http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/ A series of Chinese language lessons designed for Peace Corps Volunteers and students gives listeners the basics of the language. Peace Corps' Coverdell World Wise Schools provides free educational materials based on the Peace Corps Volunteer experience. en-us Copyright 2007 wwsinfo@peacecorps.gov Fri, 16 Feb 2007 12:00:00 EST Fri, 16 Feb 2007 12:00:00 EST http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss wwsinfo@peacecorps.gov peace corps, peace, corps, volunteer, world wise schools, world, wise, world wide, education, language, language lessons, chinese, mandarin, standard, china Peace Corps Language Lessons in Chinese A series of Chinese language lessons designed for Peace Corps Volunteers and students gives listeners the basics of the language. Peace Corps' Coverdell World Wise Schools provides free educational materials based on the Peace Corps Volunteer experience. Peace Corps wwsinfo@peacecorps.gov http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_1.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_1.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:20:00 -0500 3:39 Mandarin is the official language of the People's Republic of China. Mandarin is the official language of the People's Republic of China. Lesson 1 - Introduction to Chinese Language Mandarin is the official language of the People's Republic of China. It is the dialect spoken in the capital, Beijing. It is taught in all schools and is used for television and broadcast. Almost the entire population understands Mandarin. The language taught in Pre-Service Training (PST) for Peace Corps trainees is Mandarin. Chinese is a language with a large number of words with the same pronunciation but different meanings; what distinguishes these ‘homophones' is their ‘tonal' quality – the raising and lowering of pitch on certain syllables. Mandarin has four tones – high, rising, falling-rising and falling, plus a fifth “neutral” tone. To illustrate, look at the word ma, which has four different meanings according to tone: High / mā / ‘mother' Rising / má / ‘hemp' or ‘numb' Falling-rising / mă / ‘horse' Falling / mà / ‘to scold' or ‘swear' Writing System Chinese is not a phonetic language and the characters do not bear any resemblance to actual pronunciation. Chinese is often referred to as a language of pictographs. There are about 56,000 characters, but the vast majority of these are archaic. It is commonly felt that a well-educated, contemporary Chinese might know and use between 6,000 and 8,000 characters. To read a Chinese newspaper you need to know 2,000 to 3,000, but 1,200 to 1,500 would be enough to get the gist. Each Chinese character represents a spoken syllable, so many people declare that Chinese is a monosyllabic language. Actually, it's more a case of having a monosyllabic writing system. While the building block of the Chinese language is indeed the monosyllabic Chinese character, Chinese words are usually a combination of two or more characters. You could think of Chinese words as being compounds. Phonetic system – Pinyin In 1958 China adopted a system of writing their language using the Roman alphabet. It's known as Pinyin. It is used in this course. Grammar Chinese grammar is much simpler than that of European languages. There are no articles (a/an/the), no tenses, and no plurals. The basic point to bear in mind is that, like English, Chinese word order is subject-verb-object. In other words, a basic English sentence like “I (subject) love (verb) you (object)” is constructed in exactly the same way in Chinese. For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_2.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_2.