぜ (不ふ是ぜ) bú shì To have or not have / there is or is not 有ゆう (有ゆう) yǒu, 没ぼつ有ゆう (没ぼつ有ゆう) méi yǒu To be right or wrong 对 (對たい) duì, 不ふ对 (不ふ對たい) bú duì If all this seems like too much to handle, you can say "yes" with a short falling-tone grunt (嗯 ǹg), and you'll usually be understood if you say 不ふ bù for "no".

Leave me alone.

不要ふよう打だ扰我。 (不要ふよう打だ擾我。) búyào dǎrǎo wǒ

I don't want it! (useful for people who come up trying to sell you something)

我わが不要ふよう！ (我わが不要ふよう！) wǒ búyào!

Don't touch me!

不要ふよう碰我！ (不要ふよう碰我！) búyào pèng wǒ!

I'll call the police.

我わが要よう叫さけべ警察けいさつ了りょう。 (我わが要よう叫さけべ警察けいさつ了りょう。) wǒ yào jiào jǐngchá le

Police!

警察けいさつ！ (警察けいさつ！) jǐngchá!

Stop! Thief!

住じゅう手しゅ！小しょう偷！ (住じゅう手しゅ！小しょう偷！) zhùshǒu! xiǎotōu!

I need your help.

我わが需要じゅよう你的帮助。 (我わが需要じゅよう你的幫助。) wǒ xūyào nǐde bāngzhù

It's an emergency.

这是紧急情じょう况。 (這是緊急きんきゅう情況じょうきょう。) zhèshì jǐnjí qíngkuàng

I'm lost.

我わが迷路めいろ了りょう。 (我わが迷路めいろ了りょう。) wǒ mílù le

I lost my bag.

我が的てき包つつみ丢了。 (我が的てき包つつみ丟了。) wǒ de bāo diūle

I lost my wallet.

我が的てき钱包丢了。 (我が的てき錢ぜに包つつみ丟了。) wǒ de qiánbāo diūle

I'm sick.

我わが生なま病びょう了りょう。 (我わが生なま病びょう了りょう。) wǒ shēngbìng le

I've been injured.

我わが受伤了りょう。 (我わが受傷じゅしょう了りょう。) wǒ shòushāng le

I need a doctor.

我わが需要じゅよう医い生せい。 (我わが需要じゅよう醫い生せい。) wǒ xūyào yīshēng

Can I use your phone?

我わが可か以打个电话吗？ (我わが可か以打個こ電話でんわ嗎？) wǒ kěyǐ dǎ ge diànhuà ma?

Going to the doctor

Asking a question in Chinese There are many ways to ask a question in Chinese. Here are two easy ones for travelers... Verb/Adj. + 不ふ (不ふ) bù + Verb/Adj. Example - 好こう不ふ好このみ？ （好こう不ふ好このみ？）hăo bù hăo? - Is that okay? / Are you all right? (literally - good not good?) Exception - 有ゆう没ぼつ有ゆう？ （有ゆう沒ぼつ有ゆう？） yŏu méi yŏu? - Do you have? (literally - have not have?) Sentence + 吗 （嗎） ma Example - 你是中国人ちゅうごくじん吗？ （你是中國人ちゅうごくじん嗎？） nĭ shì zhōngguóren ma? - Are you Chinese? (literally - you are Chinese + ma)

Quanhua Temple in Miaoli County

Doctor

医い生せい (醫い生せい) yīshēng

Nurse

护士 (護まもる士し) hùshi

Hospital

医院いいん (醫院いいん) yīyuàn

Chinese medicine

中ちゅう药 (中藥ちゅうやく) zhōngyào

Western medicine

西にし药 (西にし藥やく) xīyào

I am sick.

我わが生なま病びょう了りょう。 (我わが生なま病びょう了りょう。) wǒ shēngbìng le

My _____ hurts.

我が的てき ____ 疼/痛つう。 ( 我が的てき ____ 疼/痛つう。) wŏde ____ téng/tòng

Painful

疼/痛やめ (疼/痛つう) téng/tòng

Sick/Uncomfortable

不ふ舒服 (不ふ舒服) bù shūfu

Itchy/ticklish

痒かゆ (痒かゆ) yǎng

Sore (In muscle strains)

酸さん (酸さん) suān

Fever

发热 (發熱はつねつ) fārè / 发烧 (發はつ燒しょう) fāshāo

Cough

咳嗽がいそう (咳嗽がいそう) késòu

Sneeze

打だ喷嚏 (打だ噴嚏) dǎ pēntì

Diarrhoea

拉ひしげ肚子 (拉ひしげ肚子) lā dùzi / 泻肚子こ (瀉肚子こ) xiè dùzi

Vomiting

呕吐 (嘔吐おうと) ŏu tù

Running nose

流ながれ鼻はな涕 (流ながれ鼻はな涕) liú bítì

Phlegm

痰たん (痰たん) tán

Cut/wound

割わり伤 (割わり傷きず) gēshāng / 伤口 (傷口きずぐち) shāngkǒu

Burn

烧伤 (燒しょう傷きず) shāoshāng

Hands

手て (手て) shǒu

Arms

手て臂ひじ (手て臂ひじ) shǒubì / 胳膊 (胳膊) gēbo

Fingers

手指しゅし (手指しゅし) shǒuzhǐ

Wrist

手腕しゅわん (手腕しゅわん) shǒuwàn

Shoulder

肩かた膀 (肩かた膀) jiānbǎng

Feet

脚あし (腳) jiǎo

Toes

脚あし趾 (腳趾) jiáozhǐ

Legs

腿もも (腿もも) tuǐ

Nails

指ゆび甲かぶと (指ゆび甲かぶと) zhǐjia

Body

身体しんたい (身體しんたい) shēntǐ

Eyes

眼睛がんせい (眼睛がんせい) yǎnjīng

Ears

耳みみ朵 (耳みみ朵) ěrduo

Nose

鼻はな子こ (鼻はな子こ) bízi

Face

脸 (臉) liǎn

Hair

头发 (頭髮とうはつ) tóufa

Head

头 (頭あたま) tóu

Neck

脖子 (脖子) bózi / 颈项 (頸項) jǐngxiàng

Throat

喉のど咙 (喉のど嚨) hóulóng

Chest

胸むね (胸むね) xiōng

Abdomen

肚子 (肚子) dùzi / 腹はら (腹はら) fù

Hip/Waist

腰こし (腰こし) yāo

Buttocks

屁へ股また (屁へ股また) pìgu

Back

背せ (背せ) bèi

Medical Insurance

医い疗保险 (醫療いりょう保險ほけん) yīliáo bǎoxiǎn

Doctor's fees

医い生せい费 (醫い生せい費ひ) yīshēng fèi

Prescription

处方 (處方しょほう) chǔfāng / 药方 (藥方やくほう) yàofāng

Medicine

药 (藥くすり) yào

Pharmacy

药店 (藥店やくてん) yàodiàn

Numbers

Number gestures Chinese people use a set of gestures for the numbers 1-10. They're a useful way to communicate prices and quantities, especially if you're having trouble understanding or pronouncing the Chinese word for a number. The gestures vary a bit by region. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 (may be interpreted as 5 by Malaysian or Singaporean Chinese and as 8 by Guangdong & Hong Kong locals) 8 (may be interpreted as 7 in some regions, such as Guangdong, Fujian, Hong Kong and Taiwan and by Indonesian, Malaysian, and Singaporean Chinese) 8 (used in coastal South China and Taiwan) 9 (may be interpreted as the verb "to die" in Singapore, and may be interpreted as 6 in Indonesia) 10 (may be interpreted as 0 in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore) 10 (alternative)

Chinese numbers are very regular. While Western numerals have become more common and are universally understood, the Chinese numerals shown below are still used, particularly in informal contexts like markets.

