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Success with Chinese: Listening & Speaking A Communicative Approach for Beginners

Book & 2 Audio CDs

by De-an Wu Swihart with Cong Meng

This document is an advance sample including: Table of Contents, Introduction, Lessons 1, 2, and 9

Success with Chinese will be available for delivery in June 2005. Also available: Success with Chinese: Reading & Writing Please write to [email protected] with any questions.

Title: Success with Chinese: Listening & Speaking A Communicative Approach for Beginners

Author: De-an Wu Swihart with Cong Meng ISBN: 0887274250 Pages: 288 Illustrations: Photos throughout Binding: Paperback with 2 Audio CDs Trim Size: 7” x 10” List Price: $39.95 Availability: From bookstores or directly from:

Cheng & Tsui Company 25 West St. Boston, MA 02111-1213 USA Tel.: (800) 554-1963 Fax: (617) 426-3669 Order online at www.cheng-tsui.com, via e-mail at [email protected].

Success with ChineseA Communicative Approach for Beginners

LISTENING & SPEAKING

De-an Wu Swihart with Cong Meng

C & T Boston

Copyright © 2005 De-an Wu Swihart

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or

by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, scanning, or any in-

formation storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher.

10 09 08 07 06 05 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Published by

Cheng & Tsui Company, Inc.

25 West Street

Boston, MA 02111-1213 USA

Fax (617) 426-3669

www.cheng-tsui.com

“Bringing Asia to the World”™

ISBN 0-88727-425-0

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Swihart, De-an Wu

Success with Chinese : a communicative approach for beginners / by De-an Wu Swihart.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 0-88727-425-0 (pbk.)

1. Chinese language—Textbooks for foreign speakers—English. I. Title.

PL1129.E5S95 2004

495.1'82421—dc22

2004063502

Printed in the U.S.A.

v

Publisher’s Note

The Cheng & Tsui Asian Language Series is designed to publish and widely distribute quality lan-

guage learning materials created by leading instructors from around the world. We welcome read-

ers’ comments and suggestions concerning the publications in this series. Please send feedback to

our Editorial Department (e-mail: [email protected]), or contact the following members of

our Editorial Board.

Professor Shou-hsin Teng, Chief Editor3 Coach Lane, Amherst, MA 01002

Professor Dana Scott BourgerieAsian and Near Eastern Languages, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602

Professor Samuel CheungDept. of Chinese, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong

Professor Ying-che LiDept. of East Asian Languages, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822

Professor Timothy LightDept. of Comparative Religion, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008

vii

Abbreviations

Abbreviation English Pinyin Chinese

Adj Adjective xíngróngcí 形容词Adv Adverb fùcí 副词Aux Auxiliary zhùdòngcí 助动词Conj Conjunction liáncí 连词Exp Expression xíguàn yòngyǔ 习惯用语Int Interrogative yíwèncí 疑问词Intj Interjection tàncí 叹词Meas Measure Word liàngcí 量词N Noun míngcí 名词Num Numeral shùcí 数词Part Particle zhùcí 助词Prep Proposition jiècí 介词Pron Pronoun dàimíngcí 代词PropN Proper Noun zhuānyǒu míngcí 专有名词V Verb dòngcí 动词VO Verb-object dòngbīn jiégòu 动宾结构

ix

Contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi

LISTENING & SPEAKING

1 Pinyin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

2 Counting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

3 Money . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

4 Eating at a Cafeteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

5 At a Restaurant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

6 Making Phone Calls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

7 At a Hotel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

8 Asking for Directions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

9 Telling Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

10 Calendars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Appendix: Vocabulary List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .235

xi

Introduction

The Proficiency Guidelines developed by the American Council for the Teaching of Foreign Lan-

guages (ACTFL) in 1986 provide global measurement of integrated performance in speaking, lis-

tening, reading, and writing a foreign language. The establishment of those Proficiency Guidelines

reflects a significant change in the contemporary direction of foreign language teaching, with less

emphasis on single methodologies, and an increased focus on the end results of language learn-

ing. In this way, a variety of methods, approaches, materials and curricula are oriented toward

one goal—proficiency. The advantages of such an approach have been particularly evident to me

in ten years of taking students to Beijing for summer study and in seven years of preparing Eng-

lish speakers to live in China. Whenever learners can apply their classroom knowledge to a real-

life conversation, their learning is powerfully reinforced and their motivation is strengthened. All

learners of Chinese language profit from instructional methods that are context-based and culture-

centered, with an ultimate emphasis beyond the classroom, on day-to-day natural language usage.

There is a need for Chinese language textbooks that can bridge the gap between what is taught in

the classroom and what is spoken by native speakers every day.

Five years ago, in response to the lack of materials for teaching practical Chinese language for

everyday communication, I began writing context-based, proficiency-oriented teaching materials

to train beginning students from the ACTFL OPI (Oral Proficiency Interview) novice level (stu-

dents can produce mainly isolated words and phrases) to the intermediate level (students can func-

tion in sentence-length discourse, using appropriate connector and transitional phrases). Success

with Chinese takes a unique proficiency-based approach and has been field tested in both China

and the United States.

With its up-to-date, real-life situations based in China, this book fills a clear need for context-

based learning. Its wide use of authentic daily language contexts helps students make rapid prog-

ress in speaking, listening, reading, and writing in Chinese for preparation to live, study, work, or

travel in China.

xii Introduction

How This Book’s Design Leads to Success with Chinese

This book was written for people who plan to live or work in China—students, English teachers,

and others. It can also be used as a textbook in regular college courses, in immersion programs, in

intensive summer programs, and in language training schools.

Success with Chinese is structured in two separate but coordinated parts: Listening & Speak-

ing and Reading & Writing. This is because the phonetic language background of English speakers

leads them to expect to be able to look at an unfamiliar word and determine its pronunciation from

its spelling. But Chinese, as a character-based, non-phonetic language, does not allow that, except

through Pinyin, the Chinese system for phonetically transliterating Chinese characters into the

Latin alphabet. Thus the task of learning a Chinese character entails learning the graphic charac-

ter, its meaning, and its Pinyin pronunciation, both spelling and tone. Very often, English speakers

learn to speak and understand Chinese faster than they learn to read and write it. Most students

need time to learn to connect the pronunciation of Chinese characters with their shapes, and only

then can they read.

This use of a coordinated two-part structure allows teachers, as well as individual learners,

considerable flexibility in designing the instruction and learning process.

• Students can learn Chinese by studying the two parts concurrently, but without having to

use the same pace for Listening & Speaking as for Reading & Writing. It is recommended

to have students concentrate primarily on speaking and listening at first, while learning

reading and writing at a slower pace. This allows students, especially native speakers

of English, to have more confidence about learning Chinese, because they will already

have learned to say many of the words by the time they are asked to learn the Chinese

characters.

• For students who wish to learn only spoken Chinese, Listening & Speaking may be

studied independently of Reading & Writing. For students who are learning or who

have already learned some spoken Chinese, Reading & Writing can be used as an

independent course.

• In the Chinese dialogues and short passages in this book, Pinyin transliterations are

printed directly below each Chinese character, rather than in a separate section away

from the characters, as is commonly done in many Chinese textbooks. This design helps

English speakers associate the Chinese characters with their sounds. I believe that in

this way, an English-speaking student of Chinese will make the connection between

characters and sounds more quickly and will later learn to read characters without the

help of Pinyin.

Introduction xiii

The lessons in Listening & Speaking are thematically coordinated with the lessons in Reading

& Writing. The former opens with an introduction to Pinyin and pronunciation; the latter opens

with an introduction to Chinese characters. Thereafter, the coordination between the two parts is

according to the context-based modules, as follows:

Listening & Speaking Reading & Writing

Lesson(s) Topic of Module Lesson(s)

2 Numbers 2

3 Money 3–4

4–5 Food 5–9

6 Telephone 10

7 Hotels 11

8 Directions 12–14

9–10 Time, Schedules, & Forms 15–18

The characters selected for inclusion in Reading & Writing do not simply mirror the vocabu-

lary lists in Listening & Speaking. Instead, they are the characters that are most relevant to daily

life in China and are commonly seen on signs, menus, schedules, etc. In teaching large numbers

of Americans who are spending a year in China while learning Chinese, I have found that this ap-

proach is especially useful to those people who want to quickly learn how to find their way around

China. To them, learning Chinese characters is a matter of survival. At the same time, the book

meets the needs of all students, and the selected characters are also the foundation for a program

in academic reading, as I will explain later.

How the Lessons Are Organized

The Listening & Speaking Component

Training students to speak well and to understand what native speakers say is the most important

task of a foreign language teacher. The Listening & Speaking portion of Success with Chinese em-

ploys a variety of teaching methods to help students achieve oral proficiency.

Lesson One introduces the Pinyin system and the pronunciation of standard Chinese. Each

of the other nine lessons is a module focused on a daily life situation such as counting numbers,

exchanging money, eating at a restaurant, making a telephone call, and asking directions—practi-

cal topics that are directly relevant to daily life and that can therefore motivate the student to learn.

