I might have head into the posts a bit too quick. Before we start with beer and food, how do you say I in Chinese? Or we? Or you?

First off:

我 (Wǒ) – I.
你 (Nǐ) – You.
他 (Tā) – He.
她 (Tā) – She.
它 (Tā) – It.

They are easy. Notice the small difference in the characters between He and She in Chinese? She has the radical 女 in front which means woman. Now, if you want to make these plural, you just add “们” to it, which is the plural marker for pronouns in Chinese.

我们 (Wǒmen) – We
你们 (Nǐmen) – You all
他们 (Tāmen) – Them/they
她们 (Tāmen) – Them/they (predominantly female)
它们 (Tāmen) – Them/they (mostly used for animals)

It should be noted that there are two we’s in Chinese. 我们 which is exclusive and 咱们 which is inclusive. This means that when you use 咱们 you are including the addressee.

There you go! Those are the basic pronouns translated in Chinese. So now you know how to say I chinese among a few others!

If I have made an error or if you want a sentence translated, email me info@translationinchinese.com

So you just had this awesome chat with your friend/colleague or random person at the bar. Doesn’t matter who it is, but you need to be on your way. Time to say goodbye and greet the person. How do you say goodbye in Chinese? No worries, here’s some phrases in Chinese to leave on good terms.

再见 (Zàijiàn) – Goodbye – This one is the obvious greeting. Simple. To the point. Goodbye and you are on your way. But how about making it a bit interesting.

明天见 (Míngtiān jiàn) – See you tomorrow – Maybe you have noticed the 见 again. This means “to see”. So goodbye (above) actually means “see you again”, which is a good way to say goodbye. Now here you are saying “tomorrow” + “to see”. Therefore: see you tomorrow. You can replace this with any other time word really. “晚上见” () – See you this evening.

If you are not feeling up to the task of saying goodbye in Chinese, you can also try this transliteration of Bye-bye in Chinese: 拜拜 (Bàibài) – Goobye. I hear this often in TV shows.

If I have made an error or if you want a sentence translated, email me info@translationinchinese.com

So you arrive at your favorite Chinese restaurant. It might even be in China, or just around the corner from your place in New York. Maybe you want to impress a date, or just impress the waiters or owners of the restaurant. Maybe, you are just really hungry and the best way to get your point across is by speaking Chinese. Translation in Chinese is here to help you!

Once you get into a restaurant, ask for the menu:

我要看一下你们的菜单 (Wǒ yào kàn yīxià nǐmen de càidān) – I want to have a look at your menu – Easy and straight to the point. Maybe you won’t even like the options and go to the next restaurant. But if you decide to stay, here’s how to order a meal.

You can say it in various ways. Here are two options:
我要… [meal name] (Wǒ yào) – I want …. – Just fill in the meal name. If you don’t know how to pronounce it. Just point to the menu and say 这个 (Zhège), which means “this”.

Another way:
来… [meal name] (Lái) – Bring me [meal name] – This is better suited when sitting down. Even better if you use an informal tone, such as street barbecues. Yum!

What if you aren’t sure what to order? Ask the restaurant to provide their most delicious meal (this is risky though!)

你的饭店最好吃的菜是什么？ (Nǐ de fàndiàn zuì hào chī de cài shì shénme?) – What’s your restaurant’s most delicious dish? – Again, use at your own discretion, ’cause they might bring some strange meals!

At the end ask for the menu: 我要买单 (Wǒ yāo mǎidān) – I want to pay the bill.

There we go! A good meal. If you want to order some beers, ask them in Chinese too!

If I have made an error or if you want a sentence translated, email me info@translationinchinese.com

What do you do when you want to turn of the lights in Chinese? Perhaps you are sharing your hostel room with a Chinese travellers, or are in a cabin with Chinese friends. The go to word  for switching things off is 关 (guān) or the full word is 关掉 (guāndiào) which means “to switch off”. Both are correct. So here are some sentences:

“我可以关掉灯吗？” (wǒ kěyǐ guāndiào dēng ma?)- May I switch off the light?

“哥们儿，请你关掉灯。” (gēmenr, qǐng nǐ guāndiào dēng) - Dude, please switch of the light. Note 哥们儿 (gēmenr) is colloquial for “dude”, so not all Chinese will appreciate the relaxed register.

Now 关 (guān) can also be used to mean “to shut”.  So if you want the door shut also, you can say this:

“请你能不能关门？”  (qǐng nǐ néngbùnéng guānmén) - Can you please shut the door?

Once again 关 (guān)  is a very useful word. You can use on lots of electronic things, meaning “to switch off”. For instance the TV – 关电视 (guān diànshì).

If I have made an error or if you want a sentence translated, email me info@translationinchinese.com

If you are in China and want to order a beer. Here are some sentences and variations of the same concept:

“我要一瓶啤酒” (wǒ yào yī píng píjiǔ) – I want a beer.

“你能给我一瓶啤酒吗？(nǐ néng gěi wǒ yī píng píjiǔ ma?)” – Can you bring me a beer?

“我喝啤酒”? (wǒ hē píjiǔ)- I drink beer.

Beer in Chinese is 啤酒 (píjiǔ). A famous brand of beer is known as 青岛啤酒 (qīngdǎo píjiǔ). I have tasted it before and it is light, but definitely worth the price. So next time you are in China and want to order beer. Just remember 啤酒 (píjiǔ). Even you can’t say the whole translation in Chinese, just say 啤酒 (píjiǔ).

Have I made an error or if you want a sentence translated, email me info@translationinchinese.com