0

〇 (〇) / 零れい (零れい) líng

1

一いち (一いち) yī (pronounced yāo when reading numbers like ID card or telephone numbers)

2

二に (二に) èr (两 (兩りょう) liǎng is used when specifying quantities)

3

三さん (三さん) sān

4

四よん (四よん) sì

5

五ご (五ご) wǔ

6

六ろく (六ろく) liù

7

七なな (七なな) qī

8

八はち (八はち) bā

9

九きゅう (九きゅう) jiǔ

10

十じゅう (十じゅう) shí

11

十じゅう一いち (十じゅう一いち) shí-yī

12

十じゅう二に (十じゅう二に) shí-èr

13

十じゅう三さん (十じゅう三さん) shí-sān

14

十じゅう四よん (十じゅう四よん) shí-sì

15

十じゅう五ご (十じゅう五ご) shí-wǔ

16

十じゅう六ろく (十じゅう六ろく) shí-liù

17

十じゅう七なな (十じゅう七なな) shí-qī

18

十じゅう八はち (十じゅう八はち) shí-bā

19

十じゅう九きゅう (十じゅう九きゅう) shí-jiǔ

20

二に十じゅう (二に十じゅう) èr-shí

21

二に十じゅう一いち (二に十じゅう一いち) èr-shí-yī

22

二に十じゅう二に (二に十じゅう二に) èr-shí-èr

23

二に十じゅう三さん (二に十じゅう三さん) èr-shí-sān

30

三さん十じゅう (三さん十じゅう) sān-shí

40

四よん十じゅう (四よん十じゅう) sì-shí

50

五ご十じゅう (五ご十じゅう) wǔ-shí

60

六ろく十じゅう (六ろく十じゅう) liù-shí

70

七なな十じゅう (七なな十じゅう) qī-shí

80

八はち十じゅう (八はち十じゅう) bā-shí

90

九きゅう十じゅう (九きゅう十じゅう) jiǔ-shí

Shí kuài or sì kuài? In southern China, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore, many speakers don't distinguish the sh and s sounds, which means that in these areas, the only reliable difference between shí (ten) and sì (four) is the tone. So if you're talking to someone from southern China, it's important to listen for the tone when they tell you a number, lest you think something costs 4 yuan when it's really 10.

For numbers above 100, any "gaps" must be filled in with 零れい líng, as e.g. 一いち百ひゃく一いち yībǎiyī would otherwise be taken as shorthand for "110". A single unit of tens may be written and pronounced either 一いち十じゅう yīshí or just 十じゅう shí.

100

一いち百ひゃく (一いち百ひゃく) yī-bǎi

101

一いち百ひゃく零れい一いち (一いち百ひゃく零れい一いち) yī-bǎi-líng-yī

110

一いち百ひゃく一いち十じゅう (一いち百ひゃく一いち十じゅう) yī-bǎi-yī-shí

111

一いち百ひゃく一いち十じゅう一いち (一いち百ひゃく一いち十じゅう一いち) yī-bǎi-yī-shí-yī

200

二に百ひゃく (二に百ひゃく) èr-bǎi (written) or 两百 (兩りょう百ひゃく) liǎng-bǎi (colloquial)

300

三さん百ひゃく (三さん百ひゃく) sān-bǎi

500

五ご百ひゃく (五ご百ひゃく) wǔ-bǎi

1000

一いち千せん (一いち千せん) yī-qiān

2000

二に千せん (二に千せん) èr-qiān (written) or 两千 (兩りょう千せん) liǎng-qiān (colloquial)

Numbers starting from 10,000 are grouped by in units of four digits starting with 万まん (萬まん) wàn (ten thousand). "One million" in Chinese is thus "hundred ten-thousands" 一いち百ひゃく万まん (一いち百ひゃく萬まん), and "one billion" is "ten hundred-millions" 十じゅう亿 (十じゅう億おく).

10,000

一いち万まん (一いち萬まん) yī-wàn

10,001

一いち万まん零れい一いち (一いち萬まん零れい一いち) yī-wàn-líng-yī

10,002

一いち万まん零れい二に (一いち萬まん零れい二に) yī-wàn-líng-èr

20,000

二に万まん (二に萬まん) èr-wàn (written) or 两万 (兩りょう萬まん) liǎng-wàn (colloquial)

50,000

五ご万まん (五ご萬まん) wǔ-wàn

100,000

十じゅう万まん (十じゅう萬まん) shí-wàn

200,000

二に十じゅう万まん (二に十じゅう萬まん) èr-shí-wàn

1,000,000

一いち百ひゃく万まん (一いち百ひゃく萬まん) yī-bǎi-wàn

10,000,000

一いち千せん万まん (一いち千せん萬まん) yī-qiān-wàn

100,000,000

一いち亿 (一いち億おく) yī-yì

1,000,000,000

十じゅう亿 (十じゅう億おく) shí-yì

1,000,000,000,000

一いち万まん亿 (一いち萬まん億おく) yī-wàn-yì or 一いち兆ちょう (一いち兆ちょう) yī-zhào

number _____ (train, bus, etc.)

number measure word (路みち(路みち) lù, 号ごう(號ごう) hào, ...) _____ (火ひ车 (火ひ車しゃ) huǒ chē, 公共こうきょう汽车 (公共こうきょう汽車きしゃ) gōng gòng qì chē, etc.)

Measure words are used in combination with a number to indicate an amount of something, similar to how English requires "two pieces of furniture" rather than just "two furniture". However, unlike in English, Chinese requires counter words for all nouns, whether countable or uncountable.

When unsure, use 个 (個こ) ge; even though it may not be correct, you will probably be understood because it is the generic and most common measure word.

one person

一いち个人 (一個人いっこじん) yí ge rén

two apples

两个苹果りんご (兩個りゃんこ蘋果) liǎng ge píngguǒ

one slice of bread

一片いっぺん面めん包つつみ (一片いっぺん麵包) yí piàn miàn bāo

one piece of cake

一いち块蛋糕 (一塊ひとかたまり蛋糕) yí kuài dàn gāo

Be careful about using the right counter words for the latter two. 一いち个面包つつみ (一いち個こ麵包) yí ge miàn bāo and 一いち个蛋糕 (一いち個こ蛋糕) yí ge dàn gāo refer to a whole loaf of bread and a whole cake respectively.

