Transportation in Chinese: Complete

List of 73 + Vehicles in Mandarin

If you are learning Mandarin Chinese and are planning to visit China for vacation,
work or study, you will certainly need to learn the Chinese transportation
vocabulary. After all, how else will you be able to get around without knowing how
to say buses or trains in Chinese?
Luckily for you, we got this entire post dedicated to transportation in Chinese. Our
guide will take you through 73 + means of transportation in the world starting
from the most common vehicles used for daily commute leading up to bulldozers,
helicopters, and submarines!
And we won’t stop there. Once you’ve known your way around vehicles, we’ll teach
you a whole lot of phrases and expressions to be able to talk about transportation in
Chinese, so that you’ll have everything you need for your next trip.
Sound good? Buckle up!

But first and foremost, let’s learn how to say “transportation” and “vehicle” in
Chinese.

“Transportation” in Chinese
The word for transportation in Chinese, as a general term for transport facilities that
take you from place to place, is:

 交通工具 (jiāotōng gōngjù)

If you break down the word into characters, 交 (jiāo) means “to transfer”, 通 (totōng)
means “open” or “through”, and 工具 (gōngjù) stands for “tools”. Together, they
express the idea of “transportation”.
However, when you are referring to the action of transporting in Chinese, you’ll need
to use another word – 运输 (yùnshū).
You can use 交通工具 (jiāotōng gōngjù) and 运输 (yùnshū) as follows:

 Cars are a common form of transportation.

汽车是一种常见的交通工具。
Qìchē shì yì zhǒng chángjiàn de jiāotōng gōngjù.
 the transportation of natural gas
天然气的运输
tiānránqì de yùnshū
In this guide, we’ll focus on the forms of transportation – 交通工具 (jiāotōng gōngjù)
in Chinese.

“Vehicle” in Chinese
The word for vehicle in Chinese is 车辆 (chēliàng) if you are talking about self-
propelled wheeled vehicles such as cars or trucks.
车辆 (chēliàng), as well as other types of vehicles, like trains, planes, and ships can be
called 交通工具 (jiāotōng gōngjù) in Chinese.

A Grammar Note on Vehicles in

Chinese
In Mandarin Chinese, all nouns require a measure word when counted. For instance,
you wouldn’t just say “a car”, or “two boats” in Chinese, you would have to say “a
[measure word] car” and “two [measure word] boats”.
Different vehicles require different measure words that speak to the feature of
that specific mode of transportation. For example, for vehicles with wheels (e.g.
car, bike, monocycle), you can generally go with the measure word 辆 (liàng) or 部
(bù), and for watercraft, 条 (tiáo) and 艘 (sōu) are the proper measure words to use.
Knowing the name of vehicles in Chinese is only half the battle. To help you fully
master transportation vocabulary in Chinese, we include the corresponding measure
word for each vehicle on our list.

If the concept of measure words sounds alien to you, we have this entire article
dedicated to explaining how Chinese measure words work. If you don’t know how to
count in Chinese yet, you might want to start with our Chinese number tutorial first.
Complete List of Transportation
Vehicles in Chinese

There is a huge range of vehicles and they all perform different functions, so there’s a
lot of ground to cover. To help you out, we’ll start with a list of the most common
vehicles in Chinese that can serve as a starting point before moving on to specific
modes of transportation.

Most Common Transportation in Chinese

Here’s a quick rundown of the 9 most common means of transportation in
Mandarin Chinese to give you a foundation. The Pinyin version has been provided
alongside the Chinese characters to help you pronounce the words. We’ve also
included the corresponding measure word for each vehicle.
English Chinese Pinyin Measure Word

bike 自行车 zìxíngchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

motorcycle 摩托车 mótuōchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

car 汽车 qìchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

bus (public transport) 公共汽车 gōnggòng qìchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

taxi 出租车 chūzūchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

train 火车 huǒchē 列 (liè)

subway (metro) 地铁 dìtiě 列 (liè)

plane 飞机 fēijī 架 (jià)

 boat 船 chuán 条 (tiáo)/艘 (sōu)
These words are the basics of any transportation vocabulary lesson. They are used
every day and everywhere.