The first module is the immediately useful skill of counting numbers. Greetings, with which most

Chinese textbooks begin, can wait until Lesson Three. The arrangement of vocabulary and gram-

xiv Introduction

mar topics is from simple to complex, although occasionally a departure is needed to familiarize

students with a situation that will be immediately useful to them.

This book starts with shǔ shù (counting numbers), rather than with teaching the greeting nǐ

hǎo (hello), as do most Chinese textbooks. During three years of using the topics and vocabulary

in this book with beginning students both in China and in the United States, we have found that

because of the obvious usefulness of the topics, students are particularly interested in them, and

with that motivation they are willing to work harder and can learn faster and more effectively.

Starting with Lesson Two, each lesson opens with a list of Key Expressions that introduces

important words and phrases from that lesson’s dialogues. The two Dialogues in each lesson were

created based on research into the frequency of usage for the specific situation in daily life. While

the language found in the dialogues is used in daily life in China, it is appropriately simple for be-

ginners. Each dialogue has accompanying notes, a vocabulary list, and an English translation. The

dialogues, which reflect a variety of specific daily situations, allow learners to communicate with

native Chinese speakers in a realistic environment. Students should master the dialogues and try

to create their own dialogues based on the situations.

The Grammar Notes are linked to the dialogues. The explanations are written from the angle

of how English speakers see Chinese grammar, and comparisons with English are used extensively.

For example, a grammar note in Lesson Nine points out that the word order of 以前 yǐqián (be-

fore) or 以后 yǐhòu (after) in a Chinese sentence is the reverse of that in English, where “before”

or “after” precedes a time or event. In Chinese they follow a time or event word, so that the English

“before 11:00” and “after class” become, respectively, “11:00 以前 yǐqián” (literally, 11:00 before)

and “下课以后 xiàkè yǐhòu” (literally, class after).

The dialogues include sentence patterns that have been selected because they are commonly

used in daily life in China and illustrate the grammar points of that lesson. The sentence patterns

are of central importance in helping students learn conversational Chinese. The Grammar Prac-

tice & Sentence Patterns section of each lesson provides a diagram of each sentence pattern, with

the sentence elements in separate blocks. Remembering the correct position of each block in a

sentence pattern will help students make new sentences with that pattern. Drills using the sen-

tence patterns foster students’ ability to make their own sentences, so they can begin to engage in

conversations with others.

Like the Grammar Notes, the Pronunciation Notes and the Pronunciation Exercises are cho-

sen and designed specifically for English speakers, emphasizing pronunciation of the sounds that

are new to them. Each lesson has Listening Comprehension Exercises, which train students to

understand native speakers, Communication Activities, which train students to make sentences

in Chinese and foster their ability to understand and respond to what is being said in daily con-

Introduction xv

versations, and Review Exercises. At the end of each lesson are notes on Understanding Chinese

Culture relevant to the content of the lesson. These notes provide cultural and practical informa-

tion about China that is interesting to students and that can help them understand and use the

language.

The Reading & Writing Component

The Reading & Writing portion of Success with Chinese opens with an “Introduction to Chinese

Characters,” which explains the general rules of character writing, beginning with the types of

strokes and emphasizing the importance of the order of strokes. Students are also introduced to

the structure of a character. The subsequent seventeen lessons each introduce twelve to eighteen

characters. The characters are listed at the beginning of each lesson in a table that shows each char-

acter with its Pinyin pronunciation and its meaning(s). This format emphasizes that each Chinese

character can be an independent unit.

Each lesson includes a Learning Radicals section, which is an important element in the de-

sign of this textbook. Learning radicals is a very powerful aid to students learning Chinese char-

acters. Each lesson teaches four radicals. A standard list of 227 radicals from the Modern Chinese

Dictionary (Xiàndài Hànyǔ Cídiǎn 现代汉语词典) is provided in an appendix. Students

should practice and memorize the radicals so that they are able to recognize them when they see

a new Chinese character.

Then comes an analysis of the Structure of each character, showing its components and radi-

cals, which are its building blocks. Students are expected to remember each character and to be

able to pronounce it, write it, and know its meaning as a single character, as well as being alert to

the changes of its meaning when it is in a compound with other characters.

Next, there are from three to five Reading Practice exercises that use repetition and character

compound analysis to build students’ ability to recognize new words that combine characters they

have already learned. The last section of each lesson is Writing Practice, which provides illustra-

tions of the stroke order for each new character. Students must practice writing Chinese characters

in order to remember them. I suggest that students be tested on five Chinese characters in every

class meeting.

The Effectiveness of a Proficiency-Based Approach to Reading

Training students to read Chinese is an important stepping stone for them in learning to write

Chinese. Success with Chinese places heavy emphasis on reading and uses a variety of practices to

teach reading.

xvi Introduction

Students Learn through Repetition

Because Western education usually places more emphasis on analysis than on memorization, Eng-

lish speakers often are not well practiced in mechanical memorization. The reading exercises in

Reading & Writing are designed to help students learn Chinese characters through repetition.

Each new character is listed with examples of its use in several compound words. This shows stu-

dents how learning one character will help them learn many new words that use the character in

compounds. The students also see that a character can have various meanings when it is in a com-

pound. The character is then repeated elsewhere in the lesson and is further reinforced by repeti-

tion in later lessons. Just as seeing a picture over and over makes it become familiar, repetition of

a character will lead students to recognize and remember it.

Students Learn through Character Analysis

In Success with Chinese, there are reading exercises that ask students to analyze the meaning of

compounds and short phrases, as for example when reading the names of dishes on a Chinese

menu. For instance, in Reading & Writing Lessons Five through Nine, students learn how to ana-

lyze the names of many dishes on a Chinese menu after learning only sixty-two characters carefully

selected from five basic groups:

a. Food categories (rice, noodles, fried bread, steamed bread, soup, etc.)

b. Ingredients (chicken, pork, beef, fish, shrimp, vegetable, eggs, etc.)

c. Tastes (sweet, sour, spicy, etc.)

d. Cooking methods (stir-fry, stew, boil, steam, cold mix, etc.)

e. Shapes (strips, chunks, diced cubes, slices, threadlike pieces, etc.).

The names of Chinese dishes on a menu usually combine elements from these five groups. For

example, “chǎo làzi jī dīng 炒辣子鸡丁” is stir-fried spicy diced chicken, and “suān là tāng

酸辣汤” is a hot-and-sour soup. When students master these sixty-two characters and learn

how to analyze character combinations, they can confidently use a Chinese restaurant menu, even

though they will not understand the names of the dishes. This same approach is used in exercises

that teach the reading of signs, street names, schedules, and many other documents that students

will encounter. The practical use of Chinese characters will reinforce students’ memory of them.

Students Understand Chinese Sentence Structure

Reading words and phrases on menus and signs is the first step in learning to read Chinese, and it

is relatively easy for English speakers. But Chinese sentences and paragraphs can be difficult be-

cause there are no spaces between the words in a sentence in Chinese publications. Since a word

Introduction xvii

can range in length from a single character to as many as four characters, it takes practice for non-

native speakers to determine the word divisions. For example, when I took students out in Beijing

to let them try to read signs, one sign they saw read, “dàxuéshēng huódòng zhōngxīn 大学生活动中心” (College Students’ Activity Center). One student incorrectly separated “College”

(大学 dàxué) from “College Students” (大学生 dàxuéshēng) and thus wrongly guessed,

“It’s the name of a college.”

To help students develop reading skills, Reading & Writing begins with exercises in reading

short units and then moves to increasingly longer units. Students start by reading characters, then

progress to words, then phrases, then sentences in Lesson Eight, and finally short paragraphs in

Lessons Fourteen through Eighteen. Each lesson has a section that asks students to find the charac-

ters they recognize in a short essay. It is like a “Where’s Waldo” game, and it helps students review

the characters they have already learned, while becoming familiar with how words are divided in

printed Chinese. By doing these exercises, students will gradually attain an academic classroom

reading level, and they will also have gained considerable confidence and motivation because they

first learned to read signs, menus, and schedules in daily life.

About the Authors

De-an Wu Swihart wrote and designed this book’s content. In Listening & Speaking, she adapted

and revised some materials written by Cong Meng in the grammar notes, pronunciation notes, and

some exercises; those comprise one-tenth of this book. She wrote all of Reading & Writing. She is

a graduate of the Chinese Department of Beijing University and received a Ph.D. from Princeton

University. She has published three books. She has been teaching Chinese language and litera-

ture in the United States and Canada since 1990, and is currently Co-Director of the Center for

Teaching & Learning in China LLC, Memphis, Tennessee. Cong Meng received his postgraduate

degree from the graduate school of the Chinese Academy of Social Science and then worked in its

Linguistic Institute as a research fellow. He has been teaching in universities in the United States

since 1989.

Acknowledgments

William O’Donnell, whose Ph.D. in English is from Princeton University, helped with editing of

the grammar notes and pronunciation notes in Listening & Speaking. He also helped in produc-

ing this book and its precursors. Both Kristen Wanner at Cheng & Tsui and Irene Liu made many

useful suggestions to make this book better. Anne Swihart has helped on the editing and testing of

this book. Many thanks to all those who contributed to this book.

