Survival Chinese
This section of Lost Laowai is designed to teach you some basic survival Chinese - words and phrases that will get you by.
It is advisable to also visit our section on Chinese pinyin, as Chinese is a rather complicated language and even saying basic things can be difficult without an understanding of this core concept.
If you're looking for more ways to improve your Chinese, be sure to check out our resources and useful Chinese software sections. We also recommend checking out ChinesePod.com, as they produce some excellent free podcasts for all levels of Chinese learners.
NOTE: Click the "play" icon beside the pinyin (or the pinyin itself) to hear how the phrase/word should sound.
Greetings & Goodbyes
| English | Pinyin | Chinese |
| Hello | ní hǎo | 你好 |
| How are you? | ní hǎo ma? | 你好吗? |
| I'm fine, and you? | Wó hén hǎo, nǐ ne? | 我很好, 你呢? |
| Nice to meet you. | jiàndao ní hěn gāoxìng | 见到你很高兴. |
| Goodbye | zàijiàn | 再见 |
| See you soon. | yíhuìr jiàn. | 一会儿见. |
| See you tomorrow. | míngtiān jiàn. | 明天见. |
Courtesy
| English | Pinyin | Chinese |
| Thank you | xièxie | 谢谢 |
| You're welcome | búkèqi | 不客气 |
| Sorry | duìbuqǐ | 对不起 |
| It doesn't matter | méiguānxi | 没关系 |
| No problem | méiwèntí | 没问题 |
Useful Phrases
| English | Pinyin | Chinese |
| I want (something) | wǒ yào ... | 我要 ... |
| I don't want (something) | wǒ búyào ... | 我不要 ... |
| I like (something) | wǒ xǐhuan ... | 我喜欢 ... |
| I don't like (something) | wǒ bùxǐhuan ... | 我不喜欢 ... |
| Do you have (something)? | ní yǒu ... ma? | 你有 ... 吗? |
| Where is the (something)? | ... zài nǎr? | ... 在哪儿? |
| How much is it? | duōshǎoqián? | 多少钱? |
| Please speak slowly. | qǐng shuō màn yìdiǎn. | 请说慢一点. |
Numbers
| English | Pinyin | Chinese |
| One | yī | 一 |
| Two | èr | 二 |
| Three | sān | 三 |
| Four | sì | 四 |
| Five | wǔ | 五 |
| Six | liù | 六 |
| Seven | qī | 七 |
| Eight | bā | 八 |
| Nine | jiǔ | 九 |
| Ten | shí | 十 |
| Eleven | shíyī | 十一 |
| Twenty | èrshí | 二十 |
| Twenty One | èrshíyī | 二十一 |
| One Hundred | yībǎi | 一百 |
| One Thousand | yīqiān | 一千 |
