Nihao! 你好! (Hello. How do you do?)
ni - you; hao - good
Nihao ma? 你好吗? (How are you?)
Hen hao. 很好。(Very good.)
Xiexie. 谢谢。(Thank you.)
four tones in Chinese.
Do you want to invite your Chinese friends to have fun together, such as having a meal, going shopping, or asking for a dance? The pattern for an invitation goes like this:
Gēnwǒ …, hǎo ma?
跟我…, 好吗？
May I invite you to … with me?
跟我 gēnwǒ, with me
好吗？hǎo ma? = OK? It is a kind way to ask permission.
Words and phrases:
跳(个)舞 tiào (gè) wǔ, dance
吃晚饭 chī wǎnfàn, have dinner
玩 wán, play, have fun
逛街 guàngjiē, go shopping
Let’s practise now:
–May I have a dance with you?
跟我跳个舞，好吗？hǎo ma?
gēn wǒ tiào gè wǔ, hǎo ma?
–May I invite you for dinner with me?
跟我吃晚饭，好吗？
gēn wǒ chī wǎnfàn, hǎo ma?
–Could we go out for fun together?
跟我出去玩，好吗？
gēn wǒ chūqù wán, hǎo ma?
–Could you go shopping with me?
跟我去逛街，好吗?
gēn wǒ qù guàngjiē, hǎo ma?
经理 jīnglǐ Manager / 是 rènshi to Know (recognize) / 小姐 xiǎojiě Ms. /
先生 xiānshēng Mr.
认识 rènshi means to be acquainted with or familiar with something or someone. It can also mean to recognize or able to read (Chinese written characters, for instance).
A common title for men is 先生 xiānsheng, the character 先 xiān means “first” and the second character 生 shēng is a recurring component of many Mandarin Chinese words and can mean anything from “life” to “fresh”. In this case, it means “born”, so that 先生 xiānsheng literally means “first born (son)”, a position of respect in traditional Chinese culture.
先生 xiānsheng is the equivalent of the English title “Mr.”; although unlike in English, the title comes after the family name.
Example sentences:
你 认识 他的 老师 吗？ Do you know his teacher?
Nǐ rènshi tāde lǎoshī ma?
You recognize-know he-of old-master question?
我 认识 他。 I know him.
Wǒ rènshi tā.
I recognize-know him.
我 认识 王 小姐。I know Ms. Wang.
Wǒ rènshi Wáng xiǎojiě.
I recognize-know Wang small-older-sister.
她 认识 这个 经理。She knows the manger.
Tā rènshi zhègè jīnglǐ.
She recognize-knows classic-logic.
他 不 认识 陈 先生。He doesn’t know Mr. Chen.
Tā bú rènshi Chén xiānsheng.
He not recognize-know Chen first-born.
你 认识 我 姐姐 吗？ Do you know my older sister?
Nǐ rènshi wǒ jiějie ma?
You recognize-know I-of older sister question?
你 认识 杨 先生 吗？ Do you know Mr. Yang?
Nǐ rènshi Yáng xiānsheng ma?
You recognize-know Yang first-born question?
Dialogue
A 你认识王小姐吗?
Nĭ rènshí Wáng xiăojiĕ ma?
Do you know Ms. Wang?
B 是, 她是我的经理。
Shì, tā shì wŏde jīnglĭ
Yes, she is my manager.
A 你喜欢她吗?
Nĭ xǐhuan tā ma?
Do you like her?
B 是, 我很喜欢王经理。
Shì, wŏ hĕn xǐhuan Wáng jīnglĭ.
Yes, I really like Manager Wang.
喜欢 xǐhuan Like / 同学 tóngxué Classmate / 朋友 péngyǒu Friend /
老板 lǎobǎn Boss
喜欢 xǐhuan “to like” consists of two characters, 喜 xǐ and 欢 huān both of which essentially mean the same thing: to like or enjoy something.
Often times you will encounter words in Mandarin that are made of two characters with similar meanings joined together, or the exact same character repeated twice. This is especially true in spoken language, as it helps to clarify meaning.