Success with Chinese

Listening & Speaking

3

Pinyin第一课拼音Dì yī kè Pīnyīn

MANDARIN: THE STANDARD CHINESE SPEECH

Many television programs in China are captioned with Chinese characters. Why? China has many

regional dialects, and their pronunciation can differ as much as Italian does from Portuguese, al-

though the written characters are the same throughout China and wherever Chinese is spoken. For

many centuries, in imperial China, Mandarin was the official dialect (Guānhuà 官话), and was

spoken by officials throughout China. Then in 1919 the government designated Mandarin as the

“National Language” (Guóyǔ 国语), using the Beijing dialect as the standard for pronunciation

and the vernacular Northern dialect as the standard for vocabulary and grammar. Since the estab-

lishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Mandarin has been referred to as “Common

Speech” (Pǔtōnghuà 普通话); Taiwan has continued to use the name “Guóyǔ.” Today, Manda-

rin is the standard Chinese speech and the official medium of communication throughout China,

and is also the local spoken language in fourteen provinces and for 73 percent of the population of

China. The language you will be learning in this book is Mandarin.

1

In this lesson you will learn how to do the following:

Pronounce Chinese with the aid of Pinyin, the standard Chinese phonetic writing system.

Distinguish the basic components of a Pinyin syllable, including:21 initial sounds of syllables38 final sounds of syllables4 tones and a neutral tone

Spelling Rules of Pinyin:Apply the rules for some basic tone changesWords in Pinyin denoted with syllable division marks

Understanding Chinese Culture:Other Chinese phonetic writing systemsStandard Mandarin Chinese and other major dialects

This is advance sample content only. It should not be DO NOT DUPLICATE quoted or cited without comparison with the final typeset book.

4 Success with Chinese: Listening & Speaking

There are seven other major dialects, each of which is native to one or two provinces in south-

eastern China. The map shows the areas where the major dialects are spoken.

THE PINYIN SYSTEM

Pinyin is a romanized phonetic writing system for Chinese based on the national standard system

of pronunciation. It was officially adopted by the Chinese government in 1958 in order to help

speakers of other dialects learn the standard pronunciation. It has also become the main system

of romanization outside of China. Today it is widely used on street signs, store signs, and in book

titles, as well as in children’s books, magazines and newspapers for non-native speakers of Chi-

nese, dictionaries, and business cards. Pinyin is also used to input characters in Chinese computer

word-processing systems. Pinyin can help English speakers accurately pronounce any Chinese

character.

A Pinyin syllable has three components: an initial part, a final part, and a tone mark that in-

dicates a pattern of pitch contour. There are twenty-one initials, thirty-eight finals, and four tones.

Pinyin uses all of the English letters (except “v”) to form a phonetic alphabet. In this book, we will

use American English as a point of reference for learning Pinyin, but it’s important to keep in mind

that many Pinyin sounds are slightly different from English or have no equivalents in English, be-

cause Pinyin was not designed just for speakers of English.


Lesson 1: Pinyin 5

M Initials

Initials are similar to consonants in English, but English consonants can appear anywhere in a

word, not just at the beginning. Initials are always placed at the beginning of a syllable. They can

be divided into six groups by their phonetic characteristics:

b, p, m, f d, t, n, l g, k, h j, q, x z, c, s zh, ch, sh, r

b, p, m, f (Labials)

Formed by using the lips. Pronounced the same as in English.

b- inspirated stop1

p- aspirated stop

m- nasal

f- labio-dental, fricative

d, t, n, l (Dentals)

Formed with the tongue touching or near the back of the upper teeth. Pronounced the same as in

English.

d- inspirated stop1

t- aspirated stop

n- nasal

l- liquid, lateral

g, k, h (Velars)

Formed from the throat. “G” and “k” are the same as in English, but “h” is slightly more guttural or

aspirated than the English “h” and more like the German “ch” in “ach.”

g- inspirated stop1

k- aspirated stop

h- fricative

1. The plosives b, d, and g are inspirated or voiceless sounds, which are different from English pronunciation. When producing the inspirated or voiceless sound, the vocal cords are not used.



The pronunciation of the sounds below usually requires extra attention by English speakers.

j, q, x (Frontals)

Formed with the tip of the tongue directly against the back of the lower teeth. This is unlike Eng-

lish, where the tip of the tongue touches the roof of the mouth. The tongue curves downward, with

its upper front surface touching just behind the ridge behind the upper teeth. The lips must be tight

and pulled widely apart, as in a forced smile.

Frontal English pronunciation Examplej- unaspirated affricate ji, jee, gee Jimmy, jeep

q- aspirated affricate chee cheese, chip

x- fricative shee ship, sheer

z, c, s (Alveolars)

Formed with the tip of the tongue touching or near the base of the lower teeth and with the upper

teeth in contact with the upper front surface of the tongue. Be alert to avoid the tendency of some

English speakers to pronounce “c” incorrectly as “k” (instead of as “ts”).

Alveolar English pronunciation Examplez- unaspirated affricate z, dz, ds kids, woods

c- aspirated affricate ts its, cats, rats

s- fricative (same as English) sense, step

zh, ch, sh, r (Retroflexes)

Formed with the tip of the tongue rolled upward and touching the roof of the mouth. Notice that

when you say “r” in Chinese the lips should be less open than in English. You will feel the air vi-

brating around your tongue. Your lower jaw is thrust forward somewhat.

Retroflex English pronunciation Examplezh- unaspirated affricate dj bridge

ch- aspirated affricate ch chat

sh- fricative sh shore

r- cross between “j” and “r” no English equivalent


Lesson 1: Pinyin 7

M Finals

Finals are composed of up to four letters. All thirty-eight finals are made from six basic single vow-

els (a, e, i, o, u, ü), which can be combined with three consonant endings (n, ng, r). All the finals

are listed in this chart. Since many of the vowel sounds in Chinese do not have English equivalents,

pay close attention to the pronunciation of these sounds on the CD.

Final By itself English pronunciation Examples-a a ah ah, father

-ai ai i rise, my, eye

-an an ahn analyze

-ang ang ahng gong

-ao ao ow how

-e e uh (no English equivalent)

-ei ay eight, pay

-en en un run

-eng ung pungent

-er2 ur car, curve (cross between “ar” and “er”)

-o no English equivalent; wore (begin with lips puckered out; similar to Chinese “-uo” end with lips apart), woman

-ong awng (like “wrong” but with Hong Kong rounder “o” sound)

-ou ou oh (begin with lips apart; end go, owe with lips puckered out) (“o” is longer and louder than “u”)

Spelling Changes When i, u, ü Are Semi-Vowels

When the finals i, u, ü (and any compound using i, u, ü, such as ia, uang, üan) are not preceded by

an initial, they are called semi-vowels, which means they actually function as initials. When they

are used as initials, their spelling changes as shown:

change “i” to “y”

change “u” to “w”

2. The retroflex “er” can form a word alone, as in èr (two). But when “er” is the ending of a syllable, the “e” is omit-ted in spelling, as in huār = huā + er (flower).



change “ü” to “yu”

add “y” in front of “i”

add “w” in front of “u”

add “y” in front of “ü” → “yu”

Final Spelling change Approximate English sound when used as an initial-i yi ee

-ia ya ee-ah (said quickly)

-ian yan ee-en (said quickly)

-iang yang ee-ahng

-iao yao ee-ow (said quickly)

-ie ye ee-eh (said quickly), “i” is shorter and softer than “e”

-in yin een

-ing ying ing

-iong yong ee-ong (said quickly)

-iu yu e-o (said quickly)

-u wu oo

-ua wa wah

-uai wai wai

-uan wan wahn

-uang wang wahng

-ueng weng oo-ung

-ui wei way

-un wen wun

-uo wo no English equivalent, similar to Chinese “-o”; wore (begin with lips puckered out; end with lips apart); woman

-ü yu like French “eu” or German “ü”; no English equivalent; used only after “n” or “I”

-üan yuan “y” as in Yvonne plus “e”; no English equivalent


Lesson 1: Pinyin 9

-üe yue weh, oo-eh (said like one syllable); “y” as in Yvonne plus “an”; no English equivalent

-ün yun “y” as in Yvonne plus “n”; no English equivalent

Spelling Changes of the Final ü

When ü follows j-, q-, or x- in a syllable, it changes to u, as in these examples:

jü → juan jue jun

qü → quan que qun

xü → xuan xue xun

Tones

Each syllable in Chinese has a tone. In spoken Chinese, changing the tone of a syllable will change

its meaning. For instance, “qu” in the 3rd tone means “a man marries a woman”, but “qu” in the 4th

tone means “to go.” This is completely different from English, in which you can pronounce “book”

with various intonations according to the situation, but it still means “book.”

The diagrams below illustrate each of the four tones:

1st tone ��

high, flat pitch (high tone) 5-5

2nd tone ��

rising from low to high (rising tone) 3-5

3rd tone ��

low-dipping-rising (low tone) 2-1-4

4th tone ��

falls from high to low (falling tone) 5-1

In the Pinyin system, the tone mark is placed above the vowel. If there are two vowels in a final,

the tone mark is placed above the first vowel, except that when the first vowel is “i”, “u”, or “ü,” the

tone mark is placed above the second vowel. Examples: liù, duì, yuán. Chinese characters are not

written with tone marks.

