Practical Chinese Expressions

----Beijing Life Tips

Made by CUCAS All Rights Reserved

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Contents

Common Phrases.................................................. 1
Basic Greetings ............................................................................. 1
Asking Questions .......................................................................... 1
Places ............................................................................................ 3
Solving Problems .................................................................. 6

Practical Chinese Expressions ............................. 7

Order dishes at a Chinese restaurant ......................... 7
Rent an apartment ....................................................................... 12
Local Transport ................................................................... 16
Travel by train/plane ........................................... 20
See a doctor ................................................................................. 25
Hairdressing ................................................................................ 31

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Common Phrases
Basic Greetings
b yng xi

Youre welcome

du b

Im sor ry

qng wn

Excuse me

Asking Questions
shn me

What

zn me

How

zi n l?
?

Where?

shn me shhou?
?

When?

shi

Who?

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wi shn me?
?

Why?

du sho

How much/ How many ?

q n l zn me zu?
?

How do I get there?

n zh zi n l

Where do you live?

w zh zi

I am living at

w xing mi

I want to buy

w xing q

I want to go

n nng ma

Can you

n nng bng zh w ma

Can you help me to

zh g du sho qin
?

How much does it cost?

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Places
x shu

jin

bathroom

chng t q ch zhn

long distance bus station

d ti

Subway

gng jio ch

Bus

pi ch

police station

su

ch ku

the exit

yn hng

Bank

cho sh

super market

Hospital

yun

xu xio

School

xio q

residential area

shng chng

shopping mall
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din yng yun

movie theater

k fi tng

Caf

ch gun

tea house

fn din

Restaurant

ji b

club/bar

m l

Road

ji

Street

ch zhn

station/stop

hu ji

go back home

mi

Buy

zu tin

Yesterday

jn tin

Today

mng tin

Tomorrow

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zu

Left

yu

Right

nn

South

bi

North

dng

East

West

li

to come

to go

zu

to walk

kn

to look / see/watch

shu

to speak

tng

to listen

yng

to use

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Solving Problems
w tng b dng

I cant understand

n hu shu yng wn ma?

?

Can you speak English?

qng xi xi li

Please write it down

bi pin w le

Dont cheat me

zu ki
!

Go away!

fang ki!

Dont touch me!

qng bng w

Please help me

ji mng!
!

Save me!

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Practical Chinese Expressions

Order dishes at a Chinese restaurant
Waiter:

hun yng gung ln xin shng / n sh qng wn nn j wi

/

Welcome, Sir/Madam, how many people, please?

A:

sn wi

Three.

A:

f w yunqng gi w n ci dn w yo din ci

Waiter, please bring me the menu. Id like to order now.

A:

zh shshme ci yng shme ci lio zu de

w yo gng bo j dng y xing ru s h x hng sh cho j dn

sho fng l jio

What is this dish? What items are used? I want Kung pao chicken, Fish-flavored shredded pork
and scrambled eggs with tomatoes. Less pepper.

Waiter:

ho de hi x yo sh me ji shu ma zh sh x yo sh me

Ok, any drinks, please? And what do you like for your staple food?

A:

b x yo le xi xi zh xi ji gu le

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No need, thanks, these are enough.
Or A :

li sn bi bi shu ji ky leyo ling ki shuzh sh yo sn wn m fn

3
Three glasses of water is Ok. Must be cold water. For the staple food, wed like 3 bowls of rice.

Waiter:

ho de qng sho dng

Ok. Wait for a moment, please.

A:

f w yun ji zhng

Waiter, bring me the bill.

Waiter:

nn honn y gn xio fi le yunqng wn shu k hi sh xin jn

Its yuan in total. Do you want to be charge or cash?

A:

w yng xin jn xi xi

By cash. Thanks.

Order course at Chinese restaurant

In my opinion, Chinese food can be categorized into 2 main types: dish and hotpot.

Order Chinese dish:

The number of dish would better be as the same number of the people. If there are 6 people, the procedures of ordering
dish commonly are like these:
1.

One Cold dish firstly.

y do ling ci

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2.

Five main dish, which are all hot dish including meat and vegetables.
w do r ci bo ku ru ci h sh ci

3. One soup. One Chinese soup is filled in a big pot for all eaters.
y fn tng

4. Staple food as rice or pastry.
zh sh r m fn hu bng.

Order hotpot:
1.