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:19:00 -0500 14:52 Get a head start by practicing your tones. Get a head start by practicing your tones. Lesson 2 - Phonetics There are 6 basic vowels and 21 consonants in Mandarin Chinese. A syllable always consists of a vowel (V) or a consonant with a vowel (CV), such as ba, fo, ne. Consonant clusters, two or more consonants used in succession, are not permitted in Chinese. Syllabic combinations common in English such as VC (up, at), CVC (big, pat, map), CCVC (bred, dread, stone), CVCC (mask, best, sand), CCV (fly, blue, grow) CCCV (screw, spray, stray), VCC (old, and, ink), VCCC (Olds, ants, amps), CCVCC (brand, trains, swings), CVCCC (tests, tenths, lunged), CVCCCC (thirsts, texts, worlds), CCVCCC (slurps, prints, flirts), CCCVC (street, squat, strut), CCCVCC (struts, squats, sprained), and CCCVCCC (scrimps, sprints, squelched) are not possible in Chinese. CVC, on the other hand, is possible in Chinese, but the final C can only be the nasal sounds -n and -ng and the retroflex –r, such as jing, nan, yong and er. Consonants are often called initials because they invariably appear initially in a word with the exception of the final -n, -ng or r, which can appear finally. Vowels are also called finals because they appear medially or finally in a word. Vowels can stand by themselves when no initial consonant is present. Let's learn the finals (vowels) first: MANDARIN / SIMILAR ENGLISH SOUND / EXAMPLE (PINYIN and CHARACTER) / NOTE a / Father / bà爸 e / fur / cè测 i / see / dì地 o / or / pó婆 u / flute / bù不 ü / German ‘für' / Lǜ 绿 / Written as ‘u' when appearing after ‘j q x' ai / fly / năi 奶 ao now hăo好 ei / day / měi美 ia / yard / xià下 ie / yes / xiè谢 iu / yolk / liù六 ou / low / lóu楼 ua / wah / huā花 `e / you ate / yuè月 / ‘`e' stands for a syllable by itself, so it is written as ‘yue', with the 2 dots dropped ui / way / huì会 uo / war / zuò做 iao / miaow / yào要 uai / why / kuài快 an / upon / màn慢 en / broken / wèn问 ang / town / fáng房 eng / ehng / pèng碰 er / her / èr二 ian / yen / diăn点 iang / yahng / liáng xié凉 in / inn / xīn心 ing / eeng / tīng听 iong / yohng / yòng用 ong / song / dōng冬 uan / wand / guān关 un / when / hūn昏 uang / wong / huáng 黄 üan / you an / quán 全 ün / yuen / jūn 军 Now the initials (consonants): MANDARIN / SIMILAR ENGLISH SOUND / EXAMPLE (PINYIN and CHARACTER) / NOTE Bb / boy / bà爸 Pp / paper / pó婆 Mm / mother / mā妈 Ff / food / fā发 Dd / door / dà大 Tt / tall / tā他 Nn / name / nǐ你 Ll / life / lè乐 Gg / girl / gè个 Kk / kid / kè客 Hh / high / hé和 Jj / jeans / jiě姐 / the lips do not protrude Qq / cheese / qián钱 Xx / shock / xiū休 / the lips do not protrude Zz / kids / zuò坐 Cc / cats / cā 擦 / Not an equivalent in English Ss / sir / sān三 Zhzh / joy / zhăo找 / pronounced without rounding and protruding the lips Chch / child / chuáng床 / See above Shsh / shoe / shuō说 / See above Rr / red / ruăn软 / See above Vv / visit / Only to spell foreign words Ww / white / wǒ我 / Is actually ‘u' when ‘u' stands for a syllable by itself Yy / year / yǒu有 / Is actually ‘i' (see above) Some sounds are especially difficult for English speakers to remember, and have similar pronunciations. The sound q, for example, sounds a little like ch. Similar pairs are x and sh, and j and zh. Please listen and repeat the following words: zi ci si zhi chi shi ri ji qi xi Tones High ¯ high, flat, continuous tone Rising ΄ rising tone similar to the intonation used in the question ‘What?' Falling-rising ˇ tone that falls then rises. You'll hear many Mandarin speakers ‘swallow' the rising sound, only giving it a clear falling-rising pattern for emphasis. Falling falling tone, similar to the one used when yelling ‘Darn!' To help you get close, here's a brief try at tones, transcribed in English. Consider the syllable ‘mmm' (a non-syllable in Mandarin). Then, ¯ The high level tone is what you might say in English if you were asked a question, and you had to think about it before answering. It's high, and it's a constant tone: “Mmm, sixteen, I think.” ΄ The rising tone is like a question: “Mmm? I didn't catch that.” ˇ The low level tone is what you might say in English to express doubt, or disbelief: “Mmm...I don't know about that.” ۱The falling tone is like an interjection: “Mmm! Well, I'll be!” Listen and repeat: first tone / second tone / third tone / fourth tone ā / á / ă / à mā / má / mă / mà tāng / táng / tăng / tàng qīng / qíng / qǐng / qìng yān / yán / yăn / yàn guō / guó / guǒ / guò Choose the syllables you heard： 1. dìdiăn / dìtăn bāobiăn / băopiàn tōnghóng / gòngtóng dàodiăn / dàotián zàizuò / cáicuò xīngqiú / jīyóu cāntīng / kànxìn cèsuǒ / jiécuò 2. jiān / zhān xué / shuī yuē / juē rì / zì céng / qǐng ròu / zǒu xuăn / juăn zhǔn / zhěn chén / chūn yuè / yún jiāng / zhāng cāng / shāng For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_3.