Important Chinese words used in daily life.
Chinese Phonetic Alphabet (Initial Consonant) | |||
| b (As in bay) | k (As in kit) | z (As in reads) | |
| p (As in pay) | h (As in hat) | c (As in hats) | |
| m (As in may) | j (As in jeep) | s (As in say) | |
| f (As in far) | q (As in cheer) | w (As in way) | |
| d (As in day) | x (As in she) | y (As in yes) | |
| t (As in time) | zh (As in jade) | ||
| n (As in nay) | ch (As in church) | ||
| l (As in lay) | sh (As in shirt) | ||
| g (As in go) | r (As in leisure) | ||
Orientation | |||
| 东 | Dong1 | East | |
| 西 | Xi1 | West | |
| 南 | Nan2 | South | |
| 北 | Bei3 | North | |
| 中 | Zhong1 | Middle | |
| 上 | Shang4 | Up | |
| 下 | Xia4 | Down | |
| 左 | Zuo3 | Left | |
| 右 | You4 | Right | |
| 前 | Qian2 | Before | |
| 后 | Hou4 | After | |
| 里 (内) | Li3 or Nei4 | Inside | |
| 外 | Wai4 | Outside | |
Geography | |||
| 山 | Shan1 | Mountain | |
| 谷 | Gu3 | Valley | |
| 江(河) | Jiang1 or He2 | River | |
| 湖 | Hu2 | Lake | |
| 海 | Hai3 | Sea | |
| 湾 | Wan1 | Bay, Gulf | |
| 渠 | Qu2 | Dyke, Channel | |
| 峡 | Xia2 | Gorge, Canyon | |
| 街 | Jie1 | Street | |
| 路 | Lu4 | Road | |
| 巷 | Xiang4 | Alley, Lane | |
Numbers 1 | |||
| Number | Chinese Pinyin | ||
| 0 | Ling2 | ||
| 1 | Yi1 | ||
| 2 | Er4 | ||
| 3 | San1 | ||
| 4 | Si4 | ||
| 5 | Wu3 | ||
| 6 | Liu4 | ||
| 7 | Qi1 | ||
| 8 | Ba1 | ||
| 9 | Jiu3 | ||
| 10 | Shi2 | ||
| 11 | Shi2 Yi1 | ||
| 12 | Shi2 Er4 | ||
| 20 | Er4 Shi2 | ||
| 21 | Er4 Shi2 Yi1 | ||
| 30 | San1 Shi2 | ||
| 31 | San1 Shi2 Yi1 | ||
| 100 | Yi1 Bai3 | ||
| 101 | Yi1 Bai3 Ling2 Yi1 | ||
| 110 | Yi1 Bai3 Yi1 (Shi2) | ||
| 115 | Yi1 Bai3 Yi1 Shi2 Wu3 | ||
| 200 | Er4 Bai3 | ||
| 201 | Er4 Bai3 Ling | ||
| 1,000 | Yi1 Qian1 | ||
| 1,001 | Yi1 Qian1 Ling2 Yi1 | ||
| 10,000 | Yi1 Wan4 | ||
| 10,001 | Yi1 Wan4 Ling2 Yi1 | ||
| 100,000 | Shi2 Wan4 | ||
| 200,000 | Er4 Shi2 Wan4 | ||
| 1,000,000 | Yi1 Bai3 Wan4 | ||
| 2,000,000 | Er4 Bai3 Wan4 | ||
| 10,000,000 | Yi1 Qian1 Wan4 | ||
| 20,000,000 | Er4 Qian1 Wan4 or Liang3 Qian1 Wan4 | ||
| 100,000,000 | Yi1 Yi4 | ||
| 200,000,000 | Er4 Yi4 or Liang3 Yi4 | ||
| 1,000,000,000 | Shi2 Yi4 | ||
| 2,000,000,000 | Er4 Shi2 Yi4 | ||
Numbers 2 | |||
| Chinese Character | Chinese Pinyin | English Meaning | |
| 百 | Bai3 | Hundred | |
| 千 | Qian1 | Thousand | |
| 万 | Wan4 | Ten Thousand | |
| 十万 | Shi2 Wan4 | A Hundred Thousand | |
| 百万 | Bai3 Wan4 | Million | |
| 千万 | Qian1 Wan4 | Ten Million | |
| 亿 | Yi4 | A Hundred Million | |
| 十亿 | Shi2 Yi4 | Billion | |
| 百亿 | Bai3 Yi4 | Ten Billion | |
| 千亿 | Qian1 Yi4 | A Hundred Billion | |
Pronoun | |||
| 你 | Ni3 | You | |
| 我 | Wo3 | I, Me | |
| 他 | Ta1 | He, Him | |
| 她 | Ta1 | She, Her | |
| 它 | Ta1 | It | |