2.

3.

4.

Choose soup base. Commonly is clear soup or spicy soup or two flavors half and half.
xun z gu d qng tng gu d m l gu d hu zh yun yng gu d


Choose small condiment. The sesame paste is the most popular one.
xun z xio lio b r m jing xio lio

Order beef and mutton.
din ni ru h yng ru

Order vegetables and other side food like fish ball and tofu.
din sh ci h pi ci r y wn h du f

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Chinese Dishes
ti bn ni li

qng zhng l y

fillet steak with black pepper sauce on hot plate

steamed perch with scallion and black beans

ru

meat

sh ci

vegetables

ji shu

wine & drinks

yn lio

drinks

p ji

beer

k ku k l / bi sh k l
/

Coca Cola/ Pepsi Cola

xu b

Spirit

l ch

green Tea

chng zh

orange juice

spicy

Xin

salty

qng dn

light flavor
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Tin

sweet

zh sh

staple food

m fn

rice

bng

pasty

Tng

very hot

hu gu

hotpot

gu d

soup base

qng tng gu d

clear soup

m l gu d

spicy soup

yun yng gu d

two flavor soup

xio lio

small condiment

m jing

sesame paste

yng ru

mutton

ni ru

beef

y wn

fish ball
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du fu

tofu

Rent an apartment
There are mainly 2 ways to find apartment rental information. First, you can go to a real estate agency to receive their
service. The commission is as much as one month rent. Secondly, you can find the information on internet, but most
of the ads are posted by agents.
In Beijing, singing a rental contract with landlord is conventional, and you should ask the landlord to show his/her
Property ownership certificate to avoid of cheating.
B:

n ho w zi wng shng kn do n de gung go w xing z fng

nn sh zhng ji hi shg rn

Hello, I saw your ads on the Internet and I'm looking for rent an apartment. Are you a real estate agency
or an individual?

Agent:

n ho w sh zhng ji gng s nn xing zho shn me yng de fng z

Hello, this is a real estate agency. What kind of apartment are you looking for?

w yo zi xu xio f jn z y jin ling j sh yo gn jng de nng

shng wng nng zu fn yu r shu q nng x zo




I want to rent a double room apartment near to my school. I want a clean one which can access to the
Internet and I need a kitchen to cook and a water heater to take showers.

Agent:

w xin zi yu j jin fng z mn z nn de yo qi

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nn shn me shhu gu li kn fn

I have several eligible apartments. When shall I lead you to have a look?
B

w mng tin xi w 5 din yu sh jin

5
I'll be free after 5 pm tomorrow afternoon.

Agent:

n w mn mng tin 5 din zi d fng jin

5
Lets meet at 5 pm tomorrow at

Agent:

zh jin fng z zi sn cng nn mn y ma

It's on the third floor. What do you think of it?

fng z du sho qin

How much is the rent?

Agent:

y g yu 4000 y y f sn
4000

It's 4000 CNY a month. Three month rents plus one month bond.

ji din du nng yng ma bng xing x y j din sh h r shu q

du sh ho de ma nng shng wng ma

Can I use the household electronic applicants? I mean the refrigerator, washing machine, TV set and water
heater. Can I access the Internet?

Agent:

nn fng xn du sh ho de shng wng kun di y y jng n zhung le

d din hu do din xn gng s ji nng ki tng

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Please rest assured that all the applicants work well. And ADSL has been installed. You just need to call
the common carrier to connect it.
B

ho de w ji yo zh jin le w x yo h fng dn qin h tng

hi yo kn fng dng de fng chn zhng

Ok, Ill take this one. But I need to sign a contract with the landlord and I need to see the landlords
property ownership certificate.

Agent:

mi wn t w mng tin zho fng dng gu li qin h tng

No problem. The landlord will come to sign a contract with you tomorrow.

Words & Phrases

z fng

house rental

fng w zhng ji

real estate agency

y j sh

one room flat

ling j sh

two-room flat

h tng

contract

qin h tng

sign a contract

fng dng

landlord

z jn

rents

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y jn

deposit

y y f sn

pay 3 month rents and mortgage one month rent

k tng

living room

w sh

bed room

r shu q

water heater

wi shng jin

bathroom

ch fng

kitchen

ji j

furniture

din sh j

TV set

x y j

washing machine

din bng xing

refrigerator

ji din

household electrical appliances

shng wng

surf the internet

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Local Transport
Subway:
Line 1,2,4,5, 8,10,13 and airport express line are on operation. The fare is 2 RMB with unlimited transfers.