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_3.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:18:00 -0500 4:45 Start learning the ropes of Chinese grammar. Start learning the ropes of Chinese grammar. Lesson 3 - Basic Grammar Mandarin grammar is relatively straightforward. There are no verb conjugations, no plurals, no articles (a/the), and no gender or tenses. At an elementary level, sentence order is similar to English: subject-verb-object. For example, the sentence ‘I study Chinese' follows exactly the same word order in Mandarin: I study Chinese. Wǒ xué hànyŭ。(lit: I study Chinese) Let's learn a few words first: this / zhè that / nà to be / shì tea / chá rice/meal / fàn cup / bēizi egg / jīdàn question particle / mā no / bù what / shénme Then you can talk about objects: This is tea. / Zhè shì chá。 That is rice. / Nà shì fàn。 This is a cup. / Zhè shì bēizi。 That is an egg. / Nà shì jīdàn。 Note: ‘Shì' is ‘to be'. It is generally followed by a noun which defines the subject/topic. It is not normally followed by an adjective on its own. How to form a question? A very simple way to form a question in Chinese is by putting a question particle “ma” at the end of a sentence that would otherwise be a plain statement. English counterparts of these questions are usually formed by syntactically more complicated “transformational” processes such as movement of the verb to the beginning of the sentence. Is this tea? / Zhè shì chá ma? Yes. / Shì No. / Bú shì。 Is that rice? / Nà shì fàn ma? Yes. / Shì No. / Bú shì。 Is this a cup? / Zhè shì bēizi ma? Yes. / Shì No. / Bú shì。 Is that an egg? / Nà shì jīdàn ma? Yes. / Shì No. / Bú shì。 Note: The word “bù” is the negative word. It precedes the verb to indicate that something does not happen. Here its tone changes from the fourth to the second because it is followed by a fourth tone. You will learn the rule in the future. So how do you ask what something is? ‘什么Shénme' is the interrogative word “what.” The most important feature about Chinese interrogative pronouns is that, unlike English practice, which shifts all interrogative pronouns to the beginning of the question, Chinese keeps them in the position in the sentence where the answers would be expected. What is this? / Zhè shì shénme? This is tea. / Zhè shì chá。 What is that? / Nà shì shénme? That is a cup. / Nà shì bēizi。 For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_4.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_4.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:17:00 -0500 2:07 Learning to say hello and goodbye in Chinese is extremely important culturally. Learning to say hello and goodbye in Chinese is extremely important culturally. Lesson 4 - Greetings Vocabulary you (singular) / nǐ I, me / wǒ good, all right / hăo goodbye / zàijiàn morning / zăo morning / zăoshàng afternoon / xiàwŭ evening / wănshàng Dialogue 1 Greetings in all circumstances A: How are you? / A: Nǐ hăo. B: How are you? / B: Nǐ hăo. A: Goodbye. / A: Zàijiàn. B: Goodbye. / B: Zàijiàn. Note: Nǐ hăo. This is a common, slightly formal, greeting. Literally it would translate as “You are good,” or if conceived of as a question, “Are you fine?” However, it is not really a question. The response is usually simply Nǐ hăo again. Other common greetings used among friends or acquaintances are: Dialogue 2: Greet people in the morning A: Good morning. / Zăo. (or Zăoshàng hăo.） B: Good morning. / Zăo. (or Zăoshàng hăo.） Note: You can change the morning ‘zăoshàng' to afternoon ‘xiàwŭ' or evening ‘wănshàng' respectively, and add good ‘hăo' to greet people in different times of a day. For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_5.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_5.