Note that two of something always uses 两 (兩りょう) liǎng rather than 二に (二に) èr).

half

半はん (半はん) bàn

less than

少しょう于 (少しょう於) shǎoyú

more than

多た于 (多た於) duōyú

Financial forms

There are also more complex forms of these characters, used in financial contexts to prevent fraud by adding strokes on characters. Most travellers are unlikely to need to recognize them, but they are used in situations such as writing cheques and printing banknotes.

Everyday character

零れい/〇

一いち

二に

三さん

四よん

五ご

六ろく

七なな

八はち

九きゅう

十じゅう

百ひゃく

千せん

万ばん (萬まん)

亿 (億おく)

Financial character

零れい (零れい)

壹いち (壹いち)

贰 (貳に)

叁 (參まいり)

肆 (肆)

伍ご (伍ご)

陆 (陸りく)

柒 (柒)

捌 (捌)

玖 (玖)

拾ひろえ (拾じつ)

佰 (佰)

仟 (仟)

萬ばん (萬まん)

億おく (億おく)

Value

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

100

1,000

10,000

100,000,000

Time

Landscape of Zhangjiajie

now

现在 (現在げんざい) xiànzài

later

以后 (以後いご) yǐhòu / 稍やや后きさき(稍やや後ご) shāohòu

before

以前いぜん (以前いぜん) yǐqián

morning

早はや上じょう (早はや上じょう) zǎoshang / 上うえ午うま (上うえ午うま) shàngwǔ

noon

中午なかうま (中午なかうま) zhōngwǔ

afternoon

下しも午うま (下しも午うま) xiàwǔ

evening

傍はた晚ばん (傍はた晚ばん) bàngwǎn

night

晚ばん上じょう (晚ばん上じょう) wǎnshang

midnight

半夜はんや (半夜はんや) bànyè / 午うま夜よる (午うま夜よる) wǔyè

Clock time

What time is it?

现在几点？ (現在げんざい幾いく點てん？) Xiànzài jǐ diǎn?

It is nine in the morning.

早はや上じょう9点てん钟。 (早はや上じょう9點てん鐘がね。) Zǎoshàng jǐu diǎn zhōng.

3:30 PM

下しも午うま3点てん半はん (下しも午うま3點てん半はん) Xiàwǔ sān diǎn bàn / 下しも午うま3点てん30分ふん (下しも午うま3點てん30分ふん) Xiàwǔ sāndiǎn sānshí fēn

3:38 PM

下しも午うま3点てん38分ふん (下しも午うま3點てん38分ふん) Xiàwǔ sāndiǎn sānshíbā fēn

In formal writing, 时 (時じ) shí is used instead of 点てん (點てん) diǎn to indicate hours when telling time. Therefore, the time 3:30 PM would be written as 下しも午うま3时30分ふん (下しも午うま3時じ30分ふん) in formal writing. This form is, however, not used in speech.

Duration

_____ minute(s)

_____ 分ぶん钟 (分ぶん鐘かね) fēnzhōng

_____ hour(s)

_____ 个小时 (個こ小しょう時じ) ge xiǎoshí / _____ 个钟头 (個こ鍾頭) ge zhōngtóu

_____ day(s)

_____ 天てん (天てん) tiān (colloquial) / _____ 日にち (日)にち rì (formal)

_____ week(s)

_____ 个礼拜れいはい (個こ禮拜れいはい) ge lǐbài (colloquial) / _____ 个星期き (個こ星ほし期き) ge xīngqī / _____ 周しゅう (週しゅう) zhōu

_____ month(s)

_____ 个月 (個こ月がつ) ge yùe

_____ year(s)

_____ 年とし (年とし) nián

Days

today

今こん天てん (今こん天てん) jīntiān

yesterday

昨さく天てん (昨さく天てん) zuótiān

the day before yesterday

前ぜん天てん (前ぜん天てん) qiántiān

tomorrow

明天めいてん (明天めいてん) míngtiān

the day after tomorrow

后きさき天てん (后きさき天てん) hòutiān

this week

这个星ほし期き (這個星ほし期き) zhège xīngqī / 这个礼拜れいはい (這個禮拜れいはい) zhège lǐbài (colloquial) / 这周 （這週） zhè zhōu

last week

上うえ个星期き (上うえ個こ星ほし期き) shàngge xīngqī / 上うえ个礼拜れいはい (上うえ個こ禮拜れいはい) shàngge lǐbài (colloquial) / 上うえ周あまね (上うえ週しゅう) shàng zhōu

next week

下しも个星期き (下しも個こ星ほし期き) xiàge xīngqī / 下しも个礼拜れいはい (下しも個こ禮拜れいはい) xiàge lǐbài (colloquial) / 下しも周しゅう (下しも週しゅう) xià zhōu

Weekdays in Chinese are easy: starting with 1 for Monday, just add the number after 星ほし期き (星ほし期き) xīngqī. In Taiwan and Singapore, 星ほし期き (星ほし期き) is pronounced xīngqí (second tone on the second syllable).

Sunday

星ほし期き天てん (星ほし期き天てん ) xīngqītiān / 星ほし期日きじつ (星ほし期日きじつ) xīngqīrì

Monday

星ほし期き一いち (星ほし期き一いち) xīngqīyī

Tuesday

星ほし期き二に (星ほし期き二に) xīngqī'èr

Wednesday

星ほし期き三さん (星ほし期き三さん) xīngqīsān

Thursday

星ほし期き四よん (星ほし期き四よん) xīngqīsì

Friday

星ほし期き五ご (星ほし期き五ご) xīngqīwǔ

Saturday

星ほし期き六ろく (星ほし期き六ろく) xīngqīliù

In colloquial usage, 星ほし期き (星ほし期き) can also be replaced with 礼拜れいはい (禮拜れいはい) lǐbài or just 拜はい (拜はい) bài, and 周しゅう (週しゅう) zhōu, but only 礼拜れいはい天てん (禮拜れいはい天てん) lǐbàitiān and 周しゅう日び (週日しゅうじつ) zhōurì are used, while 礼拜れいはい日び (禮拜れいはい日び) or 周しゅう天たかし (週しゅう天てん) are not used. In colloquial usage, a common way to refer to Saturday and Sunday collectively is 拜はい六ろく礼拜れいはい (拜はい六ろく禮拜れいはい) bài lìu lǐ bài.

Months

Lantern Festival in Kaohsiung

Months in Chinese are also easy: starting with 1 for January, just add the number before 月がつ (月)げつ yuè.