The word order in simple Chinese sentences is the same as in English, with a noun followed by verb followed by the object of the verb, such as in 我 喜欢 印度 。 Wǒ xǐhuan Yìndù. “I like India”.
For the most part, Chinese word order or syntax is very similar to English.
Example sentences:
我 喜欢 中国。 I like China.
Wǒ xǐhuan Zhōngguó.
I like-pleased middle-country.
他 很 喜欢 美国。 He really likes the United States.
Tā hěn xǐhuan Měiguó.
He very like-pleased beautiful country.
你 喜欢 茶 吗? Do you like tea?
Nǐ xǐhuan chá ma?
You like-pleased tea question?
我 不 喜欢 这本 书。I don’t like this book.
Wǒ bù xǐhuan zhèběn shū.
I not like-pleased this-origin book.
他 不 喜欢 他的 同学们。 He doesn’t like his classmates.
Tā bù xǐhuan tāde tóngxuémen.
He not like-pleased his-of same-study-plural.
我 很 喜欢 你的 朋友。 I like your friend very much.
Wǒ hěn xǐhuan nǐde péngyǒu.
I very like you-of friend.
你 喜欢 你的 老板 吗? Do you like your boss?
Nǐ xǐhuan nǐde lǎobǎn ma?
You like-pleased you-of old-boss question?
Dialogue
A 你朋友喜欢茶吗?
Nĭ péngyou xǐhuan chá ma?
Does your friend like tea?
B 不太喜欢。你喜欢茶吗?
Bù tài xǐhuan. nĭ xǐhuan chá ma ?
Not that much. Do you like tea?
A 是的。我很喜欢花茶。
Shìde. wŏ hĕn xǐhuan huāchá
Yes. I like perfume tea.
B 我也很喜欢花茶。
Wŏ yĕ hĕn xǐhuan huāchá
I also like perfume tea.
中国 means “China”. The word is made up of two characters, 中 zhōng meaning “middle” and 国 guó meaning “country”. Thus, the literally translation of 中国 Zhōngguó is “Middle Country”, although a more meaningful translation might be “The Central Country”. You sometimes see China referred to as “The Middle Kingdom”, this is why.
As you might guess, the character 国 guó appears quite often, such as in the name of another country, 美国 or “the USA”. 美 měi means “beautiful” and is another high-frequency word. So in Chinese, the name for the United States, 美国 Měiguó, literally means “Beautiful Country”.
To say that someone is from a country, simply add 人 rén to the end of the country’s name. The character 人 rén means “person” or “people” depending on the context, and looks similar to a profile of a person walking one foot in front of the other. Thus, 中国人 Zhōngguórén means “Chinese person” or “Chinese people”, and 美国人 Měiguórén means “American person” or “American people”.
Example sentences:
他 是 我的 老板。He is my boss.
Tā shì wǒde lǎobǎn.
He is I-of old-boss.
我 爸爸 是 商人。My father is a businessperson.
Wǒ bàbɑ shì shāngrén.
My papa is commerce-person.
你 是 中国人 吗? Are you Chinese?
Nǐ shì Zhōngguórén ma?
You are middle-country-person?
你的 同事 是 美国人 吗? Is your coworker an American?
Nǐde tóngshì shì Měiguórén ma?
You-of same-affairs is beautiful-country-person question?
老师 是 中国人。The teacher is Chinese.
Lǎoshī shì Zhōngguórén.
Old-master is middle-country-person.
陈 先生 不 是 美国人。Mr. Chen is not American.
Chén xiānsheng bú shì Měiguórén.
Chen first-born not is beautiful-country-person.
那些 学生 是 韩国人。Those students are Korean.
Nàxiē xuéshēng shì Hánguórén.
Study-born-plural are han-country-people.
Dialogue
A 你爸是商人吗?
Nĭ bà shì shāngrén ma?
Is your father a businessperson?
B 不是。是医生
Bú shì. Shì yīshēng.
No, he’s not. My father is a doctor.
A 你是医生吗?
Nĭ shì yīshēng ma?
Are you a doctor?
B 不是。我是老师。
Bú shì. Wŏ shì lǎoshī.
No, I’m not. I’m a teacher.