M On the CD you can listen to the different four tones of “ma.”

mā má mǎ mà

妈 mother 麻 hemp 马 horse 骂 curse



Neutral Tone

In addition to the four major tones there is a neutral tone, which has no tone mark.

A neutral tone always follows a major-toned syllable. A neutral-toned syllable never comes at

the beginning of a phrase:

tāde his (1st tone followed by a neutral tone)

tāmende theirs (1st tone followed by two neutral tones)

A neutral tone is shorter and lighter than a major-toned syllable and has no stress. However there

are two levels for the pitch of neutral tones, depending on the tone of the syllable it follows.

Low neutral tone

When a neutral tone follows a 1st, 2nd, or 4th tone, it is pronounced in a lower pitch:

gēge elder brother

yéye grandfather

dìdi younger brother

High neutral tone

When a neutral tone follows a 3rd tone, it is pronounced in a higher pitch:

jiějie elder sister

wǎnshang evening

Some Tone Changes

Tone Changes: yī (one), qī (seven), bā (eight), bù (no)

1. The number yī can have three different tones:

• yī is 1st tone when it is used alone.

• yī is 2nd tone when followed by a 4th tone.

• yī is 4th tone when followed by a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd tone.

2. The numbers qī and bā each can have two tones:

• Qī and bā when used alone are 1st tone, but when followed by a 4th tone, they optionally may change to the 2nd tone.


Lesson 1: Pinyin 11

3. 不 bù (no) is 4th tone, except that when it is followed by a 4th tone word, 不 bù changes to

2nd tone.

3+3 → 2+3

If a 3rd tone is followed by another 3rd tone, the first 3rd tone is pronounced as a 2nd tone:

nǐ hǎo → ní hǎo Hello! How do you do!

hěn měi → hén měi very beautiful

Half-3rd Tone

When a 3rd tone is followed by a 1st, 2nd, or 4th tone, the 3rd tone is pronounced as a half-3rd

tone (which only falls but does not rise), although the printed tone mark does not change:

měitiān every day

Měiguó America

mǎipiào buy a ticket

Syllable Division Marks

When a syllable beginning with “a,” “o,” or “e” follows another syllable and could cause confusion

about how the syllables should be divided, an apostrophe ( ’ ) should be added in front of the

second syllable. For example: Xī’ān (西安 a city name) might otherwise be confused with xiān

(先 first).

Each of the three components of a Chinese syllable—initial, final, and tone—is important.

Incorrect pronunciation of any one of those three components can result in misunderstanding, so

learning the tones is essen-

tial. You should establish the

habit of paying careful atten-

tion to each syllable’s tone

and to practicing the tones

now, at the very beginning

of your study of Chinese.

Doing so will give you a sol-

id foundation for effective

communication in Chinese.Ruins at the Old Summer Palace



PRONUNCIATION

Pronunciation Exercises

1. M PE.1. Read the following words aloud, being careful to pronounce the four tones correctly. Refer to the CD to check your pronunciation.

a. The four tones of yi, in order and in f. liù vs. liú: reverse order: liù liú liù liú

yī yí yǐ yì liú liù liú liù

yì yǐ yí yī

b. The four tones of er: g. qī vs. qǐ

ér ěr (ēr) èr qī qǐ qǐ qī

ěr èr ér (ēr) qǐ qī qī qǐ

c. sān vs. sǎn: h. bà vs. bā

sān sǎn sǎn sān bā bà bā bà

sǎn sān sān sǎn bà bā bà bā

d. sī vs. sì: i. jiǔ vs. jiù

sī sì sì sī jiù jiǔ jiù jiǔ

sì sī sī sì jiǔ jiù jiǔ jiù

e. wǔ vs. wù j. shí vs. shì

wǔ wù wǔ wù shì shí shí shì

wù wǔ wù wǔ shí shì shì shí

2. M PE.2. Read aloud these common Chinese surnames. It takes a lot of practice to say Chi-nese names fluently, but Chinese has far fewer surnames than does English. Refer to the CD to check your pronunciation.

1) Chén 7) Jiǎ 13) Liú 19) Xiè

2) Dèng 8) Jīn 14) Mèng 20) Yáng

3) Féng 9) Kǒng 15) Shěn 21) Zhāng

4) Gāo 10) Lǐ 16) Sūn 22) Zhào

5) Guō 11) Liáng 17) Tián 23) Zhèng

6) Huáng 12) Lín 18) Wú 24) Zhōu


Lesson 1: Pinyin 13

3. M PE.3. The names of these well-known political leaders are given in Chinese. Read them aloud. Refer to the CD to check your pronunciation.

1) Jiāng Zémín (former president of China)

2) Sūn Zhōngshān (Sun Yat-sen)

3) Wēn Jiābǎo (Premier of China)

4) Chén Shuǐbiǎn (President of Taiwan)

5) Hé Hòuhuá (President of Macao)

6) Hú Jǐntāo (President of China)

7) Máo Zédōng (Chairman Mao)

8) Wú Bāngguó (President of the People’s Congress)

9) Wú Guānzhèng (Commissioner of Legal Inspection)

10) Dǒng Jiànhuá (former Hong Kong governor)

11) Jiǎng Jièshí (Chiang Kai-shek)

12) Jiǎ Qìnlín (President of the People’s Political Consultative Council)

13) Lǐ Dēnghuī (President of Taiwan, 1990–2000)

14) Lǐ Péng (Premier of China, 1987–98)

15) Bù Shí (George W. Bush)

16) Bù Láiěr (Tony Blair)

17) Dèng Xiǎopíng (President of China, 1978–89)

18) Kè Líndùn (Bill Clinton)

4. M PE.4. Read aloud each of the following compounds at least three times, paying special attention to the tones. Refer to the CD to check your pronunciation.

Tones

1+1: fēijī (airplane) shāfā (sofa) shūbāo (school bag) Xiāngshān (Fragrant Hills) huāshēng (peanut)

1+1+1: Zhījiāgē (Chicago)

2+2: Chángchéng (Great Wall) shítáng (cafeteria) yínháng (bank) yóutiáo (fried bread) Huánghé (Yellow River)

2+2+2 Yíhéyuán (Summer Palace)

4+4: fàndiàn (hotel) sùshè (dormitory) diànhuà (telephone) bàogào (report) zàijiàn (good-bye)

4+4+4: diànshìjù (soap opera)



5. M PE.5. In each of the groups below, combine the initials with the finals to make complete words. Read them aloud. Refer to the CD to check your pronunciation.

Group A Group B Group C

w -àn zh -āng ch -én

j -iāng l -ín x -iè

m -èng d -ù f -āng

6. M PE.6. Read the following words or phrases aloud. Each of them contains a high neutral tone or a low neutral tone. Pay attention to the difference between the high neutral tone and the low neutral tone. Refer to the CD to check your pronunciation.

Low neutral tones:

1) māma (mother) 6) yéye (grandpa) 11) dìdi (younger brother)

2) shūshu (uncle) 7) bóbo (uncles) 12) kàn le (saw)

3) gēge (older brother) 8) háizi (children) 13) bàba (father)

4) jīnzi (gold) 9) yínzi (silver) 14) xièxie (thank you)

5) xiānsheng (Mister) 10) shénme (what) 15) mèimei (younger sister)

High neutral tones:

16) nǎinai (grandma) 18) zuǒ zhe (walking) 20) nǐde (yours)

17) jiějie (older sister) 19) wǒde (my, mine)

EXERCISES

Listening Comprehension Exercises

1. M LCE.1. Listen to these country names and then write in the country name in Pinyin with tone marks. Pay special attention to the sounds j, q, x, zh, ch, sh, and r.

1) China _______________________________

2) Hong Kong _______________________________

3) Singapore _______________________________


Lesson 1: Pinyin 15

4) Sweden _______________________________

5) Korea _______________________________

6) Japan _______________________________

7) Switzerland _______________________________

8) Canada _______________________________

9) Spain _______________________________

10) Scotland _______________________________

11) New Zealand _______________________________

12) Saudi Arabia _______________________________

13) South Africa _______________________________

2. M LCE.2. Listen to these city names, and then put the tone marks over the correct vowel in each word.

1) Xi’an 10) Zhengzhou 19) Guiyang

2) Wuhan 11) Hefei 20) Nanning

3) Nanjing 12) Nanchang 21) Lanzhou

4) Guilin 13) Changsha 22) Xining

5) Chengdu 14) Hangzhou 23) Lasa (Lhasa)

6) Changchun 15) Taiyuan 24) Yinchuan

7) Wulumuqi 16) Fuzhou 25) Shenzhen

8) Shenyang 17) Guangzhou 26) Suzhou

9) Shijiazhuang 18) Kunming

Communication Activities

1. (Each person needs a piece of paper.) Find out the Chinese names of other people in your class and tell them your Chinese name. Write the names down in Pinyin. Be sure to include tone marks.



2. M One person reads aloud the name of a Chinese province or city name, and the other person points to it on the map on p. 4.

1) Héběi 11) Gānsū 21) Fújiàn

2) Hénán 12) Qīnghǎi 22) Yúnnán

3) Shānxī* 13) Xīnjiāng 23) Guǎngdōng

4) Shǎnxī** 14) Sìchuān 24) Guǎngxī

5) Hēilóngjiāng 15) Ānhuī 25) Xīzàng (extra credit!)