January

一いち月がつ (一いち月がつ) yī yuè

February

二に月がつ (二に月がつ) èr yuè

March

三月さんがつ (三さん月がつ) sān yuè

April

四よん月がつ (四よん月がつ) sì yuè

May

五月ごがつ (五ご月がつ) wŭ yuè

June

六月ろくがつ (六ろく月がつ) liù yuè

July

七なな月がつ (七なな月がつ) qī yuè

August

八はち月がつ (八はち月がつ) bā yuè

September

九月くがつ (九きゅう月がつ) jiŭ yuè

October

十じゅう月がつ (十じゅう月がつ) shí yuè

November

十一月じゅういちがつ (十じゅう一いち月がつ) shí yī yuè

December

十二月じゅうにがつ (十じゅう二に月がつ) shí èr yuè

Writing dates

Writing dates in the lunar calendar If you are attempting to name a date in the Chinese lunar calendar, add the words 农历 (農のう曆れき) before the name of the month to distinguish it from the months of the solar calendar, although it is not strictly necessary. There are some differences: The words 日び(日)にち rì/ 号ごう(號ごう) hào are generally not required when stating dates in the lunar calendar; it is assumed. Besides that, the 1st Month is called 正月しょうがつ (正月しょうがつ) zhēngyuè. If the number of the day is less than 11, the word 初はつ (初はつ) is used before the value of the day. Besides that, if the value of the day is more than 20, the word 廿にじゅう (廿にじゅう) niàn is used, so the 23rd day is 廿にじゅう三さん (廿にじゅう三さん) for example. 15th day of the 8th lunar month (the mid-autumn festival) (农历)八はち月がつ十じゅう五ご ((農のう曆れき)八はち月がつ十じゅう五ご) (nónglì) bāyuè shí-wǔ. 1st day of the 1st lunar month (农历)正月しょうがつ初はつ一いち ((農のう曆れき)正月しょうがつ初はつ一いち) (nónglì) zhèngyuè chūyī. 23rd day of the 9th lunar month (农历)九きゅう月がつ廿にじゅう三さん ((農のう曆れき)九きゅう月がつ廿にじゅう三さん) (nónglì) jiŭ yuè niànsān.

When writing the date, you name the month (number (1-12) + 月つき (月)げつ yuè), before inserting the day (number (1-31) + 日にち(日)にち rì/ 号ごう(號ごう) hào). Note that the usage of 号ごう(號ごう) hào is more colloquial than that of 日にち(日)にち rì, the latter of which is used in writing and formal speech.

6th January

一いち月がつ六ろく号ごう (一いち月がつ六ろく號ごう) yī yuè liù hào or 一いち月がつ六ろく日にち (一いち月がつ六ろく日にち) yī yuè liù rì

25th December

十二月じゅうにがつ二に十じゅう五ご号ごう (十二月じゅうにがつ二に十じゅう五ご號ごう) shí-èr yuè èr-shí-wǔ hào

Also note that in Taiwan, Minguo calendar (民みん國こく紀年きねん/民みん国こく纪年) is also frequently used. 2023 in the Gregorian calendar corresponds to Minguo 112 nian (民みん國こく112年ねん/民みん国こく112年ねん). If you see some dates like "112/12/25" (Minguo 112, December 25) in Taiwan, they are probably using the Minguo calendar to address the year. To convert Minguo year into the Gregorian calendar, add 1911 (The last year before the Republic of China established) in Minguo year. Therefore, Minguo 100 nian (民みん國こく100年ねん/民みん国こく100年ねん) is 2012 in the Gregorian calendar. Years before 1912 (i.e. You will get zero or a negetive number when subtracting 1911) will add the "前ぜん" prefix before ther year. So Minguo qian 2 nian (民みん國こく前まえ2年ねん/民みん国こく前まえ2年ねん) is 1910 in the Gregorian calendar.

Colours

black

黑色こくしょく (黑色こくしょく) hēi sè

white

白色はくしょく (白色はくしょく) bái sè

grey

灰色はいいろ (灰色はいいろ) huī sè

red

红色 (紅色こうしょく) hóng sè

blue

蓝色 (藍色あいいろ) lán sè

yellow

黄色おうしょく (黄色おうしょく) huáng sè

green

绿色 (綠色みどりいろ) lǜ sè / 青色あおいろ (青色あおいろ) qīng sè

orange

橙色だいだいいろ (橙色だいだいいろ) chéng sè

purple

紫色むらさきいろ (紫色むらさきいろ) zǐ sè

brown

褐色かっしょく (褐色かっしょく) hè sè / 棕色 (棕色) zōng sè

gold

金色きんいろ (金色きんいろ) jīn se

Do you have it in another colour?

你们有ゆう没ぼつ有ゆう其他颜色? (你們有ゆう沒ぼつ有ゆう其他顏色かおいろ?) nǐmen yǒu méiyǒu qítā yánsè ?

Sè means 'colour' so hóng sè is literally 'red colour'. More common for brown and easier to remember is 'coffee colour': 咖啡色しょく (咖啡色しょく) kā fēi sè

Transportation

Bus and Train

Trains in Tianshui

How much is a ticket to _____?

去さ______的てき票ひょう多少たしょう钱? (去さ______的てき票ひょう多少たしょう錢ぜに?) qù _____ de piào duō shǎo qián?

Do you go to... (the central station)?

去さ不ふ去さ... (火ひ车站)? (去さ不ふ去さ... (火ひ車しゃ站)?) qù bu qù... (huǒ chē zhàn)

bus

公おおやけ交车 (公おおやけ交車) gōng jiāo chē (China) / 公おおやけ车 (公おおやけ車しゃ) gōng chē (Taiwan) / 巴ともえ士し (巴ともえ士し) bā shì (Singapore)

slow train

火ひ车 (火ひ車しゃ) huǒ chē

high-speed train

高こう铁 (高こう鐵てつ) gāo tiě

metro / subway

地ち铁 (地ち鐵てつ) dì tiě (China & Singapore) / 捷とし运 (捷とし運うん) jié yùn (Taiwan)

tram / streetcar

电车 (電車でんしゃ) diàn chē

light rail

轻轨 (輕けい軌) qīng guǐ

Directions

How do I get to _____ ?

怎么去_____? (怎麼去_____?) zěnme qù _____?

...the train station?

...火ひ车站? (...火ひ車しゃ站?) ...huǒchēzhàn?

...the bus station?

...汽车站? (汽車きしゃ站?) ..qìchēzhàn? (China) / ...巴ともえ士し站? (..巴ともえ士し站?) ...bāshìzhàn? (Singapore)

...the airport?

...飞机场? (...飛ひ機き場じょう?) ...fēi jī chǎng? / ...机つくえ场? ( ...機き場じょう?) ... jī chǎng?

street

街まち (街まち) jiē

road

路みち (路みち) lù

Turn left.

左ひだり转 (左ひだり轉てん) zuǒ zhuǎn

Turn right.