早上 zǎoshang, morning
中午 zhōngwǔ, noon
下午 xiàwǔ, afternoon
晚上 wǎnshang, evening, night早上 好 zǎoshang hǎo. Good morning!
下午 好 xiàwǔ hǎo. Good afternoon!
晚上 好 wǎnshang hǎo. Good night!
o’clock (点钟 diǎnzhōng) - 9:00 (jiǔ diǎnzhōng 九点钟)
half = 30 minutes (bàn 半) - 7:30 (qī diǎn bàn 七点半)
minute (fēn分) - 3:56 (sān diǎn wǔ shí liù fēn三点五十六分)
a quarter = 15 minutes (yí kè 一刻)The simple way for TIME expressions:
You say the general time of the day (moring / noon / afternoon / evening) for the first part, then you come to the exact time (hour and minutes) for the second. For the exact time, hour goes before the minute. For example:
7:00 AM 早上七点钟
3:56 三点五十六分
7:30 七点三十分， 七点半
7:15 七点十五分， 七点一刻
拜拜 bye-bye、可口可乐 Coca-cola、咖啡 coffee、巧克力 chocolate、汉堡包hamburger、巴士 bus 、卡通 cartoon、台风 typhoon、黑客 hacker、因特网 Internet.
You’d better learn to practice all of them with pinyin and English translation. Any problems with these borrowed words, please turn to ChineseHour teachers online, we are ready to help you any hour of the day.
ChineseHour现代汉语外来词目录
A
奥林匹克 ào lín pǐ kè, Olympic 国际奥林匹克运动
阿斯匹林 āsīpǐlín, aspirin 乙酰水杨酸，解热镇痛药 阿司匹林
奥斯卡 àosīkǎ, Oscar 美国电影金像奖
爱滋病 àizībìng, AIDS - acquired immunodeficiency syndrome 获得性免疫缺损综合症
B
芭蕾（舞）bālěi, ballet 一种起源于意大利的舞剧
巴士 bāshì, bus 公共汽车
拜拜 bàibai , bye-bye 再见
白兰地bái lán dì, brandy 用葡萄等发酵蒸馏制成的酒
百事可乐bǎishì kělè, Pepsi-Cola 一种饮料品牌
保龄球bǎolíng qiú, bowling 一种室内体育运动项目
奔驰bēnchí, Benz 德国汽车品牌
绷带 bēngdài , bandage 包扎患处的纱布带
必胜客 bìshèngkè, Pizza Hut
比基尼 bǐjīní, bikini 泳装
冰淇淋 bīngqílín, ice-cream 雪糕 冰激凌、冰淇凌、冰其淋、冰激淋
D
打 dǎ, dozen 十二个为一打 大、打臣、大臣
代沟 dàigōu, generation gap 两代人价值观念等方面的差异
迪斯科 dísīkē, disco 放送流行乐曲唱片供人跳舞的夜总会，的士高
迪斯尼 dísīní, Disneyland 美国迪斯尼乐园
丁克族 dīngkè zú, dink 双收入无子女家庭成员
吨 dūn, ton 公制重量单位
G
高尔夫 gāo ěr fū, golf高尔夫体育运动
咖喱 gālí, curry 用胡椒、茴香等粉末制成的调味品
古兰经 gǔlánjīng, Koran 伊斯兰教的经典
H
哈雷彗星 hāléi huìxīng, Halley’s comet
汉堡包 hànbǎo bāo, hamburger 用牛肉馅做成的小包。
好莱坞 hǎoláiwù, Hollywood 美国加利福尼亚州洛杉矶市的一区，指称美国电影业或美国电影界等
荷尔蒙 héěrměng , hormone 激素
黑客 hēikè, hacker 指非法入侵他人计算机网络者 骇客
华尔街 huáěrjiē, Wall Street 美国纽约的一条街
华尔兹 huáěrzī, waltz 一种圆舞曲
J
基督 jīdū, Jesus 基督教称救世主
基因 jīyīn, gene 具有特定的核苷酸顺序的核酸分子中的一个片断，储蓄特定遗传信息的功能单位
吉他 jítā, guitar 六弦琴，一种拨弦乐器 吉它、吉榻、吉泰、结他
酒吧 jiǔbā, bar 西餐馆或旅馆中所设的卖酒专柜
爵士舞 juéshìwǔ, jazz dance / music
K
咖啡 kāfēi, coffee 用咖啡种子的粉末制成的饮料 加啡、架啡
卡车 kǎchē, car 运输货物的载重汽车