6) Jílín 16) Húběi 26) Nèiménggǔ (extra credit!)

7) Shāndōng 17) Húnán 27) Běijīng

8) Liáoníng 18) Zhéjiāng 28) Shànghǎi (extra credit!)

9) Jiāngsū 19) Jiāngxī 29) Tiānjīn

10) Níngxià 20) Guìzhōu 30) Chóngqìng (extra credit!)

Review Exercises

1. Circle the letter that should have a tone mark for each of the following place names.

1) Hunan 6) Guangxi 11) Yuenan 16) Taiwan

2) Changjiang 7) Neimenggu 12) Zhongguo 17) Xinjiapo

3) Guizhou 8) Fujian 13) Xianggang 18) Ruishi

4) Liaoning 9) Jiangsu 14) Meiguo 19) Yindu

5) Hubei 10) Xizang 15) Jianada 20) Faguo

2. Change the following words so that they use the correct spelling of “i,” “u,” and “ü” as semi-vowels at the beginning of a syllable.

1) īngguó (England) 7) xüéxí (to study)

2) iángzhōu (a city) 8) uèi (hello)

3) Mr. Uang 9) ī (one)

4) uǒ (I, me) 10) üán (¥1.00)

5) üènán (Vietnam) 11) iǒu (to have)

6) iě (also) 12) īn-iáng (the two opposing principles in nature)

*sometimes written as “Shanxi”**sometimes written as “Shaanxi”


Lesson 1: Pinyin 17

3. Underline each of the initials in the following words.

1) Yǒuyì Shāngdiàn (Friendship Store) 10) Shísānlíng (Ming Tombs)

2) Hǎidiàn (a district in Beijing) 11) dàshǐguǎn (embassy)

3) Gùgōng (Palace Museum) 12) Pānjiāyuán (“Mud Market,” Beijing)

4) Tiānānmén (Square, Beijing) 13) Lúgōuqiáo (Marco Polo Bridge)

5) Tiāntán (Temple of Heaven) 14) Běihǎi Gōngyuán (Běihǎi Park)

6) Hóngqiáo Shìchǎng (Pearl Market, Beijing) 15) Chángjiāng (Yangtze River)

7) Xiùshuǐ Dōngjiē (Silk Market, Beijing) 16) Huánghé (Yellow River)

8) Yíhéyuán (Summer Palace) 17) Běijīng Dàxué (Beijing University)

9) Chángchéng (Great Wall) 18) Běijīng Shīfàn Dàxué (Beijing Normal University)

UNDERSTANDING CHINESE CULTURE

Chinese Phonetic Systems

In addition to Pinyin, there are two other Chinese phonetic systems still in use today.

Wade-Giles

The Wade-Giles system is another romanized phonetic system for Chinese. It was created by

Thomas F. Wade, who worked at the British embassies in China and Hong Kong from 1841 to

1875. In 1867 he published a Mandarin pronunciation textbook using a romanized phonetic sys-

tem he devised. Later, another British diplomat, Herbert A. Giles, modified it. The Wade-Giles

system was the standard romanization system for spelling Chinese words in English until 1978,

when the United Nations adopted Pinyin as the standard. The Wade-Giles system is still found in

some older library catalogs.

Chinese National Phonetic Alphabet (CNPA)

The Chinese National Phonetic Alphabet (CNPA) is made up of thirty-nine phonetic marks taken

from ancient Chinese characters. It was first issued in 1913 and was adopted by the Chinese Bu-

reau of Education in 1918. It was used in China until 1958, when Pinyin replaced it. It is still used

in Taiwan today. Pinyin, Wade-Giles, and CNPA all have the same pronunciation, although their

written forms are different.

English Pinyin Wade-Giles CNPA

China Zhōngguó Chung-kuo ㄓㄨㄥㄍㄨㄛChinese Hànyǔ Han-yu ㄏㄢㄩ



Major Dialects of Chinese

The Northern Dialect

The Northern dialect (Běifāng fāngyán 北方方言) (spoken by 73 percent of Chinese people)

is spoken in many provinces, including Héběi, Hénán, Shāndōng, Shānxī, Shǎnxī, Yúnnán, Guì-

zhou, Sìchuān, Ānhuī, Húběi, and northern Jiāngsū.

The Wú Dialect

The Wú 吴 dialect (spoken by 8 percent of Chinese people) is spoken in the area around Jiāngsū

and Shànghǎi. Wú is the old name of Jiāngsū province.

The Xiāng Dialect

The Xiāng 湘 dialect (spoken by 5 percent of Chinese people) is spoken in and around Húnán

province. Xiāng is the old name of Húnán province.

The Yuè Dialect

The Yuè 粤 dialect, or Cantonese (Guǎngdōnghuà 广东话), (spoken by 5 percent of Chinese

people) is spoken in Guǎngdōng, Hong Kong, Macao, Singapore, and by many overseas Chinese

around the world.

The Hakka Dialect

The Hakka dialect (Kèjiāhuà 客家话) (spoken by 4.3 percent of Chinese people) is spoken in

Guǎngxī, Fújiàn, Singapore, and Taiwan.

The Gàn Dialect

The Gàn 赣 dialect (Jiāngxīhuà 江西话) (spoken by 1.7 percent of Chinese people) is spoken

in and around Jiāngxī. Gàn is the old name of Jiāngxī province.

The Mǐn Dialect

The Mǐn 闽 dialect is divided into Southern Mǐn and Northern Mǐn dialects. Two percent of

Chinese people speak Southern Mǐn; they are in the southern part of Fújiàn province, which is

centered around the capital city of Xiàmén, and in Taiwan and Singapore. It is called “Mǐnnánhuà

闽南话” or “Xiàménhuà 厦门话.” One percent of Chinese people speak Northern Min;

they are in the northern part of Fújiàn, around Fúzhōu.


19

Counting第二课数数Dì èr kè Shǔshù1

M KEY EXPRESSIONS

By learning just twelve numbers you can count to 999 in Chinese:

零 (0) zero

líng

一 one

yī

二 two

èr

2


Say two counting rhymes in ChineseSay twelve cardinal numbersUse the Chinese hand signs for the numbers 1–10Say simple addition problems in Chinese

Grammar Practice & Sentence Patterns:

The adverb 也 yě (too, also)

The 是 shì (to be) sentence pattern

Affirmative-negative questions with 是不是 shì búshì (Is it? / Are they?)

Counting to 999 in Chinese

Pronunciation:Tone changes of yī (one), qī (seven), bā (eight), bù (no)

Understanding Chinese Culture:Traditional complex forms of numbersSome Chinese superstitions about numbersUsing an abacus



三 three

sān

四 four

sì

五 five

wǔ

六 six

liù

七 seven

qī

八 eight

bā

九 nine

jiǔ

十 ten

shí

百 hundred

bǎi

Notes

1. 数数 shǔshù (to count numbers)

The 3rd-tone 数 shǔ is a verb that means “to count.” The 4th-tone 数 shù is a noun that

means “number” or “numbers.” When the verb and the noun are used in a pair, called a

“verb-object” structure, the combination 数数 shǔshù means “to count numbers.”

M New Words I • 生词一

Characters Part of Speech English & Pinyin

数 V to count

shǔ

数 N number

shù


Lesson 2: Counting 21

你 Pron you

nǐ

也 Adv also

yě

我 Pron I, me

wǒ

一 Num one

yī

二 Num two

èr

三 Num three

sān

四 Num four

sì

五 Num five

wǔ

加 V to add; plus

jiā

六 Num six

liù

七 Num seven

qī

八 Num eight

bā

九 Num nine

jiǔ

十 Num ten

shí

是 V/Adj to be (am, is, are, was, were); yes, correct, right

shì



M Counting Rhyme I

你也数，我也数， Nǐ yěG1 shǔ, wǒ yě shǔ,

一二三四五。 yī, èr, sān, sì, wǔ.

你也加，我也加， Nǐ yě jiā, wǒ yě jiā,

四五六七八。 sì, wǔ, liù, qī, bā.

九是四加五。 Jiǔ shìG2 sì jiā wǔ.

十是二加八。 Shí shì èr jiā bā.

Translation of Counting Rhyme IYou count, and I count, too:one, two, three, four, five.You add, and I add, too:four, five, six, seven, eight.Nine is four plus five.Ten is two plus eight.

M New Words II • 生词二


一百 Num one hundred

yìbǎi

百 Num hundred

bǎi

零 (0) Num zero

líng

是不是 Int is it? / are they?

shì búshì



不是 Exp No, it is not.

búshì

不 Adv no, not

bù

Supplementary Words

千 Num thousand

qiān

万 Num ten thousand

wàn

亿 Num billion (hundred million)

yì

M Counting Rhyme II

Here is another counting rhyme. This one lets you practice the difficult sounds “s” and “sh” in the

words “sì,” “shí,” and “shì.” When you say “sì,” your tongue is flat and the tip of your tongue touches

the lower teeth. But when you say “shí” or “shì,” your tongue curls up toward the roof of the mouth,

fairly far back. When you say “sìshí,” your tongue is down and then up. But when you say “shísì,”

your tongue is up and then down. Good luck!