Before we add more words to this list, here are some technicalities to help you
understand how and where to use these core transportation words in Chinese.

1. Bike in Chinese: 自行车 (zìxíngchē)

Some vehicles have different names depending on the region you find them.

自行车 (zìxíngchē), 单车 (dānchē), and 脚踏车 (jiǎotàchē) – all of these three words
mean bike in Chinese and are easily understood.

In Mainland China, a bike is generally referred to as 自行车 (zìxíngchē) – literally

“self-moving vehicle”.

People in Taiwan and Cantonese-speaking regions prefer to name it 单车 (dānchē)

-“narrow vehicle”.
脚踏车 (jiǎotàchē) – “foot pedal vehicle” is a slightly old-fashioned word for bike in
standard Mandarin, but is the most common option in the version of Mandarin spoken
in the Yangtze River Delta region of China, which includes Shanghai. (Read more
on the language of Shanghai).
2. Motorcycle in Chinese: 摩托车 (mótuōchē)
摩托车 (mótuōchē) is what we call motorcycles in Mainland China, and 机车 (jīchē)
is a motorcycle in Taiwan. Actually, 机车 (jīchē) in Chinese Mandarin means
locomotive.

The word 摩托 (mótuō), you’ve guessed it, comes from the English word “motor”. 摩
托 (mótuō) can also be used as the shorter form of 摩托车 (mótuōchē). The younger
the people are, the more often they use the shorter form.

3. Car in Chinese: 汽车 (qìchē)

The word for car in Chinese is 汽车 (qìchē), literally “steam vehicle”. Well, the
earliest cars were all powered by a steam engine, weren’t they?

In daily Chinese, it’s also very common to hear the colloquial versions – 车 (chē) or
车子 (chēzi) for cars though these words can also be used to refer to other land
vehicles (e.g. motorcycles, buses, trucks, etc).

4. Bus in Chinese: 公共汽车 (gōnggòng qìchē)

The word for bus in Chinese – as a means of public transportation – is 公共汽车
(gōnggòng qìchē), meaning “public vehicle”. We also have the word 巴士 (bāshì),
which is borrowed from the English word “bus”, for buses in general. An example of
this would be 观光巴士 (guānguāng bāshì) – sightseeing bus.

Another common way of saying bus, particularly the inner-city bus in Chinese is 公交
车 (gōngjiāochē) – “public transportation vehicle”. It can even be shortened to just 公
交 (gōngjiāo) in spoken Chinese.

5. Taxi in Chinese: 出租车 (chūzūchē)

Taxi is another word that can be said in different ways depending on which part of the
Chinese-speaking world you are traveling to.

In Mainland China “taxi” is 出租车 (chūzūchē), literally “(for) rent vehicle”, and 计
程车 (jìchéngchē) – “taximeter vehicle” is a taxi in Taiwan.

In the Cantonese-speaking region (Hong Kong, Macau, Guangdong Province of

China), the favored word for car is 的士 (dīshì), coming from the English word “taxi”.
The rest of China uses the word as well, but only for saying “take a taxi”: 打的 (dǎ dī)
– 的 (dī) is the short form of 的士 (dīshì).
6. Train in Chinese: 火车 (huǒchē)
This is easy. 火车 (huǒchē) literally means “fire vehicle”!

But do you know how to say “railway” in Chinese? 铁路 (tiělù)! From 铁 (tiě) –
“iron” and 路 (lù) – “track, road”.

7. Subway in Chinese: 地铁 (dìtiě)

Subway or underground is commonly referred to as 地铁 (dìtiě) in Mainland China,
which is essentially the short version of 地下铁路 (dìxià tiělù) – “underground
railway”.

