Chinese · Beginner (A1) · Chapter 6 of 12
My home
我的家Wǒ de jiā
Show someone around your home in Mandarin: rooms and furniture, where things are with 上, 里 and 旁边, colours, and the measure words 张 and 把.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Name the rooms and the main furniture in a home
- Say where things are: on, in, next to
- Describe things with adjectives and colours
- Use the measure words 张 (zhāng) and 把 (bǎ), also after 这 (zhè) and 那 (nà)
Listen
Xu Jing shows her friend Ma Tao her new flat in Hangzhou. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Xu Jing
欢迎来我家！
Huānyíng lái wǒ jiā!
Welcome to my place!
Ma Tao
谢谢！你的新家很漂亮。
Xièxie! Nǐ de xīn jiā hěn piàoliang.
Thanks! Your new flat is lovely.
Xu Jing
这是客厅，那是厨房。
Zhè shì kètīng, nà shì chúfáng.
This is the living room, and that's the kitchen.
Ma Tao
客厅很大！红色的沙发是新的吗？
Kètīng hěn dà! Hóngsè de shāfā shì xīn de ma?
The living room is big! Is the red sofa new?
Xu Jing
是新的。颜色很漂亮吧？
Shì xīn de. Yánsè hěn piàoliang ba?
Yes, it's new. The colour's lovely, isn't it?
Ma Tao
很漂亮！卧室在哪儿？
Hěn piàoliang! Wòshì zài nǎr?
Very! Where's the bedroom?
Xu Jing
在厨房旁边。卧室里有一张床、一张桌子和一把椅子。
Zài chúfáng pángbiān. Wòshì li yǒu yì zhāng chuáng, yì zhāng zhuōzi hé yì bǎ yǐzi.
Next to the kitchen. In the bedroom there's a bed, a table and a chair.
Ma Tao
你家的房间很大，我的房间太小了！
Nǐ jiā de fángjiān hěn dà, wǒ de fángjiān tài xiǎo le!
The rooms in your flat are big. My room is far too small!
Xu Jing
马涛，你的手机在沙发上。
Mǎ Tāo, nǐ de shǒujī zài shāfā shang.
Ma Tao, your phone's on the sofa.
Ma Tao
谢谢！
Xièxie!
Thanks!
Understand
Where things are: 桌子上, 卧室里
Chinese says “on”, “in” and “next to” after the noun, with a location word: (shāfā shang), on the sofa, literally “sofa on”; (wòshì li), in the bedroom; (chúfáng pángbiān), next to the kitchen. and are said lightly after a noun.
There are two patterns. To say where a known thing is, use (zài): (nǐ de shǒujī zài shāfā shang), your phone is on the sofa. To say what there is in a place, start with the place and use (yǒu): (wòshì li yǒu yì zhāng chuáng), there's a bed in the bedroom.
| Location word | Example |
|---|---|
| (shang), on | (zhuōzi shang), on the table |
| (li), in | (fángjiān li), in the room |
| (xiàmiàn), under | (yǐzi xiàmiàn), under the chair |
| (pángbiān), next to | (shāfā pángbiān), next to the sofa |
How big? 很, 非常, 有点儿, 太…了
As you know from chapter 1, an adjective takes (hěn) and no , and (bù) replaces for “not”: (kètīng hěn dà), the living room is big; (wòshì bú dà), the bedroom isn't big. Other words for “how much” go in the same place, right before the adjective.
(fēicháng) means “very, really”; unlike the light , you really hear it. (yǒudiǎnr) means “a bit”, usually about something you don't like: (yǒudiǎnr xiǎo), a bit small. (tài… le) goes around the adjective and means “too…”: (tài xiǎo le), far too small. With a good word, it just means “so…”: (tài hǎo le!), great!
| Chinese | Meaning |
|---|---|
| (hěn dà) | big |
| (fēicháng dà) | very big, really big |
| (yǒudiǎnr dà) | a bit (too) big |
| (tài dà le) | too big |
| (bú dà) | not big |
Colours with 的, and checking with 吧
Colours end in (sè, colour). Before a noun, add (de): (hóngsè de shāfā), a red sofa. can also stand without a noun: (shì xīn de), it's a new one, it's new. Ask (shénme yánsè?), what colour?
(ba), which you know from making suggestions softer, also turns a statement into a check, like “…, isn't it?”: (yánsè hěn piàoliang ba?), the colour's lovely, isn't it?
| Colour | Chinese |
|---|---|
| red | (hóngsè) |
| yellow | (huángsè) |
| blue | (lánsè) |
| green | (lǜsè) |
| white | (báisè) |
| black | (hēisè) |
| grey | (huīsè) |
Measure words 张 and 把, and with 这 and 那
(zhāng) is for things with a flat surface: tables, beds and photos. (yì zhāng zhuōzi), a table; (yì zhāng chuáng), a bed (, chuáng, bed); (yì zhāng zhàopiàn), a photo.
(bǎ) is for things you hold by a handle, and also for chairs: (yì bǎ yǐzi), a chair. For a room or a sofa, the all-purpose (ge) is fine: (liǎng ge fángjiān), two rooms.
(zhè, this) and (nà, that) take the measure word too, just like numbers: (zhè zhāng zhuōzi), this table; (nà bǎ yǐzi), that chair; (zhè liǎng ge fángjiān), these two rooms. Here are the measure words you know so far, plus (běn) for books (, shū).
| Measure word | For | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (ge) | people and many things | (yí ge dàngāo), a cake |
| (bēi) | cups and glasses of a drink | (yì bēi chá), a cup of tea |
| (píng) | bottles | (yì píng shuǐ), a bottle of water |
| (kǒu) | people in a family | (wǔ kǒu rén), five people (in a family) |
| (zhāng) | flat things: tables, beds, photos | (yì zhāng chuáng), a bed |
| (bǎ) | chairs, things with a handle | (yì bǎ yǐzi), a chair |
| (běn) | books | (yì běn shū), a book |
More in the grammar: Adjectives and 很 · Measure words · 有 and 在, and location words · 的: possession and describing
New words
- 欢迎来我家huānyíng lái wǒ jiāwelcome to my home · (huānyíng), welcome; (lái), to come.
- 新xīnnew
- 漂亮piàoliangpretty, beautiful, lovely
- 客厅kètīngliving room
- 厨房chúfángkitchen
- 大dàbig · (bú dà), not big.
- 沙发shāfāsofa
- 颜色yánsècolour · (shénme yánsè?), What colour?
- 卧室wòshìbedroom
- 张zhāng(measure word for tables, beds, photos) · (yì zhāng chuáng), a bed.
- 桌子zhuōzitable, desk · Measure word (zhāng).
- 椅子yǐzichair · Measure word (bǎ): (yì bǎ yǐzi).
- 房间fángjiānroom
- 小xiǎosmall · (tài xiǎo le), too small.
Practise
1.How do you say “There's a table in the bedroom”?
2.Put the words in order: your phone is on the sofa.
Tap the words below in the right order.Your phone is on the sofa.
3.Match the colours.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
4.How do you say “this chair”?
5.Put the words in order: my room is far too small.
Tap the words below in the right order.My room is far too small!
6.You love Xu Jing's flat. How do you say “The living room is really big”?
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
欢迎来我家！
Huānyíng lái wǒ jiā!
Welcome to my home!
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.