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:16:00 -0500 3:14 These vocabulary and dialogues teach you to introduce yourself to someone. These vocabulary and dialogues teach you to introduce yourself to someone. Lesson 5 - Introductions Vocabulary May I ask...? / Qǐngwèn... you (singular) / nǐ what / shénme name / míngzi I, me / wǒ call, to be called, to be named / jiào (V) to be surnamed; (N) surname / xìng a male's name / Zhāng Wěi Dialogue 1 Ask for the whole name: B: I'm called Zhang Wei. / B: Wǒ jiào Zhāng Wěi. A: Qǐngwèn, nǐ jiào shénme míngzi? / A: May I ask your name? Dialogue 2: Ask for the family name and the given name: B: My family name is Wang. / B: Wǒ xìng Wáng. I'm called Wang Jiande. / jiào Wáng Jiàndé. And you? / Nǐ ne? What is your name? / Nǐ jiào shénme míngzi? A: My family name is Zhang. I am called Zhang Wei. / A: Wǒ xìng Zhāng, jiào Zhāng Wěi. A: May I ask your surname? / A: Qǐngwèn, nǐ xìng shénme? Note: In a Chinese name, the surname or family name always comes first, followed by the given name. Most surnames consist of a single character, though some have two. Given names may be either one or two characters. Depending on social circumstances, individuals identify themselves either (1) by surname only: Wǒ xìng Zhāng or (2) by full name: Wǒ jiào Zhāng Wěi, or Wǒ shì Zhāng Wěi. The personal pronouns: I/me / wǒ You / nǐ He/him / tā She/her / tā It / tā We/us / wǒmen You (pl.) / nǐmen They/them / tāmen Note: Chinese personal pronouns are very simple. There is no distinction for case. 'Wǒ' is 'wǒ' regardless of whether it is the subject of the sentence or the object of the verb, and the same is true for the second and third person pronouns. Nor is there a distinction for gender. ‘Tā' is ‘tā', whether it refers to a woman or a man. For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_6.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_6.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:15:00 -0500 4:22 Learn to count in Chinese and then how to apply those numbers to prices. Learn to count in Chinese and then how to apply those numbers to prices. Lesson 6 - Numbers and Prices Numbers 1-10: one / yī / 一 two / èr / 二 (When counting, two is èr二 , when used with measure words, it is liăng 两) three / sān / 三 four / sì / 四 five / wǔ ŭ/ 五 six / liù / 六 seven / qī / 七 eight / bā / 八 nine / jiǔ ŭ/ 九 ten / shí / 十 Numbers 10 - 1 billion: The Chinese number system is quite simple and generally easy to learn. Multiples of 10 are made by stating the multiple and then 10 – so 20 is literally ‘two ten'. If you learn the numbers from one to 10, you can count to 100 without having to learn any new vocabulary. The Chinese counting system is based on units of 10. These multiply as follows: 10 / shí / 十 100 / băi / 百 1000 / qiān / 千 10,000 / wàn / 万 100,000 / shíwàn / 十万 1 million / băiwàn / 百万 10 million / qiānwàn / 千万 100 million / wànwàn; yì / 亿 1 billion / shí yì / 十亿 Ordinal numbers: Simply prefix any number with dì, and it becomes an ordinal: 1st dì yī 2nd dì èr 3rd dì sān 10th dì shí Dialogue 1 Asking for the price A: Excuse me, how much is this? / A: Qǐng wèn, zhège duōshăo qián? B: Ten yuan. / B: Shí-kuài qián. A: I want this one. Thanks. / A: Wǒ yào zhège. Xièxiè. Dialogue 2 Asking for items in the grocery A: What do you want to buy? / A: Nǐ yào măi shénme? B: I want to buy mineral water. How much is it (per bottle)? / B: Wǒ yào măi kuàngquánshuǐ.Duōshăo qián yì-píng? A: Two-sixty. How many bottles do you want? / A: Liăng-kuài-liù. Yào jǐ-píng? B: Four. / B: Sì-píng. Vocabulary this zhège that / nàge which / năge how much? how many? / duōshăo money / qián "dollar" or Chinese yuan / kuài (yuán is slightly more formal) want / yào thanks, thank you / xièxie buy / măi mineral water / kuàngquánshuǐ (Measure word) bottle / píng how many? (up to ten or so) / jǐ- (another meaning is ‘several') For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_7.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_7.