In Taiwan and Singapore, the word 捷运 (jiéyùn) – “rapid transport” is used to mean
subway.

8. Plane in Chinese: 飞机 (fēijī)

Well…easy: 飞机 (fēijī) – literally, “flying machine”, which is a word I inexplicably
love!

9. Boat in Chinese: 船 (chuán)

The word for boat in Chinese is 船 (chuán).
Actually, 船 (chuán) can be both a boat or ship depending on the context, but the
measure word to collaborate with it differs – 条 (tiáo) is reserved for small boats while
艘 (sōu) is used for bigger boats and ships.

Watch out, because 船 (chuán) sounds somewhat like 床 (chuáng), meaning “bed” in
Chinese. You don’t want to mispronounce the word and confuse people. (If you want
to make Chinese people laugh, try these instead)
Here are some pictures to help you visualize these core transportation vocabulary.

自行车
zìxíngchē
bike

摩托车
mótuōchē
motorcycle

汽车
qìchē
 car

公共汽车
gōnggòng qìchē
bus

出租车
chūzūchē
taxi

火车
huǒchē
train
 地铁
dìtiě
subway

飞机
fēijī
plane

船
chuán
boat

Road Transportation in Chinese

Road transportation is an essential part of day-to-day life. In this section, you will be
able to learn how to name the different vehicles on the road in Chinese. Enjoy your
ride!

Measure
English Chinese Pinyin Word

辆 (liàng)/
ambulance 救护车 jiùhùchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
bike 自行车 zìxíngchē 部 (bù)

bus (generic) 巴士 bāshì 辆 (liàng)/

 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
bus (public transport) 公共汽车 gōnggòng qìchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
camper 房车 fángchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
carriage 马车 mǎchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
coach (long distance) 长途汽车 chángtú qìchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
double-decker bus 双层巴士 shuāngcéng bāshì 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
electric car 电动汽车 diàndòng qìchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
electric scooter 电瓶车 diànpíngchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
fire engine 消防车 xiāofángchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
garbage truck 垃圾车 lājīchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
limousine 豪华轿车 háohuá jiàochē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
monocycle 独轮车 dúlúnchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
motorcycle 摩托车 mótuōchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
off-road vehicle 越野车 yuèyěchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
police car 警车 jǐngchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
racing car 赛车 sàichē 部 (bù)
 辆 (liàng)/
school bus 校车 xiàochē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
sedan 轿车 jiàochē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
shared bike 共享单车 gòngxiǎng dānchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
shuttle 班车 bānchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
sports car 跑车 pǎochē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
taxi 出租车 chūzūchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
tricycle 三轮车 sānlúnchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
trolleybus 无轨电车 wúguǐ diànchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
truck 卡车/货车 kǎchē/huòchē 部 (bù)

辆 (liàng)/
van 面包车 miànbāochē 部 (bù)
Both the measure words 辆 (liàng) and 部 (bù) are used for land vehicles with wheels
in Chinese, however, 辆 (liàng) is the more common option, and 部 (bù) sounds more
formal and often appears in the written language.
buspedestrianbikebus stopcrosswalkcartraffic lightcrossroadsidewalktruckparking lot
Rail Transportation in Chinese
China has probably the most-developed rail network in the world. I am sure you will
need some rail transportation vocabulary when traveling to China, so this section will
be useful.

Here’s how you name the wheeled vehicles running on rail track in Chinese.

Measure
English Chinese Pinyin Word

elevated rail 轻轨 qīngguǐ 列 (liè)

intercity train 城际列车 chéngjì lièchē 列 (liè)

high-speed rail 高铁 gāotiě 列 (liè)

monorail 单轨 dānguǐ 列 (liè)

subway 地铁 dìtiě 列 (liè)

train 火车 huǒchē 列 (liè)

tram 有轨电车 yǒuguǐ diànchē 列 (liè)

Notice the measure word has changed to 列 (liè) for trains and the like. That’s the
proper measure word for a line or row of things in Chinese.
Air Transportation in Chinese
Traveling does not necessarily mean you have to fly, but if you are planning to visit
China, it is more than likely that you will be traveling by air.

