This and That in Chinese

This and That in Chinese

Posted on by tiffany

Grammar Point:
The terms “here” and “there” in Chinese can be translated as follows:

  • This: 这个 zhège or 这 zhè
  • That: 那个 nàge or 那 nà

Structure

這/这 or 那 + Measure Word + N

In colloquial and informal contexts, it is possible to drop the measure word.

这zhè个ge蛋糕dàngāo真zhēn好吃hǎochī
This cake is delicious.

那nà位wèi老师lǎoshī很hěn讨厌tǎoyàn
That teacher is annoying.

这zhè是shì我的wǒde吗ma？
Is this mine?

那nà人rén好hǎo漂亮piàoliang！
That person is so beautiful!

这zhè道dào菜cài好hǎo辣là
This dish is spicy.

我wǒ要yào那nà个ge， 谢谢xièxie
I’ll take that one, thank you.

这zhè书shū有够yǒugòu贵guì
This book is really expensive.

FYI
If you want to sound like a true Chinese native speaker, 有够 yǒu gòu is the word you’ve been looking for. It’s like a secret code that instantly boosts your coolness level and adds that native touch to your Chinese conversations. In colloquial Chinese, you can always use the term 有够 yǒu gòu followed by an adjective to express a super strong or exaggerated degree of something. For example, let’s say you taste some mouth-watering dumplings. You could exclaim, 这个饺子有够好吃! zhège jiǎozi yǒugòu hǎochī!, which means “These dumplings are ridiculously delicious!”

Common Mistakes

Two character 那 nà and 哪 nǎ are indeed similar, but they have different meanings. 那 nà is used to indicate “that” and 哪 nǎ is “which” in English.

哪nǎ个ge多少duōshǎo钱qián？ ❌
How much is that?

那nà个ge多少duōshǎo钱qián？ ✅
How much is that?

哪nǎ个ge便宜piányi？ ✅
Which one is cheaper?

Practice

TouchHover over the space to see the answers.

✔️ That is my big house.

那nà个ge是shì我的wǒde大dà房子fángzi

✔️ That lady is my beautiful wife.

那nà位wèi是shì我wǒ美丽měilì的de妻子qīzi

✔️ These are all my dreams.

这zhè都dōu是shì我的wǒde夢mèng

Do you like it? 🙂