| 你们 | Ni2 Men | You (plural form) | |
| 我们 | Wo2 Men | We, Us | |
| 她们 | Ta1 Men | They, Them (female) | |
| 他们 | Ta1 Men | They, Them (male) | |
| 它们 | Ta1 Men | They, Them (Not personal) | |
| 这个 | Zhe4 Ge | This | |
| 那个 | Na4 Ge | That | |
| 这些 | Zhe4 Xie1 | These | |
| 那些 | Na4 Xie1 | Those | |
Polite Expressions | |||
| 请 | Qing3 | Please | |
| 劳驾 | Lao2 Jia4 | Excuse me | |
| 你好 | Ni3 Hao3 | Hello, Hi | |
| 谢谢 | Xie4 Xie4 | Thank you | |
| 不用谢 | Bu2 Yong4 Xie4 | You’re welcome | |
| 对不起 | Dui4 Bu4 Qi3 | Sorry | |
| 没关系 | Mei2 Guan1 Xi4 | It doesn’t matter | |
| 再见 | Zai4 Jian4 | Goodbye | |
Transportation | |||
| 机场 | Ji1 Chang3 | Airport | |
| 火车站 | Huo3 Che1 Zhan4 | Railway Station | |
| 汽车站 | Qi4 Che1 Zhan4 | Bus Station | |
| 公交车站 | Gong1 Jiao1 Che1 Zhan4 | Public Bus Station | |
| 飞机 | Fei1 Ji1 | Airplane | |
| 火车 | Huo3 Che1 | Train | |
| 汽车 | Qi4 Che1 | Bus | |
| 公交车 | Gong1 Jiao1 Che1 | Public Bus | |
| 出租车 | Chu1 Zu1 Che1 | Taxi | |
| 自行车 | Zi1 Xing2 Che1 | Bicycle | |
| 游船 | You2 Chuan2 | Cruise Ship | |
| 码头 | Ma3 Tou2 | Dock | |
City Facilities | |||
| 酒店 | Jiu3 Dian4 | Hotel | |
| 餐馆 | Can1 Guan3 | Restaurant | |
| 医院 | Yi1 Yuan4 | Hospital | |
| 邮局 | You2 Ju2 | Post Office | |
| 银行 | Yin2 Hang2 | Bank | |
| 警察局 | Jing3 Cha2 Ju2 | Police Office | |
| 商店 | Shang1 Dian4 | Shop | |
| 厕所洗手间卫生间 | Ce4 Suo3 Xi3 Shou3 Jian1 Wei4 Sheng1 Jian1 | Washroom | |
| 书店 | Shu1 Dian4 | Book Store | |
| 书 | Shu1 | Book | |
| 地图 | Di4 Tu2 | Map | |
Self-introduction | |||
| 你叫什么名字？ | Ni3 Jiao4 Shen2 Me Ming2 Zi4 ? | What’ your name ? | |
| 我叫… | Wo3 Jiao4… | My name is…/ I’m… | |
| 你是哪里人？ | Ni3 Shi4 Na3 Li3 Ren2? | Where are you from? | |
| 我是…人 | Wo3 Shi4 … Ren2. | I come from … | |
Bargaining | |||
| 多少钱？ | Duo1 Shao3 Qian2 ? | How much is it? | |
| 太贵了 | Tai4 Gui4 Le | That’s too expensive. | |
| 便宜点？ | Pian2 Yi Dian3 ? | Could you give me a discount? Could you come down a little? Could you give me a better price? | |
Ask for Directions | |||
| …怎么走？ | … Zen3 Me Zou3 ? | How can I get to …? | |
| 我要去… | Wo3 Yao4 Qu4… | I want to go to … | |
| …在哪里？ | …Zai4 Na3 Li3? | Where is the …? | |
| 我迷路了 | Wo3 Mi2 Lu4 Le | I’m lost. | |
| 这是我的地址 | Zhe4 Shi4 Wo3 De Di4 Zhi3 | Here’s my address. | |
Willing Expressions | |||
| 我要… 我想要… 我需要… | Wo3 Yao4… Wo3 Xiang3 Yao4… Wo3 Xu1 Yao4… | I want… I would like… I need… | |
Other Expressions for Everyday Use | |||
| 你能帮我吗？ | Ni3 Neng2 Bang1 Wo3 Ma1? | Could you please help me ? | |
| 你有没有…? | Ni3 You3 Mei2 You3…? | Do you have …? | |
| 几点了？ | Ji3 Dian3 Le ? | What’s the time? | |
| 我病了我不舒服 | Wo3 Bing4 Le Wo3 Bu4 Shu1 Fu | I fell ill. | |
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