Here you have some words related to air transportation in Chinese.

Measure
English Chinese Pinyin Word

blimp 飞艇 fēitǐng 艘 (sōu)

辆 (liàng)/部
cable car 缆车 lǎnchē (bù)

drone 无人机 wúrénjī 架 (jià)

glider 滑翔机 huáxiángjī 架 (jià)

helicopter 直升飞机 zhíshēng fēijī 架 (jià)

hot air balloon 热气球 rè qìqiú 个 (gè)

jet 喷气式飞机 pēnqì shì fēijī 架 (jià)

parachute 降落伞 jiàngluòsǎn 顶 (dǐng)

paraglider 滑翔伞 huáxiángsǎn 顶 (dǐng)

plane 飞机 fēijī 架 (jià)

rocket 火箭 huǒjiàn 枚 (méi)

spaceplane 航天飞船 hángtiān fēichuán 艘 (sōu)

Water Transportation in Chinese

Time to hit the water and discover waterborne transportation in Chinese.

Here’s how you name boats, ships, and other vessels in Chinese. If you pay close
attention, you’ll notice the measure word 条 (tiáo) is used for small vessels while 艘
(sōu) is favored for bigger ones.

Measure
English Chinese Pinyin Word

barge 驳船 bóchuán 艘 (sōu)

 条 (tiáo)/艘
boat 船 chuán (sōu)

canoe 独木舟 dúmùzhōu 条 (tiáo)

cargo ship 货轮 huòlún 艘 (sōu)

cruise ship 邮轮 yóulún 艘 (sōu)

dragon boat 龙舟 lóngzhōu 条 (tiáo)

ferry 渡轮 dùlún 艘 (sōu)

条 (tiáo)/艘
fishing boat 渔船 yúchuán (sōu)

条 (tiáo)/艘
hovercraft 气垫船 qìdiànchuán (sōu)

kayak 皮划艇 píhuátǐng 条 (tiáo)

条 (tiáo)/艘
motorboat 摩托艇 mótuōtǐng (sōu)

ocean liner 远洋轮船 yuǎnyáng lúnchuán 艘 (sōu)

条 (tiáo)/艘
sailboat 帆船 fānchuán (sōu)

ship 轮船 lúnchuán 艘 (sōu)

条 (tiáo)/艘
speedboat 快艇 kuàitǐng (sōu)

submarine 潜水艇 qiánshuǐtǐng 艘 (sōu)

条 (tiáo)/艘
yacht 游艇 yóutǐng (sōu)

Construction Vehicles in Chinese

Construction has a big impact on jobs, livelihood, and the economy. Here are the
names of common construction vehicles in Chinese.
English Chinese Pinyin Measure Word

bulldozer 推土机 tuītǔjī 部 (bù)/台 (tái)

concrete mixer 混凝土车 hùnníngtǔchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

 crane 吊车 diàochē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

dump truck 土方车 tǔfāngchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

excavator 挖掘机 wājuéjī 部 (bù)/台 (tái)

forklift 叉车 chāchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

road roller 压路机 yālùjī 部 (bù)/台 (tái)

tanker truck 油罐车 yóuguànchē 辆 (liàng)/部 (bù)

tractor 拖拉机 tuōlājī 部 (bù)/台 (tái)

General Transportation-related Voca

bulary in Chinese
You would not travel too far by memorizing just the names of vehicles in Chinese. It
is time to learn a few useful words regarding transportation in general. They will help
you find your way around when you go to China!