四是四， Sì shì sì,

十是十。 Shí shì shí.

十四是十四， Shísì shì shísì,

四十是四十。 Sìshí shì sìshí.

一百是一零零, 是不是？ Yìbǎi shì yī líng líng, shì búshìG3?

Ming tomb, Beijing



Translation of Counting Rhyme IIFour is four,Ten is ten.Fourteen is fourteen,Forty is forty.One hundred is one-zero-zero, isn’t it?

GRAMMAR

Grammar Notes

G1. The adverb 也 yě (too, also)

也 yě is an adverb that functions as a conjunction and must come between the subject and the

main verb in a sentence.

你也数，我也数 You count, and I count, too.

Nǐ yě shǔ, wǒ yě shǔ.

你也加，我也加 You add, and I also add.

Nǐ yě jiā, wǒ yě jiā.

G2. The 是 shì (to be) sentence pattern

是 shì is a linking verb that usually connects two nouns, indicating that the nouns on either side

of 是 are equal or nominative. For example:

九是四加五 Nine is four plus five.

Jiǔ shì sì jiā wǔ.

十是二加八 Ten is two plus eight.

Shí shì èr jiā bā.

Especially when stating numbers, you may reverse the sentence order without any change of meaning.

四加五是九 Four plus five is nine.

Sì jiā wǔ shì jiǔ.

二加八是十 Two plus eight is ten.

Èr jiā bā shì shí.



Like every verb in Chinese, 是 shì does not change, no matter what the tense, gender, person, or

number is. The negative form of 是 shì is 不是 búshì.

G3. Affirmative-negative questions with 是不是 shì búshì (Is it? / Are they?)

是不是 shì búshì is a question that is formed by combining 是 shì (the positive form) with

不是 búshì (the negative form of 是 shì). This is an “affirmative-negative” question, which can

also be called a “yes-or-no” question. The answer to it is simply either the positive form of 是 shì

(yes) or its negative form 不是 búshì (no). For example:

Q: 一百是一零零, 是不是？ One hundred is one-zero-zero, isn’t it?

Yìbǎi shì yī líng líng, shì búshi?

Positive Answer: 是 Yes.

Shì.

Negative Answer: 不是 No.

Búshì.

Any verb can be used in an affirmative-negative question. The answer must be either the affirma-

tive or negative form of the verb in the sentence. For example:

Q: 你数不数数？ Are you counting the numbers?

Nǐ shǔ bù shǔ shù?

Positive Answer: 数 Yes.

Shǔ.

Negative Answer: 不数 No.

Bù shǔ.

Grammar Practice & Sentence Patterns

1. Counting to 999

A. The numbers 0 to 10 are:

0 零 líng 6 六 liù

1 一 yī 7 七 qī



2 二 èr 8 八 bā

3 三 sān 9 九 jiǔ

4 四 sì 10 十 shí

5 五 wǔ

Say the numbers 0 to 10 aloud.

B. Learn the Chinese hand signs for the numbers 1–10:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

C. The numbers 11–19 follow the pattern 十shí + 1–9. For example:

Number 十shí + 1–9 Pinyin

11 十 + 一 shíyī

12 十 + 二 shí’èr

13 十 + 三 shísān

Say the numbers 11–19 aloud.

How many terra cotta horses are in this tomb?



D. The numbers 20–99 follow the pattern 2–9 + 十shí + 1–9. For example:

Number 2–9 + 十shí + 1–9 Pinyin

21 二 + 十 + 一 èrshíyī

34 三 + 十 + 四 sānshísì

42 四 + 十 + 二 sìshí’èr


E. The numbers 101–109 follow the pattern 一百 yìbǎi + 零 líng + 1–9. This is also the

pattern for 201–209, 301–309 and so on, all the way up to 901–909. For example:

Number 一百 yìbǎi + 零 líng + 1–9 Pinyin

101 一百 + 零 + 一 yìbǎi líng yī

202 二百 + 零 + 二 èr bǎi líng èr

303 三百 + 零 + 三 sān bǎi líng sān


F. If a ten follows a hundred you have to say “yìbǎi yīshí” (110) (not “yìbǎi shí”).

110 一百一十 yìbǎi yīshí

The numbers 110–119 follow the pattern 一百 yìbǎi + 一十 yīshí + 一yī –十九 shíjiǔ.

Number 一百 yìbǎi + 一十 yīshí + 一yī –十九 shíjiǔ Pinyin

111 一百 + 一十 + 一 yìbǎi yīshí yī

112 一百 + 一十 + 二 yìbǎi yīshí’èr

113 一百 + 一十 + 三 yìbǎi yīshí sān

114 一百 + 一十 + 四 yìbǎi yīshí sì

115 一百 + 一十 + 五 yìbǎi yīshí wǔ

116 一百 + 一十 + 六 yìbǎi yīshí liù

117 一百 + 一十 + 七 yìbǎi yīshí qī

118 一百 + 一十 + 八 yìbǎi yīshí bā

119 一百 + 一十 + 九 yìbǎi yīshí jiǔ




G. The numbers 120–199 follow the pattern 一百 yìbǎi + 2–9 十shí + 1–9.

For example:

Number 一百 yìbǎi + 2–9 十shí + 1–9 Pinyin

120 一百 + 二十 yìbǎi èrshí

121 一百 + 二十 + 一 yìbǎi èrshí yī

122 一百 + 二十 + 二 yìbǎi èrshí èr


H. The numbers 210–1,000 follow the pattern 1–9 + 百 bǎi + 一十 yīshí + 1–9.

For example:

Number 1–9 + 百 bǎi + 一十 yīshí + 1–9 Pinyin

212 二 + 百 + 一十 + 二 èr bǎi yīshí èr

224 二 + 百 + 二十 + 四 èr bǎi èrshí sì

371 三 + 百 + 七十 + 一 sān bǎi qīshí yī

537 五 + 百 + 三十 + 七 wǔ bǎi sānshí qī

699 六 + 百 + 九十 + 九 liù bǎi jiǔshí jiǔ

862 八 + 百 + 六十 + 二 bā bǎi liùshí èr

749 七 + 百 + 四十 + 七 qī bǎi sìshí qī

999 九 + 百 + 九十 + 九 jiǔ bǎi jiǔshí jiǔ

1000 一 + 千 yìqiān

Say the example numbers aloud.

How many people

are watching the

two men play

Chinese chess?



To read a large number, starting from the left, for each column, say:

the number “sān”

the name of that column “qiān”

Note: You do not say the name of the units column, ge.

For example, 3,895 shown in the illustration below is read as

“sān qiān bā bǎi jiǔshí wǔ”

3, 8 9 5

千百十个

qiān bǎi shí gè

1,000s 100s 10s units

Apply this technique to read the following numbers aloud:

3,456 9,872 1,030 5,164 8,927

2. Practice the 是 shì (to be) sentence pattern by substituting the subject and predicate in the chart with the groups of words given below.

Subject Verb Predicate

九是四加五Jiǔ shì sì jiā wǔ.

Nine is four plus five.

四加五九sì jiā wǔ jiǔ

二加八十èr jiā bā shí

十二加八shí èr jiā bā

二加一三èr jiā yī sān

五加一六wǔ jiā yī liù

七加四十一qī jiā sì shíyī



我 [name]

wǒ

你 [name]

nǐ

3. Practice the affirmative-negative question 是不是 shì búshì.

Substitute the subject and the predicate in the chart with the groups of words given below. Then

answer the question with either the positive or the negative form of 是 shì.

Subject Affirmative-negative Predicate form of the verb

一百是不是一零零？Yìbǎi shì búshì yī líng líng?

Is one hundred one-zero-zero?

三加五八Sân jiâ wǔ bā

二加二四Èr jiā èr sì

七加九十六Qī jiā jiǔ shíliù

二百加三百五百Èr bǎi jiā sān bǎi wǔ bǎi

你 Lǐ Jiā

Nǐ

PRONUNCIATION

Pronunciation Notes

Tone changes: yī (one), qī (seven), bā (eight), bù (no)

1. The number yī can have three different tones.



A. Yī is 1st tone when it is used alone:

yī, èr, sān, sì, wǔ

B. Yī is 2nd tone when followed by a 4th-tone measure word:

yí kuài (one yuan)

C. Yī is 4th tone when followed by a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd-tone measure word:

yì zhāng (one piece)

yì máo (one mao)

yì jiǎo (one jiao)

yì fēn (one fen)

2. The numbers qī and bā each can have two tones:

Qī and bā when used alone are 1st tone, but when followed by a 4th-tone measure word, they op-tionally may change to the 2nd tone:

qī hào or qí hào (the number seven)

bā hào or bá hào (the number eight)

3. 不 bù (no) is 4th tone, except that when it is followed by a 4th tone word, 不 bù changes

to 2nd tone. For example:

不是 búshì (is not).


1. M PE.1. Practice the tone changes of yī (one), qī (seven), bā (eight), and bù (no). Read the following phrases aloud and add the tone marks for yī, qī, bā, and bù above the appropriate vow-els in the chart below.