右みぎ转 (右みぎ轉てん) yòu zhuǎn

Go straight

直ちょく走はし (直ちょく走はし) zhízŏu

I've reached my destination

到いた了りょう (到いた了りょう) dàole

U-turn

掉头 (掉頭) diàotóu

Taxi driver

师傅 (師傅しふ) shīfu

Please use the meter machine

请打表ひょう (請打表ひょう) qǐng dǎbiǎo

Please turn up the aircon/heater

请把空そら调开大だい点てん。 (請把空調くうちょう開ひらき大だい點てん。) qǐng bǎ kōngtiáo kāi dàdiǎn (China) / 请把冷ひや气开大だい一いち点てん。 (請把冷氣れいき開ひらけ大だい一いち點てん。) qǐng bǎ lěngqì kāi dà yīdiǎn (Singapore)

left

左ひだり (左ひだり) zuǒ

right

右みぎ (右みぎ) yòu

in front of the _____

_____前面ぜんめん (_____前面ぜんめん) _____ qiánmiàn

behind the _____

_____后きさき面めん (_____後ご面めん) _____ hòumiàn

straight ahead

往前走はし (往前走はし) wǎngqián zǒu / 直ちょく走はし (直ちょく走はし) zhí zǒu

inside

里さと面めん (裡うら面めん) lǐ miàn

outside

外面がいめん (外面がいめん) wài miàn

north

北きた (北きた) bĕi

south

南みなみ (南みなみ) nán

east

东 (東ひがし) dōng

west

西にし (西にし) xī

Taxi

Taxi

出で租车 (出で租車) chū zū chē (in China) / 计程车 (計けい程ほど車しゃ) jìchéngchē (in Taiwan) / 德とく士し (德とく士し) dé shì (in Singapore)

Take me to _____, please.

请开到_____。 (請開到いた_____。) qǐng kāidào _____。

Lodging

"Dreaming of the Tiger Spring", in Hangzhou

Common signs 入口いりくち (入口いりくち) Entrance [rùkǒu] 出口いでぐち (出口でぐち) Exit [chūkǒu] 大だい・中ちゅう・小しょう (大だい・中なか・小しょう) [dà / zhōng / xiǎo] Large / Medium / Small 推 (推) Push [tuī] 拉ひしげ (拉ひしげ) Pull [lā] 厕所 (廁所) / 洗あらい手しゅ间 (洗あらい手間てま) / 盥たらい洗あらい室しつ (盥たらい洗あらい室しつ) Toilet [cèsuǒ] / [xǐshǒujiān] / [guànxǐshì] 男おとこ (男おとこ) Men [nán] 女おんな (女おんな) Women [nǚ] 禁止きんし (禁止きんし) Forbidden [jìnzhǐ] 吸烟 (吸煙きゅうえん) Smoking [xīyān] 饮水 (飲水のみみず) / 饮用水すい (飲用いんよう水すい) Drinking water [yǐnshuǐ] / [yǐnyòngshuǐ]

Do you have any rooms available?

你们有ゆう房ぼう间吗？ (你們有ゆう房間ふさま嗎？) Nǐmen yǒu fángjiān ma?

Does the room come with...

有ゆう没ぼつ有ゆう... (有ゆう沒ぼつ有ゆう...) Yǒu méiyǒu…

...bedsheets?

...床ゆか单？ (...床ゆか單たん？) ...chuángdān?

...a bathroom?

...浴室よくしつ？ (浴室よくしつ？) ...yùshì? (in China) / ...冲凉房ぼう？ (...沖おき涼すずか房ぼう？) ...chōngliángfáng? (in Singapore)

...a telephone?

...电话？ (...電話でんわ？) ...diànhuà?

...a TV?

...电视机つくえ？ (...電でん視し機き？) …diànshìjī?

I will stay for _____ night(s).

我わが打算ださん住じゅう_____晚ばん。 (我わが打算ださん住じゅう_____晚ばん。) Wǒ dǎsuàn zhù _____ wǎn.

Do you have a safe?

你们有ゆう没ぼつ有ゆう保ほ险箱？ (你們有ゆう沒ぼつ有ゆう保險ほけん箱ばこ？) Nǐmen yǒu méiyǒu bǎoxiǎn xiāng?

Can you wake me at _____?

请明天てん早はや上じょう_____叫さけべ醒我。 (請明天てん早はや上じょう_____叫さけべ醒我。) Qǐng míngtiān zǎoshàng _____ jiàoxǐng wǒ.

I want to check out.

我わが想おもえ退ずさ房ぼう。 (我わが想おもえ退ずさ房ぼう。) Wǒ xiǎng tuìfáng.

Money

Rice terraces in Yuanyang

The base unit of currency in Chinese is the 元もと (yuán), which could be translated as "dollar", or simply transliterated as "yuan", depending on what currency you are referring to. In financial contexts, such as when writing cheques and printing banknotes, 元もと is written as 圆 (圓えん). One yuan is divided into 10 角かく (jiǎo), which is in turn divided into 10 分ふん (fēn). Colloquially, the yuan is often referred to as the 块 (kuài), while the jiao is referred to as the 毛げ (máo).

pay

付づけ (付づけ) fù

cash

现金 (現金げんきん) xiàn jīn / 现钱 (現げん錢ぜに) xiàn qián

credit card

信用しんよう卡 (信用しんよう卡) xìn yòng kǎ

debit card

借か记卡 (借か記き卡) jiè jì kǎ

check

支ささえ票ひょう (支ささえ票ひょう) zhīpiào

foreign exchange

外そと汇 (外そと匯) wài huì

to change money

换钱 (換かわ錢ぜに) huàn qián

exchange rate

汇率 (匯率) huìlǜ

Chinese yuan

人民じんみん币 (人民じんみん幣ぬさ) rénmínbì

Taiwan dollars

新台しんだい币 (新臺しんだい幣ぬさ) xīn tái bì / 台たい币 (臺たい幣ぬさ) tái bì

Hong Kong dollars

港みなと元もと (港みなと元もと) gǎng yuán / 港みなと币 (港みなと幣ぬさ) gǎng bì

Singapore dollars

新しん加か坡元 (新しん加か坡元) xīnjiāpō yuán / 新しん币 (新しん幣ぬさ) xīn bì

Malaysian ringgit

马来西にし亚令吉きち (馬うま來らい西にし亞あ令れい吉きち) mǎláixīyà lìngjí / 马币 (馬うま幣ぬさ) mǎ bì

US dollars

美び元もと (美び元もと) mĕi yuán / 美び金きん (美び金きん) mĕi jīn

Euros

欧おう元もと (歐おう元もと) ōu yuán

British pounds

英えい镑 (英えい鎊) yīng bàng

Eating

Reading a Chinese Menu Look for these characters to get an idea of what you're ordering. With help from The Eater's Guide to Chinese Characters (J. McCawley). dīng 丁ちょう (丁ひのと) (cubed/diced) piàn 片へん (片へん) (thinly sliced) sī 丝 (絲いと) (shredded) kuài 块 (塊かたまり) (chunk/cut into bite-sized pieces) qiú 球たま (球たま) (curled) chăo 炒い (炒い) (stir-fried) zhá 炸 (炸) (deep-fried) jiān 煎せんじ (煎せんじ) (pan-fried) zhēng 蒸ふけ (蒸ふけ) (steamed) zhǔ 煮に (煮に) (boiled) kăo 烤 (烤) (dry-roasted) shāo 烧 (燒やき) (roasted w/ sauce)

Can I look at the menu, please?

