Basic Chinese words for beginners
– Essential words to know –
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Learn the essentials of Chinese easily with this vocabulary list that contains all the most basic words used in Chinese, with their english translations. If you’re a beginner, it will come in handy to review or learn Chinese by yourself before traveling, or if you want to enrich and improve your Chinese vocabulary to better express yourself in writing and speaking!
Do you spot any errors or want to add a vocabulary word to the list? Don’t hesitate to leave a comment to improve the site!
| ENGLISH | CHINESE |
| Please | Qǐng |
| Thank you! | xièxiè! |
| Sorry! | Duìbùqǐ! |
| What? | Shénme? |
| Who? | Shéi? |
| When? | Shénme shíhòu? |
| Why? | Wèishéme? |
| Which? | Nǎge? |
| How? | Rúhé? |
| Where ? | Zài nǎlǐ? |
| How much ? | Duōshǎo qián? |
| Yes | Shì de |
| No | bù |
| Maybe | yěxǔ |
| Of course | dāngrán |
| something | mǒu wù |
| nothing | méiyǒu shé me |
| somebody | mǒu rén |
| nobody | méiyǒu rén |
| before | qián |
| after | hòu |
| far | yuǎn de |
| near | kàojìn |
| here | zhèlǐ |
| there | nàlǐ |
| today | jīntiān |
| tomoorow | míngtiān |
| now | xiànzài |
| man | nánrén |
| woman | nǚshì |
| friend | péngyǒu |
| more | gèng duō de |
| less | jiào shǎo de |
| always | zǒng shì |
| later | zhīhòu |
| never | jué bù |
| same | xiāngtóng de |
| different | bùtóng de |
| small | xiǎo de |
| large | dà de |
| difficult | nán de |
| easy | jiǎndān de |
| hot | rè de |
| cold | hánlěng de |
| yesterday | zuótiān |
| after | hòu |
| beautiful | měilì de |
| broken | pòsuì de |
| free | zìyóu de |
| a pharmacy | yàofáng |
| money | qián |
| a bag | yīgè bāo |
| a lighter | dǎhuǒjī |
| a cigarette | xiāngyān |
| a bottle | yīgè píngzi |
| soap | féizào |
| clean | gānjìng de |
| dirty | āng zāng de |
| a trash can | yīgè lèsè tǒng |
| a trash bag | yīgè lèsè dài |
| the silence | chénmò |
| a tool | yīgè gōngjù |
| pregnant | yùn |
| sick | shēngbìng de |
| a baby | yīgè bǎobǎo |
| a little bit | yī diǎndiǎn |
| a doctor | yīshēng |
| a dentist | yī míng yáyī |
| a medicine | yī zhǒng yào |
| a book | yī běn shū |
| a story | yīgè gùshì |
| a phone | yī bù shǒujī |
| a computer | yī tái diànnǎo |
| a car | yī liàng chē |
| a plane | yī jià fēijī |
| the name | míngzì |
| the adress | dìzhǐ |
| the age | niánlíng |
| the nationality | guójí |
| a choice | yīgè xuǎnzé |
| an answer | yīgè dá’àn |
| the key | yàoshi |
| the light | guāng |
| the television | diànshì |
| the bed | chuáng |
| the house | fángzi |
| the shower | línyù |
| the window | chuānghù |
| the door | mén |
| the table | zhuōzi |
| tired | píláo de |
| water | shuǐ |
| open | dǎkāi |
| closed | guānbì |
| clothes | yīfú |
| coffee | kāfēi |
| tea | chá |
| lunch | wǔcān |
| dinner | wǎncān |
| a fruit | yīgè shuǐguǒ |
| a vegetable | shūcài |
| a beverage | yī zhǒng yǐnliào |
| a child | yīgè háizi |
| rain | yǔ |
| the entrance | rùkǒu |
| the exit | chūkǒu |
| music | yīnyuè |
| a smile | yīgè wéixiào |
| the world | shìjiè |
| the sky | tiānkōng |
| a river | yītiáo hé |
| the sea | dàhǎi |
| the mountain | shān |
| the lake | nàgè hú |
| the island | xiǎo dǎo |
| the beach | shātān |
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