grandmother (maternal)
婆婆
pó-po
grandfather (maternal)
公公
gōng-gong
grandmother (paternal)
奶奶 (informal), 祖母 (formal)
nǎi-nai, zǔ-mǔ
grandfather (paternal)
爷爷 (informal), 祖父 (formal)
yé-ye, zǔ-fù
mother
妈妈 (informal), 母亲 (formal)
mā-ma, mǔ-qīn
father
爸爸 (informal), 父亲 (formal)
bà-ba, fù-qīn
older sister
姐,姐姐
jiě, jiě-jie
younger sister
妹,妹妹
mèi, mèi-mei
older brother
哥,哥哥
gē, gē-ge
younger brother
弟,弟弟
dì, dì-di
older brother (1 Chinese character)
兄
xiōng
daughter
女儿 (女孩, 女孩儿)
nǚ-ér (nǚhái, nǚhái ér)
son
儿子 (男孩,男孩儿)
ér-zi (nán-hái, nán-hái ér)
to guess
猜
cāi
factory
工厂
gōng-chǎng
- at the time
- as
- when
- to serve as
- in the presence of
- the very same
- to work as
- to be, to become
当
dāng
postman
邮差
yóu-chāi
doctor
医生
yī-shēng
vegetables
菜
cài
- how old
- years of age
- years old
几岁
jǐ suì
- this way
2. in this manner
这样
zhè-yàng
bigger than
比…大
bǐ… dà
difference between
相差
xiāng-chà
not a few
不少
bù shǎo
- but
- however
- merely, just
*不过 (búguò) is the softest, most informal “but” in Chinese. Basically you want to use this when you aren’t sure or it’s not that strong of a conflict.
The use of 不过 (búguò) is somehow different from 但是 (dànshì) and 可是 (kěshì). Unlike the latter two, it’s not about emphasizing contrary, but rather adding extra remarks to the statement (e.g. a condition, correction, comment, etc)*
Example:
- 他是美国人,不过会说中文 (Tā shì Měi-guó rén, bù-guò huì shuō zhōng-wén)。He’s American, but he can speak Chinese.
- 我可以跟你走,不过不要告诉他(Wǒ kě-yǐ gēn nǐ zǒu, bù-guò bù-yào gào-sù tā)。I can go with you, but don’t tell him.
- 没关系!不过是个小问题 (Méi guān-xi! Bú-guò shì gè xiǎo wèn-tí!)!No worries! (It’s) just/merely a little problem!
不过
bù-guò
better
比较好
bǐ-jiào hǎo
friend
朋友
péng-yǒu
before
以前
yǐ-qián
after
以后
yǐ-hòu
- begin the lesson
2. attend class
上课
shàng-kè
- the lesson is over
- end of class
- get out of class
下课
xià-kè
go to work
- 上班
shàng-bān - 上工
shàng gōng
- get off work
2. after office hours
下班
xià-bān
go to school
上学
shàng-xué
- after school
2. classes are over
放学
fàng-xué
- stop work
2. get off work
放工
fàng-gōng
go to…somewhere
上…(哪儿) 去
shàng…(nǎ-r) qù
What time does class/lesson start?
几点上课?
Jǐ diǎn shàng-kè?
What time does class/lesson end?
几点下课?
Jǐ diǎn xià-kè?
What time do you go to work?
- 几点上班?
Jǐ diǎn shàng-bān? - 几点上工?
Jǐ diǎn shàng gōng?
What time do you get off work?
- 几点下班?
Jǐ diǎn xià-bān? - 几点放工?
Jǐ diǎn fàng-gōng?
What time do you go to school?
几点上学?
Jǐ diǎn shàng-xué?
What time does school end?
几点放学?
Jǐ diǎn fàng-xué?
What time are you going to…somewhere?
几点上…(哪儿)去?
Jǐ diǎn shàng…(nǎ-r) qù?
What time do you come home?
几点回家?
Jǐ diǎn huí jiā?
before class/lesson begins
上课以前
shàng-kè yǐ-qián
before the class/lesson is over
下课以前
xià-kè yǐ-qián
before going to work
- 上班以前
shàng-bān yǐ-qián - 上工以前
shàng gōng yǐ-qián
before work ends
- 下班以前
xià-bān yǐ-qián - 放工以前
fàng-gōng yǐ-qián
before going to school
上学以前
shàng-xué yǐ-qián
before school is over
放学以前
fàng-xué yǐ-qián
before going to…somewhere
上…(哪儿)去以前
shàng…(nǎ-r) qù yǐqián
before coming home
回家以前
huí jiā yǐ-qián
after the lesson/class begins
上课以后
shàng-kè yǐ-hòu
after the lesson/class is over
下课以后
xià-kè yǐ-hòu
after going to work
- 上班以后
shàng-bān yǐ-hòu - 上工以后
shàng gōng yǐ-hòu
after work ends/after office hours
- 下班以后
xià-bān yǐ-hòu - 放工以后
fàng-gōng yǐ-hòu
after school is over
放学以后
fàng-xué yǐ-hòu
after going to…somewhere
上…(哪儿)去以后
shàng…(nǎ-r) qù yǐ-hòu
after coming home
回家以后
huí jiā yǐ-hòu
- to make
- to be
- to become
- to act as
- to work as
做
zuò
indicates doing a certain action first before doing something else
Example:
- 吃饭以前,我先洗手 (Chī-fàn yǐ-qián, wǒ xiān xǐ-shǒu)。
- Before eating, I must first wash my hands.*
“…以前…先…。”
“… yǐ-qián…xiān….”
indicates that one thing is done immediately after another
Example:
- 我到新加坡以后,就学中文 (Wǒ dào Xīn-Jiā-Pō yǐ-hòu, jiù-xué zhōng-wén)。
- Right after I arrived at Singapore, I started to learn Chinese.*
“…以后…就…”
“… yǐ-hòu… jiù…”
“isn’t it that…?”
use this to confirm a statement
Example:
- 你不是会中文吗 (Nǐ bù-shì huì zhōng-wén ma)?
- You don’t speak Chinese?*
“不是…吗?”
bù-shì…ma?
set side by side, to compare
used for comparison sentences
比
bǐ
indicates that A is (comparison/the difference) than B
Example:
- 这本书比那本书容易 (Zhè běn shū bǐ nà běn shū róng-yì)。
* This book is easier than that* - 妈妈比爸爸小五岁 (Mā-mā bǐ bà-ba xiǎo wǔ suì)。
* Mum is 5 years younger than Dad
“A…比…B…(adjective/the difference)”
“A…bǐ…B…(adjective/the difference)”
- then
- only
- to go to
- to go with
- used when the speaker thinks that the number is enough, time is still early, or something is going to happen very soon.
就
jiù
to like
喜欢
xǐ-huān
population
人口
rén-kǒu
take care of, look after, attend to
照顾
zhào-gù
- majority
- plurality
- most
多数
duō-shù
extremely
太
tài
be enough
够
gòu
just, only
只
zhǐ
to study
念
niàn
text
课文
kè-wén
- first
- to precede
- late (deceased)
先
xiān
- word, term
- statement
- a “ci” (tz’u) poem
词
cí
- to recite
2. to study
读
dú
to read, study
读书
dú-shū
- to touch
2. to run into
碰
pèng
- (after verbs) continues doing
2. (after imperative verbs) intensifies the command
着
zhe
- ran into
2. bumped into
碰着
pèng-zhe
to walk
走
zǒu
left, gone
走了
zǒu-le
- be troublesome
2. to pester
麻烦
má-fan