请给我わが看み看み菜さい单。 (請給我わが看み看み菜さい單たん。) qǐng gěi wǒ kànkan càidān.

Do you have an English menu?

你有没ぼつ有ゆう英文えいぶん菜さい单？ (你有沒ぼつ有ゆう英文えいぶん菜さい單たん？) nǐ yŏu méi yǒu yīngwén càidān?

(Listen for...

Yes, we have one.

有ゆう(有ゆう) yǒu

No, we don't.

没ぼつ有ゆう (沒ぼつ有ゆう) méi yǒu

Takeout / take away

打だ包つつみ (打だ包つつみ) dǎ bāo / 外そと带 (外そと帶たい) wài dài'

Eat here

这边吃 (這邊吃ども) zhèbiān chī / 内用ないよう (內用) nèi yòng

Are you Buddhist? If you're a vegetarian traveling in China, you may find that a common reaction to 我わが吃ども素もと wǒ chī sù is 你信佛ふつ吗？ nǐ xìn fó ma? ("Are you Buddhist?", literally "Do you believe in Buddhism?"). As with other yes-or-no questions, the correct responses repeat the verb: Yes 信しん xìn (I believe) No 不信ふしん bú xìn (I don't believe)

I'm a vegetarian

我わが吃ども素もと (我わが吃ども素もと) wǒ chī sù

I only eat Halal food.

我わが只ただ吃ども清真きよざね食品しょくひん (我わが只ただ吃ども清真きよざね食品しょくひん) wǒ zhǐ chī qīngzhēn shípǐn

breakfast

早さ饭 (早さ飯めし) zǎofàn / 早さ餐 (早さ餐) zǎocān

lunch

午うま饭 (午うま飯めし) wǔfàn / 中ちゅう饭 (中ちゅう飯めし) zhōngfàn / 午餐ごさん (午餐ごさん) wǔcān

supper

晚ばん饭 (晚ばん飯めし) wǎnfàn / 晚餐ばんさん (晚餐ばんさん) wǎncān

beef

牛肉ぎゅうにく (牛肉ぎゅうにく) niúròu

pork

猪いの肉にく (豬肉) zhūròu，or sometimes simply 肉にく (肉にく) ròu.

mutton

羊ひつじ肉にく (羊ひつじ肉にく) yángròu

chicken

鸡肉 (雞肉) jīròu

duck

鸭 (鴨かも) yā

goose

鹅 (鵝) é

fish

鱼 (魚さかな) yú

cheese

奶酪 (奶酪) nǎilào

eggs

鸡蛋 (雞蛋) jīdàn / 蛋 (蛋) dàn (the former specifically refers to chicken eggs, the latter can be used generally for any type of egg)

fresh

新しん鲜 (新鮮しんせん) xīnxiān

fruit

水みず果はて (水みず果はて) shuĭguǒ

vegetables

蔬菜そさい (蔬菜そさい) shūcài / 青菜あおな (青菜あおな) qīngcài

bread

面めん包つつみ (麵包) miànbāo

noodles

面めん条じょう (麵條) miàntiáo

fried rice

炒い饭 (炒飯ちゃーはん) chǎofàn

dumpling

饺子 (餃子ぎょうざ) jiǎozi

cooked rice

米べい饭 (米飯べいはん) mĭfàn (China) / 饭 (飯めし) fàn (Singapore)

raw rice

米べい (米べい) mĭ

congee / rice porridge

粥かゆ (粥かゆ) zhōu / 稀まれ饭 (稀まれ飯めし) xīfàn

coffee

咖啡 (咖啡) kāfēi

black coffee

黑くろ咖啡 (黑くろ咖啡) hēi kāfēi

milk

奶 (奶) nǎi / 牛うし奶 (牛うし奶) niúnǎi (The former is more general, while the latter specifically refers to cow's milk.)

butter

奶油 (奶油) nǎiyóu (in China and Taiwan) / 牛うし油ゆ (牛うし油ゆ) niúyóu (in Singapore)

sugar

糖とう (糖とう) táng (Also means "candy".)

salt

盐 (鹽しお) yán

ground pepper

胡椒こしょう粉こ（胡椒こしょう粉こ）hújiāo fěn

soy sauce

酱油 (醬油) jiàngyóu

tea (drink)

茶ちゃ (茶ちゃ) chá

green tea

绿茶 (綠茶りょくちゃ) lǜ chá

scented tea

花はな茶ちゃ (花はな茶ちゃ) huāchá

black tea

红茶 (紅茶こうちゃ) hóngchá

juice

果汁かじゅう (果汁かじゅう) guǒzhī

water

水みず (水)すい shuĭ

natural mineral water

矿泉水すい (礦泉水せんすい) kuàngquán shuǐ

beer

啤酒 (啤酒) píjiŭ

red/white wine

红/白しろ 葡萄酒ぶどうしゅ (紅べに/白しろ 葡萄酒ぶどうしゅ) hóng/bái pútáojiŭ

Excuse me, waiter? (getting attention of server)

服ふく务员！ (服務ふくむ員いん！) fúwùyuán
In Taiwan and Singapore, it is common to call a waitress using the term 小しょう姐あね xiǎojiě, but this is a euphemism for "prostitute" in mainland China and would thus be highly offensive.

It was delicious.

很好吃ども。(很好吃ども。) hěn hǎochī (eating) / 很好喝かつ。（很好喝かつ。） hěn hǎohē (drinking)

The check, please.

买单 (買かい單たん) mǎidān

Bars

A tea house in Chongqing

Do you serve alcohol?

卖不卖酒？ (賣うれ不ふ賣うれ酒しゅ？) mài búmài jiǔ?

Is there table service?

有ゆう没ぼつ有ゆう餐桌服ふく务？ (有ゆう沒ぼつ有ゆう餐桌服務ふくむ？) yǒu méiyǒu cānzhuō fúwù?

A beer/two beers, please.

请给我わが一いち杯はい/两杯啤酒。 (請給我わが一いち杯はい/兩りょう杯はい啤酒。) qǐng gěiwǒ yìbēi/liǎngbēi píjiǔ

A glass of red/white wine, please.

请给我わが一いち杯はい红/白しろ葡萄酒ぶどうしゅ。 (請給我わが一いち杯はい紅べに/白しろ葡萄酒ぶどうしゅ。) qǐng gěi wǒ yìbēi hóng/bái pútáojiǔ

A pint, please.

请给我わが一品いっぴん脱だっ。(請給我わが一品いっぴん脫だっ。) qǐng gěi wǒ yìpǐntuō

A bottle, please.

