ALPHABET MATCHING GAME VOCABULARY FLASHCARDS
Why Learn Chinese?
You can communicate in Chinese. Four out of five new jobs in the US are created as a result of foreign trade. Skills like problem solving, dealing with abstract concepts, are increased when you study Chinese. Chinese study leads to an appreciation of cultural diversity.
How Long Does it Take to Learn Chinese?
Mandarin Chinese is rated as a category 4 language by the Foreign Service Institute. It is considered exceptionally difficult for English speakers to learn and takes an average of 88 weeks (or 2200 class hours) to gain professional working proficiency.
Chinese Alphabet & Pronunciation
Hanyu Pinyin, often abbreviated to pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Chinese in mainland China and to some extent in Taiwan. It is often used to teach Standard Mandarin Chinese, which is normally written using Chinese characters. The system includes four diacritics denoting tones.
[p]
[pʰ]
[m]
[f]
[t]
[tʰ]
[n]
[l]
[k]
[kʰ]
[x]
[tɕ]
[tɕʰ]
[ɕ]
[ʈʂ]
[ʈʂʰ]
[ʂ]
[ɻ~ʐ]
[ts]
[tsʰ]
[s]
[w]
[j]
[ɹ̩~z̩]
[a]
[ɤ]
[ai̯]
[ei̯]
[au̯]
[ou̯]
[an]
[ən]
[aŋ]
[əŋ]
[ʊŋ]
[aɚ̯]
[i]
[ja]
[je]
[jau̯]
[jou̯]
[jɛn]
[in]
[jaŋ]
[iŋ]
[jʊŋ]
[u]
[wa]
[wo]
[wai̯]
[wei̯]
[wan]
[wən]
[waŋ]
[wəŋ]
[y]
[ɥe]
[ɥɛn]
[yn]
[ɛ]
[ɔ]
[jɔ]
Basic Phrases in Chinese
| Hello | 你好 (Nǐ hǎo) |
|---|---|
| Goodbye | 再见 (Zàijiàn) |
| Yes | 是 (Shì) |
| No | 没有 (Méiyǒu) |
| Excuse me | 劳驾 (Láojià) |
| Please | 请 (Qǐng) |
| Thank you | 谢谢 (Xièxiè) |
| You are welcome | 别客气 (Bié kèqì) |
| Do you speak english | 你会说英语吗？ (Nǐ huì shuō yīngyǔ ma?) |
| Do you understand | 你理解吗？ (Nǐ lǐjiě ma?) |
| I understand | 我明白 (Wǒ míngbái) |
| I do not understand | 我不明白 (Wǒ bù míngbái) |
| How are you | 你好吗 (Nǐ hǎo ma?) |
| Fine thanks | 很好，谢谢！ (Hěn hǎo, xièxiè!) |
| What is your name | 请问你贵姓大名？ (Qǐngwèn nǐ guìxìng dàmíng?) |
| My name is | 我的名字是 (Wǒ de míngzì shì) |
| Pleased to meet you | 很高兴见到你 (Hěn gāoxìng jiàn dào nǐ) |
Chinese Grammar
Chinese Nouns
| Man | 男人 (Nánrén) |
|---|---|
| Woman | 女人 (Nǚrén) |
| Boy | 男孩 (Nánhái) |
| Girl | 一个女孩 (Yīgè nǚhái) |
| Cat | 猫 (Māo) |
| Dog | 狗 (Gǒu) |
| Fish | 鱼 (Yú) |
| Water | 水 (Shuǐ) |
| Milk | 牛奶 (Niúnǎi) |
| Egg | 蛋 (Dàn) |
| House | 房子 (Fanzhi) |
| Flower | 花 (Huā) |
| Tree | 树 (Shù) |
| Shirt | 衬衫 (Chènshān) |
| Pants | 裤子 (Kùzi) |
Chinese Adjectives
Colors in Chinese
| Black | 黑色的 (Hēisè de) |
|---|---|
| White | 白色 (Báisè) |
| Red | 红色 (Hóngsè) |
| Orange | 橙子 (Chéngzi) |
| Yellow | 黄色 (Huángsè) |
| Green | 绿色 (Lǜsè) |
| Blue | 蓝色 (Lán sè) |
| Purple | 紫色 (Zǐsè) |