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:14:00 -0500 3:01 Before we order our meal, we need to know a few vocabulary words for food and drink. Before we order our meal, we need to know a few vocabulary words for food and drink. Lesson 7 - Food and Drinks Vocabulary rice / mǐfàn noodle / miàntiáo dumpling jiăozi bread / miànbāo vegetable / shūcài pork / zhūròu beef / niúròu fish / yú water / shuǐ mineral water / kuàngquănshuǐ coffee / kāfēi tea / chá milk / niúnăi. juice / guǒ zhī. beer / píjiŭ yogurt / suānnăi bowl / wăn plate / pánzi cup / bēizi bottle / píngzi sugar / táng salt / yán chili / làjiāo oil / yóu MSG / wèijing hot / rède; tàngde iced / bīngdòngde and / hé Phrases and Sentences: I'd like to have noodles. / Wǒ yào miàntiáo. I don't want noodles. / Wǒ búyào miàntiáo. Do you have…or not? / Yǒu méiyǒu…？ Don't make it too hot. / Búyào tài là. I like dumplings. / Wǒ xǐhuān jiăozi. I don't like rice. / Wǒ bùxǐhuān mǐfàn. Can I have the bill, please? / Măidān/Suànzhàng. Please try to use the vocabulary above to substitute these sentences. For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_8.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_8.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:13:00 -0500 3:37 Mmm...Chinese food. Mmm...Chinese food. Lesson 8 - Some Chinese Dishes Cold Dishes (Appetizers): liángbàn jiāngdòu / Boiled cowpeas with chili sauce pàocài / pickles Hot Dishes (Main Course): yúxiāng ròusī / Stir fried shredded pork with “YuXiang” sauce huíguō ròu / Twice cooked pork yúxiāng qiézi / Stir fried eggplant with “YuXiang” sauce gōngbào jīdīng / Spicy chicken with peanuts fānqié chăo jīdàn / Scrambled eggs with tomato tángcù páig / Sweet and sour spare ribs Vegetable: hŭpí qīngjiāo / Fried/Tiger-skin green pepper tǔdòu sī / Stir fried shredded potatoes tángcù liánbái / Stir fried cabbage with sweet and sour sauce gānbiăn sìjìdòu / Fried kidney beans Noodles: fānqié jīdàn miàn / Noodles with egg and tomato zájiàng miàn / Noodles with meat sauce niúròu miàn / Noodles with beef hóngyóu shuǐjiăo / Boiled dumplings with chili sauce qīngtāng shuǐjiăo / Boiled dumplings chāoshǒu / Boiled soft dumplings with soup Rice and Grains mǐfàn / Rice dàn chăofàn / Fried rice with egg bābăo zhōu / 8-treasures Porridge Fruits: píngguǒ / apples xiāngjiāo / bananas júzi / tangerines xīguā / watermelon táozi / peaches lízi / pears For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_9.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_9.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:12:00 -0500 1:24 Here are some stock phrases to help you introduce yourself, work within your langauges skills, and get along in Chinese. Here are some stock phrases to help you introduce yourself, work within your langauges skills, and get along in Chinese. Lesson 9 - Useful Phrases 1. Thank you. / Xièxiè. 2. You're welcome. / Búxiè. 3. I am sorry. / Duìbuqǐ. 4. That's all right. / Méiguānxì. 5. May I ask…? / Qǐngwèn… 6. Do you speak English? / Nǐ huìshuō yīngyǔ ma? 7. I am an American. / Wǒ shì měiguó rén. 8. I am a Peace Corps volunteer. / Wǒ shì Hépíng duìyuán. 9. I don't speak Chinese. / Wǒ búhuì hànyǔ. 10. Do you understand? / Nǐ néng tīngdǒng ma? 11. I don't understand. / Wǒ tīng bùdǒng. 12. Please say it again. / Qǐng zài shuō yíbiàn. 13. Please speak slowly. / Qǐng shuō màn yìdiăn. For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_10.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_10.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:11:00 -0500 1:50 Should you find yourself in an emergency and in need of Chinese, we have you covered. Should you find yourself in an emergency and in need of Chinese, we have you covered. Lesson 10 - Sickness and Emergency Sick I am sick. / Wǒ shēngbìng le. I have a cold. / Wǒ gănmào le. I am allergic to this. Wǒ duì zhège guòmǐn. I am tired. / Wǒ lèi le. I want to go to bed. / Wǒ xiăng shuìjiào le. Where is the bathroom? Xǐshǒujiān zài nă? I need to go to the hospital. / Wǒ yào dào yīyuàn. May I ask where the hospital is? / Qǐngwèn, yīyuàn zài nă? Emergency Help! / Jiù mìng! Police! / Jǐngchá! May I use your telephone? / Wǒ kěyǐ yòng nǐde diànhuà ma? I need to call the police 110. / Wǒ yào dă yāo-yāo-líng. (yāo is an alternate pronunciation for the number one, used because yī is easily confused with qī, especially on the telephone) For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_11.