请给我わが一いち瓶びん。 (請給我わが一いち瓶びん。) qǐng gěi wǒ yìpíng

_____ (hard liquor) and _____ (mixer), please.

请给我が_____和わ_____。 (請給我が_____和わ_____。) qǐng gěi wǒ _____ hé _____

baijiu (Chinese hard liquor)

白酒しろざけ (白酒しろざけ) báijiǔ

whiskey

威い士し忌き (威い士し忌き) wēishìjì

vodka

伏ふく特とく加か (伏ふく特とく加か) fútèjiā

rum

兰姆酒しゅ (蘭らん姆酒) lánmǔjiǔ

water

水みず (水)すい shuǐ

mineral spring (i.e. bottled) water

矿泉水すい (礦泉水せんすい) kuàngquánshuǐ

boiled water

开水 (開ひらき水すい) kāishuǐ

club soda

苏打水うちみず (蘇そ打水うちみず) sūdǎshuǐ

tonic water

通つう宁水 (通つう寧やすし水すい) tōngníngshuǐ

orange juice

橙だいだい汁じる (橙だいだい汁じる) chéngzhī

Coke (soda)

可か乐 (可か樂らく) kělè

Do you have any bar snacks?

有ゆう没ぼつ有ゆう吧台点心てんしん？ (有ゆう沒ぼつ有ゆう吧臺點心てんしん？) yǒu méiyǒu bātái diǎnxīn?

One more, please.

请再给我一いち个。 (請再給きゅう我わが一いち個こ。) qǐng zài gěi wǒ yíge

Another round, please.

请再来さいらい一いち轮。 (請再來さいらい一いち輪りん。) qǐng zàilái yìlún

When is closing time?

几点打だ烊/关门？ (幾いく點てん打だ烊/關門かんもん？) jǐdiǎn dǎyáng/guānmén?

Where is the toilet?

厕所在ざい哪里？ (廁所在ざい那な裏うら？) cèsuǒ zài nǎlǐ?

Where is the washroom?

洗あらい手しゅ间在哪里？ (洗あらい手間てま在ざい哪裡？) xǐshǒujiān zài nǎlǐ?

You're handsome.

你好帅。 (你好帥そち。) nǐ hǎo shuài

You're pretty.

你好漂亮。 (你好漂亮。) nǐ hǎo piàoliang

Shopping

A reservoir in Shangrao, Jiangxi

Bargaining (还价 (還かえ價あたい) huán jià) is possible (and expected) in markets and many small shops. The first price you are given will usually be hugely inflated - it's up to you to haggle it down to something more acceptable. This will probably feel awkward if you aren't used to it, and you may worry about ending up cheating the seller. Don't worry - sellers won't take a price that's too low, and you will usually end up agreeing on a price that's considerably lower than the starting one but still allows the seller to make a profit. Try starting at around 20-30% of the original price; you can always work up from there. The exceptions to the rule are supermarkets, large department stores, bookshops and some of the higher end boutiques, most of which will have signs letting you know that haggling is unacceptable in these stores.

Do you have this in my size?

有ゆう没ぼつ有我ありが的てき尺しゃく码？ (有ゆう沒ぼつ有我ありが的てき尺しゃく碼？) yǒu méiyǒu wǒde chǐmǎ?

How much is this?

这个多少たしょう钱？ (這個多少たしょう錢ぜに？) zhège duōshǎo qián?

That's too expensive.

太ふとし贵了。 (太ふとし貴き了りょう。) tài guì le

Would you take _____?

_____元もと可か以吗？ (_____元もと可か以嗎？) _____ yuán kěyǐ ma?

expensive

贵 (貴たか) guì

cheap

便宜べんぎ (便宜べんぎ) piányi

I can't afford it.

我わが带的钱不够。 (我わが帶おび的てき錢ぜに不ふ夠。) wǒ dài de qián búgòu

I don't want it.

我わが不要ふよう。 (我わが不要ふよう。) wǒ bú yào

You're cheating me.

你欺骗我。 (你欺騙かた我わが。) nǐ qīpiàn wǒ Use with caution!

I'm not interested.

我わが没ぼつ有ゆう兴趣。 ( 我わが沒ぼつ有ゆう興趣きょうしゅ。) wǒ méiyǒu xìngqù

OK, I'll take it.

我わが要よう买这个。 (我わが要よう買かい這個。) wǒ yào mǎi zhège

Do you need a carrier-bag? / Yes / No

你要不要ふよう袋ぶくろ子こ？ nǐ yào bu yào dàizi? / 要よう yào / 不要ふよう bú yào

Please provide me with a carrier-bag.

请给我わが个袋子こ。 (請給我わが個こ袋ぶくろ子こ。) qǐng gěi wǒ ge dàizi

Do you ship (overseas)?

可か以邮寄よせ到いた海外かいがい吗？ (可か以郵寄よせ到いた海外かいがい嗎？) kěyǐ yóujì dào hǎiwài ma?

I need...

我わが要よう_____ (我わが要よう_____) wǒ yào _____

...toothpaste.

牙きば膏あぶら (牙きば膏あぶら) yágāo

...a toothbrush.

牙きば刷すり (牙きば刷すり) yáshuā

...sanitary napkins.

卫生巾はば (衛生えいせい巾はば) wèishēngjīn

...tampons.

卫生棉わた条じょう (衛生えいせい棉わた條じょう) wèishēng miántiáo

...soap.

肥こえ皂 (肥こえ皂) féizào

...shampoo.

洗あらい发精 (洗髮せんぱつ精せい) xǐfàjīng

...pain reliever. e.g., aspirin or ibuprofen

止とめ疼药 (止とめ疼藥) zhǐténg yào

...cold medicine.

感冒かんぼう药 (感冒かんぼう藥やく) gǎnmào yào

...stomach medicine.

胃い肠药 (胃腸いちょう藥やく) wèicháng yào

...a razor.

剃そ须刀 (剃そ鬚ひげ刀がたな) tìxūdāo

...an umbrella.

雨あめ伞 (雨傘あまがさ ) yǔsǎn

...sunblock lotion.

防ぼう晒さらし霜しも (防ぼう晒さらし霜しも) fángshàishuāng

...a postcard.

明信あきのぶ片へん (明信あきのぶ片へん) míngxìnpiàn

...postage stamps.

邮票 (郵票) yóupiào

...batteries.

电池 (電池でんち) diànchí

...writing paper.

纸 (紙かみ) zhǐ

...a pen.

笔 (筆ふで) bǐ

...a pencil.

铅笔 (鉛筆えんぴつ) qiānbǐ

...glasses.

眼め镜 (眼鏡めがね) yǎnjìng

...English-language books.

英文えいぶん书 (英えい文書ぶんしょ) Yīngwén shū

...English-language magazines.

英文えいぶん杂志 (英文えいぶん雜誌ざっし) Yīngwén zázhì

...an English-language newspaper.

英文えいぶん报纸 (英文えいぶん報ほう紙し) Yīngwén bàozhǐ

...a Chinese-English dictionary.

汉英词典 (漢かん英えい詞し典てん) Hàn-Yīng cídiǎn

...an English-Chinese dictionary.