Taxi:
Taxis in Beijing are meters. You are not recommended to take a black cab which is unlicensed and unmetered.
Fare unit: yuan
Distance

Less than 3 km

3-15 km

More than 15 km

Fare (05:00-23:00)

10

2 for each km

3 for each km

Fare (23:00-05:00)

11

Besides the starting fare 11, fare is up by 20% at night.

Bus lines:
There are over 800 bus routes operated in Beijing, supplied by the buses numbered 1~998. They are mainly divided into
the following categories:
Numbered 1~100Bus routes are within the 3rd Ring Road.
Numbered 201~215Night routes, only in operation after 23:00.
Numbered 300~810Offering bus routes from downtown area to suburban Beijing.
Numbered 900~998Running long distances, such as from downtown area to the Great Wall.

Bus fares:
Beijing buses are divided into 2 categories by fare: the first category charges flat fare CNY 1 for whole line; and the
second category takes CNY 1.00 as flag down rate for 12 kilometers, and the fare goes up by CNY 0.5 for every extra 5
kilometers.
If you have a transport card, you can get a 60% discount. Taking the first category buses, you just need to punch the
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card once; but if you take the second category bus, you need to punch the card twice. As to how to distinguish the two
types of buses, the bus which puts a machine at the exit door is the type two.

About Transport IC Card

If you will live a longer period of time in Beijing, you are recommended to get a Transport IC Card which offers a
60% discount for taking buses (buses numbered more than 900 offer a 30% discount.). The card can also be used for
taking subway and taxi. Although it doesnt offer discount for taking subway and taxi, you dont need to queue to buy
tickets every time by using the card.
You can get a card at any subway station or larger bus stations. You dont need to hand photos, visa or any other
certificate and no need to fill any forms. All you need to do is to tell the staff that you want to get a transport card and
hand her more than 20 RMB. The 20 RMB is the deposit of the card which will be repay to you when you return the
card.
The card has no password or photo, and any one who gets your card can use it, so recharge 50 or100 RMB each time is
proper.

Useful Expressions
To get a Transport IC Card.
nn ho w xing bn l y zhn n jio y k tn

----Hello, I'd like to get a Transport Card.

A n ho w xing q bi jng zhn yng gi zn me zu ch



---- Excuse me. I want to go to Beijing Railway Station. How can I get there?
B zh l mi yu zh d de gng jio ch n di do ch

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xin zu s sh q l rn hu zi j shu tn hun d ti r ho xin
47

---- There is no trough bus. You have to get a transfer, take bus No.47 and transfer to subway line 2 at Jishuitan
station.
A yo du chn sh jin w gn sh jin p w le hu ch

---- How long it will take? Im in a hurry.
B n n zu ho d ch d d gu q zh g sh jin b d ch d gi

r sh fn zhng ji do le
20

---- Then, youd better take a cab. Its no traffic jams at this time. 20 minutes you can get there.
A ho de xi xi n

---- Ok, thank you.

Words & Phrases

gng jio ch

bus

zugng jio ch

take a bus

ch zhn

bus stop

sshq lch
47

bus no.47

ch z ch

taxi/cab
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d d

d ch
/

take a taxi

dng sn hun

the East third ring road

d ch

traffic jam/be stuck in the traffic jam

f pio

receipt

d ti

subway

dti zhn

subway station

r ho xin
2

subway line 2

do ch

to get transfer

gn shjin

in hurry

w ch

to miss the train/bus

w fi j

to miss the plane

biwle hu ch fi j

Dont miss the train (plane).

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Travel by train/plane
Chinas Rail Transport
Rail transport is the most commonly used mode of long-distance transportation in China. All rail operations are handled
by the Ministry of Railways. Trains in China can be divided into 4 categories according to their speeds. Followings are
placed in descending order of speed.
abbreviated from which means high speed railway and the operational speed is about 350 km/h.
Till now, this kind of trains only on operation between several main cities, like between Wuhan and Guangzhou.
This kind of trains begins with G.
high speed train, which is at speeds in excess of 200 km/h. This kind of trains begins with D.
trains begin with T. The fares of G and D trains are really expensive though they really save much time. In
comparison, T-train is the most widely used type due to its moderate speed and fare.
trains begin with K. K is slower than T and the fare is lower correspondently.
trains coded by 4 numbers. Its the slowest type and the environment of carriage is really bad. Its definitely
the last choice.