Chinese Pinyin English

马路 mǎlù road

公路 gōnglù highway

高速公路 gāosù gōnglù high-speed road

高架 gāojià elevated highway

街 jiē street

桥 qiáo bridge

目的地 mùdìdì destination

地址 dìzhǐ address

路线 lùxiàn route

导航 dǎoháng navigation

入口 rùkǒu entry

出口 chūkǒu exit
路口 lùkǒu crossroad

红绿灯 hónglǜdēng traffic light

交通标志 jiāotōng biāozhì traffic sign

交警 jiāojǐng traffic police

堵车 dǔchē traffic jam

迷路 mí lù lose one’s way

站 zhàn station/stop

加油站 jiāyóu zhàn gas station

汽车站 qìchē zhàn bus station/stop

地铁站 dìtiě zhàn subway station

火车站 huǒchē zhàn railway station

停车场 tíngchēchǎng parking lot

车票 chē piào bus/train ticket

单程 dānchéng one way

往返 wǎngfǎn return

机票 jī piào plane ticket

机场 jīchǎng airport

航班 hángbān flight

出发 chūfā depart

抵达 dǐdá arrive

中转 zhōngzhuǎn transfer

地图 dìtú map

旅行 lǚxíng travel

乘客 chéngkè passenger
Talking About Transportation in
Chinese

Learning transportation vocabulary is necessary, but you cannot just utter individual
words and expect others to understand you!

Well, don’t worry. We’ll cover all the language bases in this section to help you solve
any problem or doubt you can have when talking about transportation in Mandarin
Chinese.

We have divided this section into two parts: essential Chinese transportation verbs,
and useful example sentences to use in simple conversation.

Chinese Verbs for Using Transportation

First, verbs. They are perhaps the most important part of Chinese learning for
beginners. Let’s explore the key Chinese verbs and verb phrases associated with using
transportation.
坐 (zuò)
The verb 坐 (zuò) is essential for talking about transportation in Chinese. To say
“take” or “go by” a mode of transportation, for the most part, the pattern is 坐 (zuò)
+ transportation. 坐 (zuò) means to sit or take transportation.
Let’s look at some examples.
  坐班车
zuò bānchē
take the shuttle/by shuttle
 坐地铁
zuò dìtiě
take the subway/by subway
 坐飞机
zuò bānchē
take the plane/by plane
 坐轮船
zuò lúnchuán
take the ship/by ship
If you want to talk about going somewhere on foot, then the verb 走 (zǒu) is
used instead.
 走路
zǒu lù
walk/on foot
乘 (chéng)
Similarly to the verb 坐 (zuò), the verb 乘 (chéng) can be used to say “take” or “go
by” as well.

Examples:

 乘班车
chéng bānchē
take the shuttle/by shuttle
 乘地铁
chéng dìtiě
take the subway/by subway
 乘飞机
chéng bānchē
take the plane/by plane
 乘轮船
chéng lúnchuán
take the ship/by ship
Both words mean the same in general (when talking about transportation), but 乘
(chéng) is more formal than 坐 (zuò). Hence the word 乘客 (chéngkè) – “passenger”.
(There is no 坐客 zuòkè!)

打 (dǎ)
打 (dǎ) is one of the most versatile verbs in Mandarin Chinese and can be used for
talking about transportation as well. Specifically, you can use 打的 (dǎ dī) or 打车
(dǎ chē) to mean “take a taxi”.
的 (dī) – watch out for the pronunciation – is the short form of 的士 (dīshì), which is
one of the ways of saying “taxi” in Mandarin, coming from Cantonese. 打出租车
(dǎ chūzūchē) is also fine for “take a taxi” but is less commonly said.

开 (kāi)
The word 开 (kāi) can have different meanings, but when it comes to transportation, it
means to drive, steer or fly.

Examples:

 开出租车
kāi chūzūchē
drive a taxi
 开拖拉机
kāi tuōlājī
drive a tractor
 开快艇
kāi kuàitǐng
steer a speedboat
 开直升飞机
kāi zhíshēng fēijī
fly a helicopter
骑 (qí)
The Chinese verb 骑 (qí) translates to “ride” and refers to sitting on and propelling a
bicycle or similar vehicle.