卡片 kǎpiàn, card 用来记录事项的纸片卡
卡拉OK kǎ lā OK, karaoke 伴随音乐歌碟唱歌
开司米 kāisīmǐ, cashmere 原指克什米尔地方所产的山羊绒毛，现泛指优良的羊绒织品
拷贝 kǎobèi, copy 复印，复制
可口可乐 kěkǒu kělè, Coca-cola 一种国外饮料品牌
克拉 kèlā, carat 宝石的重量单位
克隆 kèlóng, clone 无性繁殖
酷 kù, cool
L
拉力赛 lālìsài, rally
镭射 léishè, laser 激光 莱塞、镭射、雷射、莱泽、睐则
雷达 léidá, radar — radio detecting and ranging的词头拼合而成 理想
罗曼蒂克 luó màn dì kè, romantic 浪漫
M
马拉松 mǎlāsōng, marathon 超长距离赛跑，全程为42.195公里
麦克风 màikèfēng , microphone 话筒，扩音器 麦格风、麦克
麦当劳 màidāngláo, McDonald
芒果 mángguǒ, mango 指一种常绿植物或其果实 杧果、檬果、蚊胶
迷你裙 mínǐ qún, miniskirt 一种超短裙
米 mǐ, metre 长度单位
模特 mote, model 展示服装的人或模型
N
霓虹灯 níhóng dēng, neon 一种发出多种颜色的灯
尼龙 nílóng, nylon 一种合成纤维 尼纶
牛顿 niúdùn, Newton 英国科学家名
诺贝尔 nuòbèiěr, Nobel 瑞典科学家名
O
欧佩克 ōupèikè, OPEC 石油输出国组织
P
派pài, pie 一种西点，馅饼 排、批、攀
潘多拉魔盒 pānduōlā móhé, Pandora’s box 希腊神话中宙斯给潘多拉的一个里面藏有疾病、疯狂、罪恶、嫉妒等祸患的盒子。
披头士 pītóushì, Beetles 原义指硬壳虫乐队及其成员
啤酒 píjiǔ, beer 以大麦等原料发酵制成的酒
扑克 pūkè, poker 一种纸牌
Q
恰恰舞 qiàqià wǔ, cha-cha 一种现代交际舞，节奏明快、急速，起源与拉丁美洲
巧克力 qiǎokèlì, chocolate 以可可粉等为原料制成的食品 朱古力
R
热狗 règǒu, hotdog 中间夹有热香肠、酸菜、芥末油等的面包
软件 ruǎnjiàn, software
S
三明治 sānmíngzhì, sandwich 一种夹心面包 三文治
桑拿浴 sāngná yù, sauna 芬兰式蒸汽浴 桑那浴、桑纳浴
色拉 sèlā, salad 西餐中的一种凉拌菜 沙拉、沙辣、沙律
色拉油 sèlā yóu, salad oil 一种调制色拉的上等植物油
沙发 shāfā, sofa
山姆大叔 shānmǔ dàshū, Uncle Sam 美国别称
T
台风 táifēng, typhoon
坦克 tǎnkè, tank
踢踏舞 tītà wǔ, tittup 一种以皮鞋击地作声的舞蹈
贴士 tiēshì, tip 提示, 建议
听 tīng, tin 罐
图腾 túténg, totem 原始人人为的与本氏族有特殊神秘关系的某种动物、植物或无生物，即为该氏族的保护者和徽记
托福 tuōfú, TOEFL — Test of English as a Foreign Language
脱口秀 tuōkǒu xiù, talk show 指一种谈话式的节目
W
微软 wēiruǎn, Microsoft Corporation
伟哥 wěigē, vigor 一种美国性功能药品
维他命 wéitāmìng, vitamin 维生素
外包 wàibāo, outsourcing
X
嬉皮士 xīpíshì, Hippies 指美国在20世纪60年代出现的不满现实而带有颓废色彩的青年
席梦思 xímèngsī, simmons 一种有弹簧装置的床垫
香波 xiāngbō, shampoo 护发洗涤用品
歇斯底里 xiēsīdǐlǐ, hysteric 癔病，一种精神病
休克 xiūkè, shock
雪茄 xuějiā, cigar 用烟叶卷成的烟，比一般香烟粗且长
Y
雅皮士 yǎpíshì, Yuppies 指现代美国都市中年轻的专业人士
雅思 yǎsī, IELTS — International English Language Testing System
伊妹儿 yīmèir , E-mail 电子邮件
引擎 yǐnqíng , engine 发动机
因特网 yīntèwǎng, Internet
幽默 yōumò, humor
犹大 yóudà, Judas 出卖耶稣的叛徒
Z
侏罗纪 zhūluójì, Jurassic period 地质年代中生带的第二个纪
Wall St slumps as Lehman collapses, Merrill sold. US shares went into a freefall overnight as part of a global rout after a bankruptcy at Lehman Brothers stoked fears about contagion affecting world markets and the economy.