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_11.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:10:00 -0500 1:19 Get from here to there...and learn from location vocabulary in between. Get from here to there...and learn from location vocabulary in between. Lesson 11 - Direction and Places Direction Where is the…? / …zài năr? On the left / Zài zuǒ biān. On the right / Zài yòu biān. Straight-ahead / Qián biān. Near by / Fù jìn. Not far from here / Lí zhèr bù yuăn. Above / Shàng biān. Behind / Hòu biān. Places hop / shāngdiàn street / jiē(dào) restaurant / fànguăn school / xuéxiào classroom / jiàoshì office / bàngōngshì bus station / chēzhàn railway station / huǒchēzhàn For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_12.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_12.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:09:00 -0500 1:12 Pick up how to say various pieces of clothing and their colors in Chinese. Pick up how to say various pieces of clothing and their colors in Chinese. Lesson 12 - Clothes and Colors Clothes / Yīfu pants / kùzi blouse / wàitào shirt / chènshān skirt / qúnzi jacket / jiákè shoes / xié sandals / liángxié slippers / tuōxié Colors / yánsè white / bái (sè) black / hēi (sè) red / hóng (sè) yellow / huáng (sè) blue / lán (sè) green / lǜ (sè) gray / huī (sè) brown / zōng/hè (sè) For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_13.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_13.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:08:00 -0500 2:41 Days of the week, months of the year, and telling time. Days of the week, months of the year, and telling time. Lesson 13 - Time Vocabulary: Days of the week / Xīngqī Monday / Xīngqī yī Tuesday / Xīngqī èr Wednesday / Xīngqī sān Thursday / Xīngqī sì Friday / Xīngqī wǔ Saturday / Xīngqī liù Sunday / Xīngqī tiān Weekend / Zhōumò Months / Yuè January / yī yuè February / èr yuè March / sān yuè April / sì yuè May / wǔ yuè June / liù yuè July / qī yuè August / bā yuè September / jiǔ yuè October / shí yuè November / shí yī yuè December / shí èr yuě year / nián month / yuè day / rì/hào hour / diăn minute / fēn yesterday zuótiān today / jīntiān tomorrow míngtiān Phrases and Sentences: What time is it? Jǐ diăn le? It is 9:10. / Jiǔ diăn shí fēn. What day is it? Jīntiān xīngqī jǐ? Today is Monday. Jīntiān xīngqī yī. What is the date of today? Jīntiān jǐhào? Today is May 1st. Jīntiān wǔyuè yīhào. For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_14.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_14.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:07:00 -0500 1:01 Learn how to address your entire family...in Chinese. Learn how to address your entire family...in Chinese. Lesson 14 - Family mother / māma father / bàba older sister / jiějie younger sister / mèimei older brother / gēge younger brother dìdi daughter / nǚer son / érzi grandmother / năinai grandfather / yéye niece / zhínǚ nephew / zhízi man / nánrén woman / nǚrén boy / nánhái'r girl / nǚhái'r For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_15.mp3 http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/mp3/chinamandarin/CN_Mandarin_Lesson_15.mp3 Fri, 16 Feb 2007 9:06:00 -0500 1:25 Important vocabulary for things that you might find around the house. Important vocabulary for things that you might find around the house. Lesson 15 - Home Items glass/cup / bēizi chopsticks / kuàizi bowl / wăn plate pánzi spoon tāngshí fork / chāzi knife / dāo table / zhuōzi chair / yǐzi door / mén window / chuāng home / jiā hotel / bīnguăn room / fángjiān bathroom / wèishēng jiān/cèsuǒ toilet / mătǒng toilet paper / wèishēng zhǐ soap / féizào towel / máojīn bed / chuáng bed sheet / chuángdān blanket / tănzi pillow / zhěntou For more language lessons go to www.peacecorps.gov/wws/multimedia/language/. For more information on the Peace Corps, go to www.peacecorps.gov/. No peace corps, language, language lessons, chinese, china, mandarin