英えい汉词典てん (英えい漢かん詞し典てん) Yīng-Hàn cídiǎn

Driving

Riding to work in Pingyao

I want to rent a car.

我わが想そう要よう租车。 (我わが想そう要よう租車。) wǒ xiǎngyào zūchē

Can I get insurance?

我わが可か以买保ほ险吗？ (我わが可か以買保險ほけん嗎？) wǒ kěyǐ mǎi bǎoxiǎn ma?

stop (on a street sign)

停とま (停とま) tíng

one way

单行道どう (單行たんこう道どう ) dānxíngdào

yield

让路 (讓ゆずる路ろ) rànglù

no parking

禁止きんし停とま车 (禁止きんし停車ていしゃ) jìnzhǐ tíngchē

speed limit

速度そくど限げん制せい (速度そくど限げん制せい) sùdù xiànzhì

gas (petrol) station

加か油ゆ站 (加か油ゆ站) jiāyóuzhàn

petrol

汽油 (汽油) qìyóu

diesel

柴しば油ゆ (柴しば油ゆ) cháiyóu

Authority

Soldiers marching in Beijing

I haven't done anything wrong.

我わが没ぼつ有ゆう做错事ごと。 (我わが沒ぼつ有ゆう做錯事ごと。) wǒ méiyǒu zuòcuò shì

It was a misunderstanding.

这是误会。 (這是誤あやま會かい。) zhè shì wùhuì

Where are you taking me?

你带我わが去さ哪里？ (你帶我わが去さ哪里？) nǐ dài wǒ qù nǎlǐ?

Am I under arrest?

我わが被ひ捕と了りょう吗？ (我わが被ひ捕と了りょう嗎？) wǒ bèibǔle ma?

I am an American/Australian/British/Canadian citizen.

我わが是ぜ 美国びくに/澳洲/英国えいこく/加か拿大 公民こうみん。 (我わが是ぜ 美國びくに/澳洲*/英國えいこく/加か拿大 公民こうみん。) wǒ shì měiguó/àozhōu/yīngguó/jiānádà gōngmín

I want to talk to the American/Australian/British/Canadian embassy/consulate.

我わが希望きぼう跟 美国びくに/澳洲/英国えいこく/加か拿大 的てき 大使たいし馆/领事馆 联系。 (我わが希望きぼう跟 美國びくに/澳洲*/英國えいこく/加か拿大 的てき 大使館たいしかん/領事館りょうじかん 聯れん繫。) wǒ xīwàng gēn měiguó/àozhōu/yīngguó/jiānádà de dàshǐguǎn/lǐngshìguǎn liánxì

I want to talk to a lawyer.

我わが希望きぼう跟律师联系けい。 (我わが希望きぼう跟律師し聯れん繫。) wǒ xīwàng gēn lǜshī liánxì

Can I just pay a fine now?

我わが可か以现在ざい支ささえ付づけ罚款吗？ (我わが可か以現在げんざい支ささえ付づけ罰ばつ款嗎？) wǒ kěyǐ xiànzài zhīfù fákuǎn ma?

Telephone and the Internet

Telephone & Internet In most Chinese cities, there are no telephone booths. Instead, small street shops have telephones which can usually be used for national calls. Look for signs like this: 公用こうよう电话 (公用こうよう電話でんわ) Public Telephone Most cafes are cheaper than in hotels. Many mid-range hotels and chains now offer free wireless or plug-in internet. Those cafes are quite hidden sometimes and you should look for the following Chinese characters: 网吧 (網あみ吧) / 网咖 (網あみ咖) Internet Cafe

mobile phone

手て机つくえ （手て機き） shǒujī (China and Taiwan) / 手提てさげ电话 （手提てさげ電話でんわ）shǒutí diànhuà (Singapore)

Can I make international calls here?

可か以打国こく际电话吗? (可か以打國際こくさい電話でんわ嗎?) kěyǐ dǎ guójì diànhuà ma?

How much is it to America/Australia/Britain/Canada?

打だ到いた 美国びくに/澳洲/英国えいこく/加か拿大 是ぜ多少たしょう钱? (打だ到いた 美國びくに/澳洲/英國えいこく/加か拿大 是ぜ多少たしょう錢ぜに?) dǎdào měiguó/àozhōu/yīngguó/jiānádà shì duōshǎo qián?

Where can I find an Internet cafe?

哪里有ゆう网吧? (哪裏有ゆう網もう吧?) nǎlǐ yǒu wǎng bā?

How much is it per hour?

一小时是多少钱? (一いち小しょう時じ是ぜ多少たしょう錢ぜに?) yī xiǎoshí shì duōshǎo qián?

Getting a massage

"Pain" and "no pain"

痛いた tòng and 不ふ痛つう bú tòng

"Good" and "not good"

好このみ hǎo and 不ふ好このみ bù hǎo

"Very good" or "great"

很好 hěn hǎo

"Want" and "don't want"

要よう yào and 不要ふよう bú yào

"That tickles"

痒かゆ yǎng

"Does this hurt?"

痛やめ不ふ痛つう？ tòng bú tòng? or tòng ma?. For either, answer tòng or bú tòng.

Learning more

Chinese language learning is flourishing as foreigners recognize the importance of gaining the ability to effectively communicate with a population of 1.3+ billion people. Due to the rapid rise of the Chinese teaching industry however, finding consistent quality instruction can be difficult. Many Chinese language schools and institutes have opened up over the past decade both abroad as well as within China, though before enrolling it is definitely recommended to thoroughly research and speak with current or former students to ensure that effective education is being provided.

For independent learners, it is imperative that one first master tones and the pinyin system before beginning to build vocabulary. The Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi (HSK, 汉语水平すいへい考こう试) or Chinese Proficiency Test is China's standardized test for Chinese language proficiency (equivalent to the English TOEFL or IELTS). The HSK provides detailed guides for essential vocabulary and grammatical concepts in increasing level of fluency up to Level VI, which represents full written and oral abilities in the language. A good idea for practicing is to make Chinese friends online since millions of young people in China also look for somebody to practice English with. In Taiwan, the equivalent of the HSK is the Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language (TOCFL, 華はな語ご文ぶん能力のうりょく測はか驗けん), though it is not as widely available or recognised internationally as the HSK.

• Chinese (Wikibooks.org): Free lessons providing detailed grammar explanations, audio samples and stroke order animations.
• Digital Dialects Chinese: Interactive games for learning Chinese in both Pinyin and simplified characters.
• Chinese Flashcards: Annotated Texts, Flashcards, Multiple choice tests
• Dear Dim Sum, daily small bites Chinese lessons
• Chinese Reading Practice: Annotated stories for learners at varying levels

English-Chinese and Chinese-English dictionaries are often disappointingly incomplete and have surprisingly many errors, at least once you get past the basics. Some decent digital dictionaries include:

• Pleco (possibly the most complete Chinese-English dictionary app aimed at learners)
• Youdao (有道ありみち词典, popular with Chinese students learning English)
• Wiktionary

The first two can be downloaded as apps, and Pleco can be used offline.