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Types of train ticket

Train
Seat

Sleeper

Standing-room

Seat Ticket

Soft-sleeper

Hard-sleeper
Upper Berth
Middle Berth
Lower Berth

Dialogue
A xio wn w xin q chn d l yu zn me mi hu ch pio ne

---- Hi Wang, I am planning to travel to Chengdu. How can I get a railway ticket?
Wchng d k sh g ho d fng n gn l yu tun q hi sh z j q


---- Chengdu is a great place. Would you like to travel by yourself or to attend a tour group?
A w h png yu z j q w b x hun l xng sh n pi de xin l

---- I am going with a friend. I dont like the route planned by the travel agent.
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Wn n di z j mi hu ch pio z j dng bn gun

n zu ho zo din mi j shu xin zi k y t qin 10 tin mi pio

10
---- So you have to buy tickets and book hotels by yourselves. Youd better buy tickets earlier. Its said people can
buy tickets 10 days in advance.
A zhn de ma n w xin zi ji q

---- Really? I am gonna do it now.
Wn zu ho xin shng wng ch y xi yu n xi ch n ji zi bi d l sh r


bi jng chng d hu ch pio zh sn g gun jin c d y tio xin sh


de xn x ji sh le

---- Youd better search out the ticket information on the Internet. Just type in keywords of Beijing, Chengdu and
Railway ticket on Baidu.com and youll see the trains information instantly.
A yu sn ling ch K yo yo q ,T q h yo sn li sn. n lin ch gn ho ne
K 1 1 7T 7 1 3 6 3
---- There are 3 trains- K117, T7 and 1363. Which is better?
Wzh sn ling ch du sh cng bi jng x zhn f ch de K di bio kui
K
T di bio t kui ,su y T7 b K117 yo kui 1363 sh mn ch su y
T T7 K117 1363
n zu ho zu T7 su rn t b q t de ling ling ch du gu
T7
---- All the trains depart from Beijing West Railway Station. K means fast, T means faster, so T7 runs faster than
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K117 and 1363 is the slowest one. Youd better take T7 even though its fare is higher.
A n w xin zi ji q hu ch zhn mi pio

---- Ok, I am going to the railway station to buy tickets.
Whu ch zhn ti yun le. zn mn xu xio f jn yu y g hu ch pio

di shu din n l ji k y mi pio gn hu ch zhn sh y yng de



zh b gu yo du jio 5 kui qin de shu x fi
5
---- The railway station is too far. There is a Train Ticket Outlet near by which sells tickets just as the railway
station does, except it charges 5 Yuan as commission.

Buying tickets
A n ho w mi ling zhng 10 ho q chng d de ch pio
10
yo T7 n ling ch hi yu w p ma
T7

---- Hello, Id like to buy 2 tickets to Chengdu on 10th. Id like tickets of T7. Is there any sleeper ticket left?
B nn ho T7 de yng w y jng mi wn le hi yu run w h yng zu
T7
nn yo n zhng

---- Sorry, all the hard-sleeper tickets of T7 were sold out. There are soft-sleeper and seat tickets left. Which is it?
A n w yo run w xi xi y gng du sho qin

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---- Ok, then I will choose the soft-sleeper, thanks. How much is it in total?