Pinyin Characters English

a. 1) dìyi 第一 the number one

2) yi tiān 一天 one day

3) yi píng 一瓶 one bottle

4) yi běn 一本 one copy

5) yi gè 一个 one piece

6) yi bēi 一杯 one glass

7) yi wǎn 一碗 one bowl (of something)

8) yi huà 一划 one stroke



b. 1) dìqi 第七 the seventh

2) qiyuè 七月 July

c. 1) dìba 第八 the eighth

2) bahào 八号 the number eight

d. 1) bugāo 不高 not tall

2) buxíng 不行 not okay

3) buhǎo 不好 not good

4) bucuò 不错 not bad

5) buqù 不去 to not go

6) buxīn 不新 not new

7) bubì 不必 not necessary

8) buzǒu 不走 to not leave

2. M PE.2. Practice reading aloud the following words with 不 bù. Remember that the tone of

不 bù changes from 4th to 2nd when followed by a 4th tone.

Pinyin Characters English

1) bù 不 no

2) duìbùqǐ 对不起 I am sorry.

3) bù zhīdào 不知道 I don’t know.

4) tīng bùdǒng 听不懂 I can’t understand what you said.

5) bù hǎo 不好 not good

6) bù chī 不吃 to not eat

7) bù lái 不来 to not come

8) búyào 不要 to not want

9) búduì 不对 not correct

10) búcuò 不错 good, not bad at all

11) búxiè 不谢 Not at all. / You’re welcome.

12) búkèqi 不客气 You’re welcome.



3. M PE.3. Read aloud the numbers from 0 to 10, listed by their tones.

1st tone yī (1) sān (3) qī (7) bā (8)

2nd tone líng (0) shí (10)

3rd tone wǔ (5) jiǔ (9)

4th tone èr (2) sì (4) liù (6)

4. M PE.4. In each of the groups below, combine the initials with the finals to make complete words. Read them aloud.

Group A: Group B: Group C: Group D:

j iē z ū b ō zh ī

q iū c uī p āo ch āi

x iā s ūn m áng sh ān

f én r ēng

5. M PE.5. Read aloud the following words, which have similar sounds.

Group A:

yīshí 一十 yì shí 一石 yímín 移民 yìmíng 译名yī zì 一字 yǐzi 椅子 yì tiān 一天 yì tián 易田Group B:

èr zǐ 二子 érzi 儿子 èr nǚ 二女 érnǚ 儿女èr duǒ 二朵 ěrduo 耳朵Group C:

sān rén 三人 shànrén 善人 sān diǎn 三点 sǎndiǎn 散点dàsān 大三 dǎsǎn 打伞Group D:

sì zhōu 四周 sīchóu 丝绸 sìshū 四书 sǐshù 死树sìshí 四十 sīshì 私事Group E:

wǔ tiān 五天 wùtiān雾天 wǔsì 五四 wúsī 无私wǔ huí 五回 wùhuì 误会Group F:

liùshū 六书 liǔshù 柳树 liù píng 六瓶 liūbīng 溜冰liù jīn 六斤 liúxīn 留心



Group G:

qīshí 七十 qíshì 歧视 qī míng 七名 qǐmíng 起名qī zhé 七折 qìchē 汽车Group H:

bābā 八八 bàba 爸爸 bāzì 八字 bǎzi 靶子bālù 八路 bá shù 拔树Group I:

jiǔshí 九十 jiùshì 旧事 jiǔjiǔ 九九 jiùjiu 舅舅jiǔ jīn 九斤 jiūxīn 揪心Group J:

shí fù 十幅 shīfu 师父 shízì 十字 shìzi 柿子yīshí 一十 lìshǐ 历史

EXERCISES


1. M LCE.1. Listen to the numbers on the CD and then write the correct spelling in Pinyin with tone marks for each number in the blanks below.

1) _____________________________________________

2) _____________________________________________

3) _____________________________________________

4) _____________________________________________

5) _____________________________________________

6) _____________________________________________

7) _____________________________________________

8) _____________________________________________



9) _____________________________________________

10) _____________________________________________

2. M LCE.2. Listen to these addition problems and write the answers in Pinyin. First study the word that is not in the vocabulary list for this lesson:

几 jǐ (how many/much)

Example:

Question: 二加二是几 Èr jiā èr shì jǐ? How much is two plus two?

Answer: 二加二是四 Èr jiā èr shì sì. Two plus two is four.

1) ________________________________________ 三加六是几？

2) ________________________________________ 十加十是几？

3) ________________________________________ 七加七是几？

4) ________________________________________ 五十加五十是几？

5) ________________________________________ 四十五加六十六是几？

How many monks are in the temple?



3. M LCE.3. Listen to these numbers from 11 to 999 and write them as Arabic numerals.

1) __________________ 6) ___________________

2) __________________ 7) ___________________

3) __________________ 8) ___________________

4) __________________ 9) ___________________

5) __________________ 10) __________________

Communication Activities

Pair Work

1. One person says a number and the other tells the tone(s). Then reverse roles. Say as many numbers as you can.

2. One person counts aloud in Chinese any items at hand, such as pens, pencils, pieces of paper, etc. The other person should listen and then repeat back the total number.

3. Each person tells the other a telephone number in Chinese.

4. One person counts from one up to ten, using the hand signs along with saying the numbers aloud; then the other person counts from ten down to one.

5. Each person in the room says a number, one after another, to count how many people are in the room.

6. In Chinese schools every morning the students stand up and do physical exercises with their teachers, while counting. Give it a try: repeat a movement while saying these number sequences in Chinese to practice your counting.

1-2-3-4 2-2-3-4 3-2-3-4 4-2-3-4

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 2-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 3-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 4-2-3-4-5-6-7-8



Review Exercises

1. Fill in the blanks with the initial for each Chinese number below.

6: ________ iù 1: _________ ī 7: _________ ī 3: _________ ān

8: ________ ā 5: _________ ǔ 9: _________ iǔ 10: _________ í

2. Add the following symbols and write the sum as a numeral. Then write the problem and the sum in Pinyin, as in the example.

Example: ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ + ◆ ◆ ◆ = 8 Wǔ jiā sān shì bā.

1) ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ + ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ = _______________________________________

2) ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ + ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ = _____________________________

3) ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ + ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ = ________________________________________

4) ◆ ◆ ◆ + ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ = ___________________________________

5) ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ + ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ = _______________________________

6) ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ + ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ = ___________________________________

7) ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ + ◆ ◆ = __________________________________________


Traditional Complex Forms of Numbers

Just when you think you have learned all the numbers, you will notice that Chinese coins and cur-

rency have numbers written in the traditional, complex form instead of the modern, simplified

form that you are learning. The complex forms are used in banking (including on checks, payment

orders, and receipts) to avoid the problem of someone easily altering 一 yī (one) to 十 shí (ten)

or 千 qiān (thousand). Here are the traditional, complex forms of the numbers:

壹1 2 3 肆4 伍5 6

柒7 捌8 玖9 拾10 佰100 仟1000



Some Chinese Superstitions about Numbers

Many Chinese characters are homophones, and so can be puns that suggest another meaning. For

example, the pronunciation of “sì” (four) is similar to “sǐ” (death), therefore some people avoid the

number four. On the other hand, the pronunciation of “bā” (eight) resembles “fā” (to become rich),

so the number eight is a favorite. The numbers “èr bā” (two eight) indicate “two sides become rich.”

Therefore, in the business world numbers such as 28, 28,000, 88, and 888 are favorites. In Hong

Kong an automobile license plate with the number “888” can be sold for a high price.

Another lucky number is nine. It is an ultimate number in yin-yang philosophy because when

yin or yang reaches the value of nine, any further increase will bring it to ten, where yin turns into

yang and where yang turns into yin. Therefore nine represents completeness or fullness in Chinese

culture. Nine dragons are a sign of the emperor. Some people use nine in their names.

Chinese also have other lucky associations for numbers, as in “the four kinds of happiness,”

“the five kinds of luckiness and long life,” and “five children reach the summit of achievement.”

Using an Abacus

The Chinese abacus has been in use for many hundreds of years. There are two beads that each

represent five above the bar and five beads that each represent one below the bar.

By simply extending the process that you learned in “Counting to 999,” you can read very

large numbers. The columns of an abacus from right to left are 个 gè (units), 十 shí (tens), 百

bǎi (hundreds), 千 qiān (thousands), 万 wàn (ten thousands), 十万 shíwàn (hundred thou-

sands), 百万 bǎiwàn (million), 千万 qiānwàn (ten million), and 亿 yì (billion).

yì qiān bǎi shí wàn qiān bǎi shí gè wàn wàn wàn

↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓

4 7 5, 6 2 3, 4 1 9

亿千百十万千百十个 yì qiān bǎi shí wàn qiān bǎi shí jiǔ

It is read as “sì-yì qī-qiān wǔ-bǎi liù-shí èr-wàn sān-qiān sì-bǎi yīshí jiǔ.”

You start from the left and say the number and then the name of each column, one by one.

But notice that you do not say the “wàn” in “qiānwàn,” “bǎiwàn,” and “shíwàn.” You only need to

say “qiān,” “bǎi,” “shí,” + “wàn.”


179

Telling Time第九课几点？Dì jiǔ kè Jǐ diǎn?

