Chinese Vocabulary · 中文詞彙中文词汇 Family and Pronoun Words in Chinese 家庭與代名詞詞彙家庭与代名词词汇 jiātíng yǔ dàimíngcí cíhuì Before we get into the vocabulary, a bit of context: traditional Chinese culture puts a lot of weight on respect and harmony within the family, a mindset that traces back to Confucian values. These days, younger generations are drifting away…
Category: HSK 1
Nature and Animal Words in Chinese
Chinese Vocabulary · 中文詞彙中文词汇 Nature and Animal Words in Chinese 自然與動物詞彙自然与动物词汇 zìrán yǔ dòngwù cíhuì Before we get to the vocab, let me tell you about the weirdest family in Chinese mythology: the weather family. There’s 雷公雷公 (léigōng, Thunder Father), 電母电母 (diànmǔ, Lightning Mother), 風伯风伯 (fēngbó, Uncle Wind), 雲童云童 (yúntóng, Cloud Child) — and then,…
Mandarin Tones
OneDotDot Chinese · Tones Tones aren’t hard,they’re just shapes Mandarin tones aren’t a memory test — they’re pitch curves, measured against your own voice, not your teacher’s. Tap a syllable and watch the shape. 媽妈mā 麻麻má 馬马mǎ 罵骂mà 嗎吗ma tap a tile to hear its pitch First Tone — the level tone 陰平阴平 Hold the…
Tones of 一 yī and 不 bù
Grammar Point:The tones of 一 yi and 不 bù can be very confusing for beginners learning Chinese. Let’s explore them together!” 一 yī When counting numbers less than 99 or when 一 yī is the last character in a word, it should always be pronounced with the first tone. 1yī, 2èr, 3sān, 4sì1yī, 2èr, 3sān,…
不 bù and 沒 méi
OneDotDot Chinese Grammar · HSK 1 Grammar Point · HSK 1 不 bù and 沒没 méi Both 不 (bù) and 沒没 (méi) express negation in Chinese — but they belong to different contexts, and mixing them up is one of the most common mistakes learners make. The good news: which one to use almost always…
Chinese Words for Life at School
Chinese Vocabulary · 中文詞彙中文词汇 Chinese Words for Life at School 校園生活詞彙校园生活词汇 xiàoyuán shēnghuó cíhuì Okay, quick reality check before we dive into vocab: school life in Taiwan (and China) is strict. Like, uniform-every-single-day strict. Back in my own high school days, there was an actual hair rule — nothing past 3cm below your ears. Every…
Introduce Yourself in Chinese
我wǒ叫jiào_____ ， 我wǒ是shì_____ 人rén我wǒ叫jiào_____ ， 我wǒ是shì_____ 人rén Call me __(name)__. I am ___(nationality)___ Dialogue A ： 請問qǐngwèn你nǐ叫jiào什麼shénme名字míngzi？ A ： 请问qǐngwèn你nǐ叫jiào什么shénme名字míngzi？ A: What’s your name? B ： 我wǒ叫jiàoBetty B ： 我wǒ叫jiàoBetty B: Call me Betty. A ： Betty 你nǐ是shì哪國nǎguó人rén？ A ： Betty 你nǐ是shì哪国něiguó人rén？ A: Where are you from, Betty? B ： 我wǒ是shì台灣人táiwānrénB ： 我wǒ是shì台湾人táiwānrénB: I am a Taiwanese Simplified (China) Traditional (Taiwan) Vocabulary (Taiwan / China) 請問qǐngwèn你nǐ叫jiào什麼shénme名字míngzi請问qǐngwèn你nǐ叫jiào什么shénme名字míngzi🔊 What’s your name? …
Greetings in Chinese
你好Nǐhǎo你好Nǐhǎo Hello! Dialogue A ： 哈嘍hālou， 我wǒ是shìTiffany A ： 哈罗hālou， 我wǒ是shìTiffany A: Hello, I am Tiffany. B ： 你好nǐhǎo， 我wǒ是shì美美měiměiB ： 你好nǐhǎo， 我wǒ是shì美美měiměiB: Hi, I am Meimei. A ： 美美měiměi你好嗎nǐhǎomaA ： 美美měiměi你好嗎nǐhǎomaA: How are you, Meimei? B ： 我wǒ很好hěnhǎo， 謝謝xièxieB ： 我wǒ很好hěnhǎo， 谢谢xièxieB: I am good, Thank you! Simplified (China) Traditional (Taiwan) Vocabulary (Taiwan — China) 早安zǎo’ān – 早上zǎoshàng好hǎo早安zǎo’ān – 早上zǎoshang好hǎo🔊…
Numbers and Time Words in Chinese
Chinese Vocabulary · 中文詞彙中文词汇 Numbers and Time Words in Chinese 數字與時間詞彙数字与时间词汇 shùzì yǔ shíjiān cíhuì In Chinese culture, not all numbers are treated equally — some are lucky enough to raise a phone number’s resale price, and others are avoided in hospital elevators. The numbers everyone counts with Number Words in Chinese Chinese Pinyin Number…
Date and Season Words in Chinese
Chinese Vocabulary · 中文詞彙中文词汇 Date and Season Words in Chinese 日期與季節詞彙日期与季节词汇 rìqí yǔ jìjié cíhuì Before we get to the date and season words, a little bit about Taiwan’s weather: spring (March–May) is a slow shift from dry to rainy, with daytime temperatures around 23°C — too cold for the beach, but perfect for hot…