Examples:

 骑自行车
qí zìxíngchē
ride a bike
 骑共享单车
qí gòngxiǎng dānchē
ride a shared bike
 骑电瓶车
qí diànpíngchē
ride a electric scooter
 骑摩托车
qí mótuōchē
ride a motorcycle
And of course, 骑 (qí) can be used for the action of riding an animal such as a horse –
骑马 (qí mǎ).
上 (shàng)/下 (xià)
These two verbs have many different meanings, and they can be used when referring
to almost every means of transportation. While 上 (shàng) means “get on, get in, get
aboard,” 下 (xià) means the opposite: “get off, get out of, disembark.”

Examples:

 上车
shàng chē
get in the car
 上地铁
shàng dìtiě
get on the subway
 上飞机
shàng fēijī
get on the plane
 下公交
xià gōngjiāo
get off the bus
 下船
xià chuán
get off the ship
Simple Conversations Regarding Transportation in
Chinese
Now is the time to use the Chinese transportation vocabulary and expressions in
context. Practice the following sentences and you will be able to get the information
you need whenever you need it. Plus, you’ll develop your knowledge of Chinese
grammar and gain confidence in speaking Chinese in real conversations.
 你平时怎么去上班？
Nǐ píngshí zěnme qù shàngbān?
How do you go to work usually?

我每天开车上班。
Wǒ měitiān kāi chē shàngbān.
I drive to work every day.
 你喜欢坐飞机吗？
Nǐ xǐhuan zuò fēijī ma?
Do you like flying in planes?

不喜欢，我怕死。
Bù xǐhuan, wǒ pà sǐ.
No, I am scared of death.
 你们的城市有地铁吗？
Nǐmen de chéngshì yǒu dìtiě ma?
 Is there a subway in your city?

没有，但是我们有轻轨。
Méiyǒu, dànshì wǒmen yǒu qīngguǐ.
No, we got light rail though.
 你打算怎么去火车站？
Nǐ dǎsuàn zěnme qù huǒchēzhàn?
How do you plan to go to the railway station?

坐公交/坐地铁/打的。
Zuò gōngjiāo/Zuò dìtiě/Dǎ dī.
By bus/subway/taxi.
 你到了吗？
Nǐ dào le ma?
Have you arrived?

马上，还有两站地铁。
Mǎshàng, háiyǒu liǎng zhàn dìtiě.
In a moment. Two more stops on the subway.
 这辆车到机场吗？
Zhè liàng chē dào jīchǎng ma?
Does this bus go to the airport?

不到，你要去那个车站坐机场巴士。
Bú dào, nǐ yào qù nàge chēzhàn zuò jīchǎng bāshì.
No. You need to take the airport shuttle at the stop over there.
 下一班去上海的火车几点出发？
Xià yì bān qù Shànghǎi de huǒchē jǐ diǎn chūfā?
When does the next train to Shanghai depart?

今晚九点半。
Jīnwǎn jiǔ diǎn bàn.
9:30 tonight.
 请问在哪里买车票？
Qǐngwèn zài nǎlǐ mǎi chēpiào?
Excuse me, where do I buy the ticket?

上楼左转售票口。
Shàng lóu zuǒ zhuǎn shòupiàokǒu.
Go upstairs, turn left, at the ticket window.
 我买两张去南京的长途汽车票。
Wǒ mǎi liǎng zhāng qù Nánjīng de chángtú qìchē piào.
I need two bus tickets to Nanjing.

单程是吗？一百二十元一张。
 Dānchéng shì ma? Yì bǎi èr shí yuán yì zhāng.
One way, right? That’ll be one hundred twenty Yuan each.
 我要去市政大厅，应该在哪站下车？
Wǒ yào qù shìzhèng dàtīng, yīnggāi zài nǎ zhàn xià chē?
I am going to the city hall. Which stop should I get off?

到了我会告诉你。
Dào le wǒ huì gàosù nǐ.
I’ll let you know when we are there.