Words & Phrases

j chng

airport

shu d gu j j chng

Beijing Capital International Airport

hu j d tng

waiting hall

fi j wn din

behind time

chng t q ch

coach

hu ch

train

hu ch sh

waiting room

kui ch

express

mn ch

stopping train/slow train

dng ch

high speed train

l xng sh

travel agency

l yu tun

travel group

l yu jng din

tourist spot
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mn pio

entrance ticket

bn gun

hotel

do yu

tourist guide

j nin pn

souvenir

See a doctor
The Chinese medical system can be divided into roughly three categories: private practitioners, official hospitals and
clinics, and international hospitals.
It is not recommended for anyone to see private practitioners. These doctors may not have the right qualifications to
practice medicine. There is no official body to oversee their medical practice. They are popular in China only because
they are much cheaper than regular hospitals, but seeing one may make your health worse, not better.
Official hospitals and clinics usually have the support of the government. In large cities, these places are more than
adequate for normal procedures. In smaller towns or rural areas, hospitals may lack important equipment or skilled staff,
so for serious health problems its best to go to a larger facility. Even hospitals in big cities will not necessarily have
doctors that can speak good English, much less any other foreign languages.
International hospitals are staffed by foreign doctors or Chinese doctors trained in North America, Europe or Japan.
These facilities have doctors that can speak a variety of languages and abide by the highest international standards; they
are capable of addressing many more complex problems that some Chinese hospitals cannot. The downside is that they
tend to be very expensive.

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General procedure of seeing a doctor at large hospital
1.

Register
Register at the registration office to get a registration form and a patients book. You should tell the staff what
section office you want to see. To heal traumatism, you should go to surgical department
if you got
headache, a cold, a fever or stomachache, you should go to medical department.

2.

See a doctor
You should bring the registration form and a patients book with you to see the doctor.

3.

Get a prescription

4.

Bring prescription to go to pharmacy

5.

To have a prescription priced

6.

Get the medicine

7.

Get injection
Get a nurse at injection room to get injected.

Dialogue
A w xing w jn tin di qng bng ji le

---- Im afraid I have to take a sick leave today.
B n zn me le n l b sh fu

---- Are you Ok? Whats the matter with you?

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A w xing w gn mo le k nng hi yu din f sho hi yu din l d z

---- I think Ive caught a cold, may be a fever too. And I have loose bowels.
B n zu tin ch le shn me b gn jn de dng x le ma

---- Did you eat anyth contaminated food yesterday?
A k nng sh zu tin ch hi xin ch de

---- Maybe the seafood.
B ch gu yo le ma

---- Have you taken any medicine?
A z j ch le gn mo yo dn shb gun yn

---- I have taken cold medicine but it doesnt work.
B n gn jn q y yun kn kn b shu b dng shchng yn ch yo b


gun yng le y shng gi n sh y hu ho de kui y din

---- You need to see a doctor. It may be stomach flu. Taking medicine is useless, maybe you need to take a
transfusion.

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Words & Phrases
y yun

hospital

zhn su

clinic

y shng

doctor

h shi

nurse

gu ho

register

gu ho ch

registration room

bng l bn

patients book

k sh

section room

ni k

medical department

wi k

surgical department

yo fng

pharmacy

hu ji

to have a prescription priced

sh y

to get transfusion

w shn t b sh f

I don't feel well.

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gn mo

catch a cold

f sho

have a fever

ch yo

take the medicine

shng hu

excessive internal heat

f yn

become inflamed from infection or injury

sng z tng

sore throat

d zi tng

collywobbles, a pain in insides

l d zi

have loose bowels

wi tng

stomachache

wi shng

traumatism

li xu

bleeding

shu shng

get hurt, get injured

yo fng

description

ki yo

to prescribe for an illness

xio yn yo

antibiotic medicine
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kng shng s

antibiotics

zh tn yo

analgesic

zh xu

stanch

d zhn

to have an injection

sh y

transfusion

jji

first aid

ji h ch

ambulance

bng de hn zhng / qng

/

seriously ill/ less sickness

qng bng ji

take a sick leave

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Hairdressing
A n ho jin tu fa hi sh zu tu fa

---- Good morning. Hair cut or change hair style?
B w jin tu fa

---- I just need my hair cut.
A xin x g tu ba qng wn nn xing jin g sh me f xng

---- A shampoo first. What kind of style you want to have?
B w b xing hun f xng zh sh sho wi xi y xi ji k y le b yo jin dun


---- I dont want to restyle my hair. Just have it cut a little. Dont cut it short.
Or bng w jin dun y din

---- Please cut it short.

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Words & Phrases
jin f = jin tu fa
=

to have hair cut

zu tu fa

do ones hair

tn f

to have a perm

jun f

to have hair curled

l zh tu fa

to strengthen hair

zu h l

to do treatment for hair

rn f

to have hair dyed

xi jin tu fa

trim a little

hun f xn

restyle the hair

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