| Pink | 粉 (Fěn) |
| Gray | 灰色 (Huīsè) |
| Brown | 棕色 (Zōngsè) |
Numbers in Chinese
| Zero | 零 (Líng) |
|---|---|
| One | 一 (Yī) |
| Two | 两个 (Liǎng gè) |
| Three | 三 (Sān) |
| Four | 四个 (Sì gè) |
| Five | 五 (Wǔ) |
| Six | 六 (Liù) |
| Seven | 七 (Qī) |
| Eight | 八 (Bā) |
| Nine | 九 (Jiǔ) |
| Ten | 四月 (Sì yuè) |
| Eleven | 十一 (Shíyī) |
| Twelve | 十二 (Shí'èr) |
| Twenty | 二十多岁 (Èrshí duō suì) |
| Thirty | 三十 (Sānshí) |
| Forty | 四十 (Sìshí) |
| Fifty | 五十 (Wǔshí) |
| Sixty | 六十 (Liùshí) |
| Seventy | 七十 (Qīshí) |
| Eighty | 八十 (Bāshí) |
| Ninety | 九十 (Jiǔshí) |
| Hundred | 百 (Bǎi) |
| Thousand | 千 (Qiān) |
Chinese Verbs
| To be | 成为 (Chéngwéi) |
|---|---|
| To have | 拥有 (Yǒngyǒu) |
| To want | 想要 (Xiǎng yào) |
| To need | 需要 (Xūyào) |
| To help | 帮助 (Bāngzhù) |
| To go | 去 (Qù) |
| To come | 来 (Lái) |
| To eat | 去吃 (Qù chī) |
| To drink | 喝 (Hē) |
| To speak | 说话 (Shuōhuà) |
Building Simple Sentences
More Complex Chinese Sentences
| And | 和 (Hé) |
|---|---|
| Or | 要么 (Yàome) |
| But | 但 (Dàn) |
| Because | 因为 (Yīnwèi) |
| With | 与 (Yǔ) |
| Also | 也 (Yě) |
| However | 然而 (Rán'ér) |
| Neither | 都不 (Dōu bù) |
| Nor | 也不 (Yě bù) |
| If | 如果 (Rúguǒ) |
| Then | 然后 (Ránhòu) |
Useful Chinese Vocabulary
Chinese Questions
| Who | 谁 (Shéi) |
|---|---|
| What | 什么 (Shénme) |
| When | 什么时候 (Shénme shíhòu) |
| Where | 哪里 (Nǎlǐ) |
| Why | 为什么 (Wèishéme) |
| How | 怎么样 (Zěnme yàng) |
| How many | 多少 (Duōshǎo) |
| How much | 多少 (Duōshǎo) |
Days of the Week in Chinese
| Monday | 星期一 (Xīngqí yī) |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | 星期二 (Xīngqí'èr) |
| Wednesday | 星期三 (Xīngqísān) |
| Thursday | 星期四 (Xīngqísì) |
| Friday | 星期五 (Xīngqíwǔ) |
| Saturday | 四月 (Sì yuè) |
| Sunday | 星期日 (Xīngqírì) |
| Yesterday | 昨天 (Zuótiān) |
| Today | 今天 (Jīntiān) |
| Tomorrow | 明天 (Míngtiān) |
Months in Chinese
| January | 一月 (Yī yuè) |
|---|---|
| February | 二月 (Èr yuè) |
| March | 游行 (Yóuxíng) |
| April | 四月 (Sì yuè) |
| May | 可以 (Kěyǐ) |
| June | 六月 (Liù yuè) |
| July | 七月 (Qī yuè) |
| August | 八月 (Bā yuè) |
| September | 九月 (Jiǔ yuè) |
| October | 十月 (Shí yuè) |
| November | 十一月 (Shíyī yuè) |
| December | 十二月 (Shí'èr yuè) |
Seasons in Chinese
| Winter | 冬天 (Dōngtiān) |
|---|---|
| Spring | 弹簧 (Tánhuáng) |
| Summer | 夏天 (Xiàtiān) |
| Autumn | 秋季 (Qiūjì) |
Telling Time in Chinese
| What time is it | 现在是几奌？ (Xiànzài shì jǐ diǎn?) |
|---|---|
| Hours | 小时 (Xiǎoshí) |
| Minutes | 分钟 (Fēnzhōng) |
| Seconds | 秒 (Miǎo) |
| O clock | 时 (Shí) |
| Half | 半 (Bàn) |
| Quarter past | 四分之一过去 (Sì fēn zhī yī guòqù) |
| Before | 之前 (Zhīqián) |
| After | 后 (Hòu) |