second words Flashcards
“zìxíngchē” (自行车)
(Wǒ měi tiān qí zìxíngchē qù xuéxiào.)
“I ride a bicycle to school every day.”
“shìchǎng” (市场)
Wǒ zài Fútián shìchǎng.
Translation: I am at the Futian Market.
Breakdown:
Wǒ – I
zài – at / in
Fútián – Futian (place name)
shìchǎng – market
zuò fàn (做饭)
Māmā měitiān zǎoshang zuò fàn.
Translation: Mom cooks every morning.
Breakdown:
Māmā – Mom
měitiān – every day
zǎoshang – morning
zuò fàn – cook (a meal)
shuìjiào (睡觉)
Wǒ wǎnshang shí diǎn shuìjiào.
Translation: I go to sleep at 10 p.m.
Breakdown:
Wǒ – I
wǎnshang – evening / night
shí diǎn – 10 o’clock
shuìjiào – to sleep
Wán (玩)
Wǒ xǐhuan wán yóuxì.
Translation: I like to play games.
Breakdown:
Wǒ – I
xǐhuan – like
wán – to play
yóuxì – games
说谎 (shuōhuǎng)
(Tā zài shuōhuǎng.) → “He is lying (right now).”
Yǒu rén (有人)
Yǒu rén zài ménkǒu.
Translation: There is someone at the door.
Breakdown:
Yǒu rén – someone / there is a person
zài – at
ménkǒu – door / doorway
zhǎo (找)
Nǐ zài zhǎo shénme?
Translation: What are you looking for?
Breakdown:
Nǐ – you
zài – (currently doing something)
zhǎo – looking for
shénme – what
Xiao” (小)
“Zhè jiù shì ge xiǎo wèntí.”
(This is just a small problem.)
Breakdown:
- zhè: this
- jiù: just
- shì: is
- ge: (measure word)
- xiǎo wèntí: small problem
Literal Meaning – “Small” or “Little” (opposite of “大 dà – big”).
“问题” (wèntí)
Here’s a quick summary of “问题” (wèntí) in Chinese:
- Two Main Meanings:
- “Question” (an inquiry):
- “我有一个问题。” (Wǒ yǒu yīgè wèntí.) – “I have a question.”
- “Problem” (an issue/trouble):
- “手机有问题。” (Shǒujī yǒu wèntí.*) – “The phone has a problem.”
- “Question”: Used when asking or answering something.
- “Problem”: Used for difficulties, errors, or negative situations.
- “没问题” (méi wèntí) = “No problem!”
- “问题不大” (wèntí bù dà) = “It’s not a big problem.”
Context decides whether it means “question” or “problem”—just like in English!
Need further clarification? Ask away! 😊
[Dì yī cì] yú rén [jiànmiàn] shí, wǒ xǐhuān shuō nǐ hǎo.
The first time I meet someone, I like to say hello
Dì yī cì (第一次) – First time
yú rén (与人) – With someone
jiànmiàn (见面) – Meet
shí (时) – When
wǒ (我) – I
xǐhuān (喜欢) – Like
shuō (说) – Say
nǐ hǎo (你好) – Hello
Bù hǎo yìsi, wǒ guò yīxià
Excuse me, let me pass through.
Bù hǎo yìsi (不好意思) – Literally “not good meaning,” but commonly means:
“Sorry / Excuse me” (polite way to apologize or ask for space)
wǒ (我) – I
guò (过) – Pass/go through
yīxià (一下) – A little bit / quickly (softens the request)
Wǒ ràng nǐ shēngqì le, duìbuqǐ.
I made you angry, sorry.
Wǒ (我) – I
ràng (让) – Let/make (here, it means “caused you to…”)
nǐ (你) – You
shēngqì (生气) – Angry (lit. “generate anger”)
le (了) – Indicates a completed action
duìbuqǐ (对不起) – Sorry
Wǒ xiànzài zǒu le, wǎn’ān
I’ll leave now good night
Wǒ (我) – I
xiànzài (现在) – Now
zǒu le (走了) – Leaving (lit. “go + [completed action marker]”)
wǎn’ān (晚安) – Good night
Zhè shì yīgè nántí.
This is a difficult problem
nántí = Difficult problem/question
Wǒ zhù dàxué fùjìn, zǒulù zhǐyào wǔ fēnzhōng.
“I live near the university, just a 5-minute walk away.”
我 (wǒ) – “I”
The subject of the sentence.
住 (zhù) – “live/reside”
The main verb indicating where you live.
Often paired with 在 (zài) for “live at,” but it’s dropped here casually.
大学 (dàxué) – “university”
The landmark you’re referencing.
附近 (fùjìn) – “nearby”
Describes proximity.
Alternative: 旁边 (pángbiān) = “next to”
走路 (zǒulù) – “walking”
Literally “walk road,” means “on foot.”
只要 (zhǐyào) – “only need/just”
Emphasizes how short/easy it is.
Similar to 只需要 (zhǐ xūyào).
五分钟 (wǔ fēnzhōng) – “5 minutes”
Time measurement.
Chēzhàn lǐ zhèlǐ hěn yuǎn
The train/bus station is very far from here.
车站 (chēzhàn) - “vehicle station” (train/bus station)
离 (lí) - “from” (used for distances between places)
这里 (zhèlǐ) - “here”
很 (hěn) - “very”
远 (yuǎn) - “far”
Grammar structure:
[Place A] + lí + [Place B] + 很 + 远/近
= “[Place A] is very far/close to [Place B]”
Wǒ lí zhèlǐ hěn yuǎn.
i very far from here
Tā jīntiān [kàn shàngqù] hěn [nánguò].
She looks very sad today.
她 (tā) – She
今天 (jīntiān) – Today
看上去 (kàn shàngqù) – Looks/appears
很 (hěn) – Very
难过 (nánguò) – Upset/sad
Tā jīntiān bù [kāixīn].
她 (tā) – She
今天 (jīntiān) – Today
不 (bù) – Not
开心 (kāixīn) – Happy
Qǐng nǐ děng yīxià
Please wait a moment
Qǐng (请) – Please
nǐ (你) – you
děng (等) – wait
yīxià (一下) – a moment
Ràng wǒ shì yīxià.
Let me try
Ràng(让) – Let
wǒ (我) – me
shì (试) – try
yīxià (一下) – *a bit / a moment
yī zhōu qī tiān
seven days a week
一周 (yī zhōu) – one week
七天 (qī tiān) – seven days
Wǒ yào shèzhì nǎozhōng
I need to set the alarm clock.
设置 (shèzhì) – “set / configure”
闹钟 (nǎozhōng) – “alarm clock”
Nǐ shèzhì nǎozhōng le ma?
Did you set the alarm?
[Xiào] de tíng bù xiàlái
“Can’t stop laughing”
笑 (xiào) – laugh
停不下来 (tíng bù xiàlái) – can’t stop
