Chinese · Beginner (A1) · Chapter 12 of 12
Your first conversation
第一次聊天Dì-yī cì liáotiān
Put all of A1 together in a chat on a Chinese high-speed train: where you live, study and work, how to address people, and every type of question.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Have a short conversation with a stranger
- Say where you live, study and work
- Address people politely: 叔叔, 阿姨, 老师 and more
- Use all the question types from A1
Listen
On the high-speed train from Beijing to Xi'an, student Li Xiaomei, 22, chats with Mr He, a retired teacher in his sixties. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Mr He
你好！你去哪儿？
Nǐ hǎo! Nǐ qù nǎr?
Hello! Where are you going?
Li Xiaomei
叔叔好！我去西安。我是大学生，在西安学习。
Shūshu hǎo! Wǒ qù Xī'ān. Wǒ shì dàxuéshēng, zài Xī'ān xuéxí.
Hello! I'm going to Xi'an. I'm a university student; I study in Xi'an.
Mr He
你家在北京吗？
Nǐ jiā zài Běijīng ma?
Is your family in Beijing?
Li Xiaomei
对，我爸爸妈妈住在北京。您去西安出差吗？
Duì, wǒ bàba māma zhù zài Běijīng. Nín qù Xī'ān chūchāi ma?
Yes, my parents live in Beijing. Are you going to Xi'an on business?
Mr He
不是。我孩子住在西安，他在一家公司工作。
Bú shì. Wǒ háizi zhù zài Xī'ān, tā zài yì jiā gōngsī gōngzuò.
No. My son lives in Xi'an; he works for a company there.
Li Xiaomei
叔叔，您做什么工作？
Shūshu, nín zuò shénme gōngzuò?
What do you do for a living?
Mr He
我是老师。我姓何。
Wǒ shì lǎoshī. Wǒ xìng Hé.
I'm a teacher. My surname is He.
Li Xiaomei
何老师好！我叫李小美。您知道高铁几点到西安吗？
Hé lǎoshī hǎo! Wǒ jiào Lǐ Xiǎoměi. Nín zhīdào gāotiě jǐ diǎn dào Xī'ān ma?
Hello, Mr He! I'm Li Xiaomei. Do you know what time the train gets to Xi'an?
Mr He
下午两点半到。我们一起聊天吧！
Xiàwǔ liǎng diǎn bàn dào. Wǒmen yìqǐ liáotiān ba!
At half past two in the afternoon. Let's have a chat!
Li Xiaomei
好啊！
Hǎo a!
Sure!
Understand
Where you live and work: 住在…, 在…工作
(zhù) means “to live”. The place comes after it, with (zài): (wǒ zhù zài Běijīng), I live in Beijing. This is one of the few verbs where the place follows.
With most other verbs, + place comes before the verb, as you learned in chapter 4: (wǒ zài Xī'ān xuéxí), I study in Xi'an; (tā zài yì jiā gōngsī gōngzuò), he works for a company. Companies, shops and restaurants take the measure word (jiā).
Ask (nǐ zhù zài nǎr?), where do you live?, (nǐ zài nǎr gōngzuò?), where do you work?, and (nǐ zuò shénme gōngzuò?), what's your job?
- 我爸爸妈妈住在北京。Wǒ bàba māma zhù zài Běijīng.My parents live in Beijing.
- 我在大学学习。Wǒ zài dàxué xuéxí.I study at university.
- 你在哪儿工作？Nǐ zài nǎr gōngzuò?Where do you work?
How to address people
Chinese often uses a family word or a job title instead of a name. A younger person calls a man of their parents' age (shūshu, uncle) and a woman (āyí, auntie), even strangers. Taxi drivers and skilled workers are (shīfu). Teachers are (lǎoshī), with the surname first: (Hé lǎoshī), Mr He, the teacher.
To give your surname, say (wǒ xìng…). Friends and colleagues often use (xiǎo, little) + surname for someone younger, (Xiǎo Lǐ), and (lǎo, old) + surname for someone older, (Lǎo Wáng). Both sound warm, not rude.
| Word | For |
|---|---|
| (shūshu) | a man about your parents' age |
| (āyí) | a woman about your parents' age |
| (shīfu) | drivers, cooks, repair workers |
| (Hé lǎoshī) | a teacher called He |
| (Xiǎo Lǐ) | a younger friend or colleague called Li |
All the questions you know
Every Chinese question keeps the word order of a statement. Here are all the types from A1 together. (zhīdào) means “to know (a fact)”, and it's a good polite start: (nín zhīdào… ma?), do you know…? You met (dào) in chapter 4 as “to reach”; with a train or a person it means “to arrive”: (jǐ diǎn dào Xī'ān?), what time does it get to Xi'an?
| Type | Example |
|---|---|
| add (ma) | (nǐ jiā zài Běijīng ma?) |
| (ne): and you? | (wǒ shì xuésheng, nǐ ne?) |
| question word in place of the answer | (nǐ qù nǎr?), (jǐ diǎn dào?) |
| A (háishi) B | (nǐ shì lǎoshī háishi xuésheng?) |
| A-not-A | (nǐ shì bu shì dàxuéshēng?) |
More in the grammar: Asking questions · Pronouns and 你 vs 您 · Word order: subject, time, place, verb · 有 and 在, and location words
New words
- 去哪儿qù nǎrwhere are you going? · (qù), to go. Also a friendly everyday greeting.
- 叔叔shūshuuncle; sir · For a man about your parents' age, even a stranger.
- 大学dàxuéuniversity · (dàxuéshēng), university student.
- 学生xuéshengstudent
- 学习xuéxíto study, to learn
- 住zhùto live, to stay · (zhù zài Běijīng), to live in Beijing.
- 出差chūchāito go on a business trip
- 孩子háizichild; son or daughter
- 公司gōngsīcompany, firm · Measure word (jiā): (yì jiā gōngsī).
- 做什么工作zuò shénme gōngzuòwhat job do you do? · (gōngzuò), to work; a job.
- 老师lǎoshīteacher · Also used as a title: (Hé lǎoshī).
- 知道zhīdàoto know (a fact) · (wǒ bù zhīdào), I don't know.
- 高铁gāotiěhigh-speed train · Short for (gāosù tiělù), high-speed railway.
- 聊天liáotiānto chat
Practise
1.On the train, you want to greet a friendly man in his sixties. What do you say?
2.Put the words in order: he works for a company.
Tap the words below in the right order.He works for a company.
3.Match the words.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
4.How do you say “I live in Beijing”?
5.Put the words in order to ask Mr He politely what his job is.
Tap the words below in the right order.What do you do for a living?
6.Which question means “Are you a teacher or a student?”
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
我住在北京，在一家公司工作。
Wǒ zhù zài Běijīng, zài yì jiā gōngsī gōngzuò.
I live in Beijing and work for a company.
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.