雷曼兄弟 léimàn xiōngdì, Lehman Brothers
美林证券 měilín zhèngquàn, Merrill Lynch
美国国际集团 měiguó guójì jítuán, American International Group (AIG)
摩根士丹利 mógēn shìdānlì， Morgan Stanley
高盛集团 gāoshèng jítuán，Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
房地美 fáng dì měi, Freddie Mac
房利美 fáng lì měi, Fannie Mae
美联储 měi lián chǔ, the US Federal Reserve
纽约证交所 niǔyuē zhèng jiāo suǒ, New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
美国财政部 měiguó cáizhèng bù, the US Treasury Department
白宫 báigōng, White House
布什政府 bùshí zhèngfǔ, Bush Administration
国会 guóhuì, Congress
———-
华尔街金融危机 huáěrjiē jīnróng wēijī, financial crisis on Wall Street
次贷危机 cìdài wēijī, subprime mortgage crisis
信贷危机 xìndài wēijī, credit crisis
股市暴跌 gǔshì bàodiē, Stock markets drop sharply.
破产 pòchǎn , bankruptcy
申请破产保护 shēnqǐng pòchǎn bǎohù, to file for bankruptcy protection
救市 jiù shì, to save the financial market
收购 shōugòu, to buy
投资银行 tóuzī yínháng，investment banks
商业银行 shāngyè yínháng，commercial bank
不良资产 bùliáng zīchǎn, bad debt
巨额注资行动 jùé zhùzī xíngdòng, giant liquidity operation
紧急财政援助 jǐnjí cáizhèng yuánzhù, financial bailout
———-
一保一控 yī bǎo yī kòng, to strike a delicate growth-inflation balance
– Premier Wen Jiabao said China should strike a balance between stable, comparatively fast economic growth and inflation control in macroeconomic management.
经济增长 jīngjì zēngzhǎng, economic growth
通货膨胀 tōnghuò péngzhàng, inflation
Shopping is a very common thing in everyone’s daily life. Usually people want to get goods at low prices with high qualities. How to get this kind of goods? Of course, Bargain! Saving money means to earn money! Bargaining is acceptable in most Chinese stores, except in the supermarket or some shopping malls in which the goods have clear fixed prices and the staff is not allowed to grant discretionary markdowns. Try bargaining every time you shop, you may get a great price reduction and enjoy the fun and pleasure of shopping. Now, Mike is in a store Bargaining with the shopkeeper. Could he make down the price? Let’s listen to today’s lesson. ..
If you mention Chinese arts, Beijing opera京剧（Jing Ju） maybe is the first one you can think of. Many foreigners think Peking opera is the only opera in China. But actually there are 368 different forms of opera throughout the country. How’s that much ? Each variety takes its name from the place where it originated and is popular. The use of local dialects and unique melidies distinguish the different types of opera. Among the best known forms are Beijing Opera (actually a national form). And just six big is popular in China .Check about them, all in Mandarin… ..