9


Tell time in ChineseAsk what time it is nowTalk about daily activities such as getting up, taking a shower, going to class,

going to an Internet cafe, eating, and going to bedMake a daily schedule in Chinese

Grammar Practice & Sentence Patterns:Time words in a sentencePosition of time words in a sentenceSequence of time words, from largest unit of time to smallest unit of timeSpecific time word + place + actionThere is no need for a preposition such as 在 zài (at) before a time word or

phrase.In time expressions, the verb 是 shì (is) is not needed.

Verb-object words as intransitive verbs:

起床 qǐchuáng (to get up), 洗澡xǐzǎo (to take a shower),

吃饭 chīfàn (to eat a meal), 睡觉shuìjiào (to go to bed)

Preposition/Adverb 以前 yǐqián (before) and 以后yǐhòu (after)

Adverbs 常常 chángcháng (often) and 有时候 yǒu shíhòu

(sometimes)

跟 gēn… 一起yìqǐ (together with…)

Pronunciation:Differences between “j,” “q,” “x,” and “zh,” “ch,” “sh”

Understanding Chinese Culture:Twelve-hour and 24-hour time systemsWorking hours of stores, restaurants, and government agenciesA typical daily schedule of a Chinese school



M KEY EXPRESSIONS

现在几点？ What time is it now?

Xiànzài jǐ diǎn?

下午你有课吗？ Do you have class in the afternoon?

Xiàwǔ nǐ yǒu kè ma?

一起去…，好吗？ Shall we go to…together?

Yìqǐ qù…, hǎo ma?

…你常常做什么？ What do you often do in…?

…nǐ chángcháng zuò shénme?

M New Words I • 生词一


几 Int/Adj how many; a few, several

jǐ

点 N/V o’clock; (decimal) point; to choose, to mark

diǎn

几点 Int what time?

jǐ diǎn

差 Adj/V short of, wanting; to differ from

chà

吧 N bar, cafe

bā

吧 Part (to make a mild imperative, to imply agreement or a

ba degree of certainty, to express unwillingness or hesitation)

上 Adj/V first, upper; to go up, to get on

shàng

上午 N morning, a.m., forenoon

shàngwǔ


Lesson 9: Telling Time 181

午 N noon

wǔ

半 Adj half, partly

bàn

课 N class, course

kè

上课 V to go to class, to teach a class

shàngkè

汉语 N Chinese language

Hànyǔ

下午 N afternoon

xiàwǔ

下课 V class is over, to dismiss class

xiàkè

刻 N quarter of an hour, 15 minutes

kè

一刻 N one quarter-hour, 15 minutes

yí kè

三刻 N three-quarters of an hour, 45 minutes

sān kè

以后 Prep/Adv/Conj after; later on, afterwards; after

yǐhòu

一起 Adv together

yìqǐ

好吗 Exp Is it OK? Shall we?

hǎo ma

好吧 Exp OK, all right

hǎo ba

见 V to meet, to see, to call on

jiàn



M Dialogue I • 对话一

ROLES A: Chinese person 中国人 Zhōngguórén; B: French person 法国人Faguórén

A: 现在几点？ XiànzàiG1 jǐ diǎn?

B: 现在差十分八点。 Xiànzài chà shí fēn bā diǎnG2.

A: 我上午八点半要上汉语课。 Wǒ shàngwǔ1 bā diǎn bàn yào2 shàng Hànyǔkè3.

B: 下午你有课吗？ Xiàwǔ nǐ yǒu kè3 ma?

A: 我下午有英语课。 Wǒ xiàwǔ yǒu Yīngyǔkè.

B: 你几点下课？ Nǐ jǐ diǎn xiàkè?

A: 四点一刻。 Sì diǎn yí kè.

B: 下课以后我们一起去网吧，好吗？ Xiàkè yǐhòu wǒmen yìqǐ qù4 wǎngbā, hǎo ma?

A: 好吧，几点见？ Hǎo ba, jǐ diǎn jiàn?

B: 五点五分我去找你。 Wǔ diǎn wǔ fēn wǒ qù zhǎo nǐ.

Notes

1. Time word compounds

上午 shàngwǔ (morning), 中午 zhōngwǔ (noon), and 下午 xiàwǔ (afternoon)

are compounds of 午 wǔ (midday) with 上 shàng (up), 中 zhōng (middle), and下

xià (down). Their literal meanings are 上午 shàngwǔ “up to (before) midday,” 中午

zhōngwǔ “in the middle of midday,” and 下午 xiàwǔ “down from (after) midday.” If

you can remember that 上 shàng means “up,” 中 zhōng means “middle,” and下 xià

means “down,” it will be easy to remember 上午 shàngwǔ, 中午 zhōngwǔ, and 下午 xiàwǔ.



2. 要 yào (to want; will)

Lesson Three introduced the use of the verb 要 yào as “to want”:

我要一张IP卡 I want to buy an IP phone card.

Wǒ yào yì zhāng IP kǎ.

But 要 yào can also be an auxiliary verb that comes before the main verb and means “going

to” or “will,” indicating that an action or event will occur in the future:

我八点半要上汉语课。 I will go to Chinese class at 8:30.

Wǒ bā diǎn bàn yào shàng Hànyǔkè.

3. 上课 shàngkè (to go to class, to attend a class; to teach a class) and 课 kè (class, course,

lesson)

上课 shàngkè can mean “to go to class / to attend a class” as in:

我八点半要上课。 At 8:30 I will go to (attend or teach) class.

Wǒ bā diǎn bàn yào shàngkè.

but 上课 shàngkè can also mean “to begin a class” as in:

现在上课。 Class is beginning now.

Xiànzài shàngkè.

In both of those instances 课 kè means “class,” but when you say “汉语课 Hànyǔkè”

(Chinese language class), 课 kè means “course” or “subject.” 课 kè can also mean “lesson,”

as in the chapter title 第九课 dì jiǔ kè (Lesson Nine).

4. 去 qù (to go) can be directly followed by a noun of place:

去食堂 to go to the cafeteria

qù shítáng

去网吧 to go to the Internet cafe

qù wǎngbā

Notice that the noun following 去 qù must be a place. If you want to use a person’s name or

a pronoun after 去 qù, you must add 这儿 zhèr or 那儿 nàr after the person’s name

or pronoun. For example:

去你那儿 go to your place

qù nǐ nàr



When 去 qù is followed by another verb, as in 去吃饭 qù chīfàn, it is like the English

infinitive phrase “to go to eat.”

As you learned in Lesson Seven, when another verb precedes 去 qù, the去 qù is a

simple directional complement indicating that the action of the preceding verb is directed

away from the speaker or the listener. For example:

我现在上课去。 I go to class now. [“I” is not already in class.] or [I,

Wǒ xiànzài shàngkè qù. the speaker, is moving away from the listener.]

Translation of Dialogue IA: What time is it now?B: Ten to eight.A: I have Chinese class at 8:30 in the morning.B: Do you have class in the afternoon?A: I have English class in the afternoon.B: When is your class over?A: 4:15.B: Shall we go to the Internet cafe together after your class?A: OK. When shall we meet?B: I will go to find you at 5:05.

M New Words II • 生词二


早上 N morning

zǎoshang

起床 VO to get up

qǐchuáng

洗澡 VO to take a shower, to take a bath

xǐzǎo

早饭 N breakfast

zǎofàn

上班 V to go to work, to go to the office

shàngbān



中午 N noon

zhōngwǔ

午饭 N lunch

wǔfàn

下班 V to get out of work, to go off duty

xiàbān

晚上 N evening, night

wǎnshang

常常 Adv often

chángcháng

做 V to do

zuò

跟 Prep with

gēn

朋友 N friend

péngyou

睡觉 V/VO to go to bed, to sleep

shuìjiào

有时候 Adv sometimes, at times

yǒu shíhòu

Supplementary Words

以前 Prep/Adv/Conj prior to; ago; before

yǐqián

晚饭 N dinner

wǎnfàn

休息 V to rest

xiūxi

睡午觉 VO to take a noon-time nap

shuì wǔjiào



M Dialogue II • 对话 II

ROLES A: English person 英国人Yīngguórén; B: German 德国人 Déguórén

A: 你早上几点起床？ Nǐ zǎoshang jǐ diǎn qǐchuángG3a?

B: 七点。起床以后我先洗澡，再去吃早饭。我九点上班。 Qī diǎn. Qǐchuáng yǐhòuG4 wǒ xiān xǐzǎoG3b, zài qù chī zǎofàn. Wǒ jiǔ diǎn shàngbān.

A: 你中午几点去食堂？ Nǐ zhōngwǔ jǐ diǎn qù shítáng?

B: 十二点我去吃午饭。 Shí’èr diǎn wǒ qù chī wǔfàn.

A: 你几点下班？ Nǐ jǐdiǎn xiàbān?

B: 我五点下班。 Wǒ wǔ diǎn xiàbān.

A: 晚上你常常做什么？ Wǎnshang nǐ chángchángG5 zuò shénme?

B: 我常常跟朋友一起去饭馆儿吃饭。 Wǒ chángcháng gēn péngyou yìqǐG6 qù fànguǎnr chīfànG3c.

A: 你几点睡觉？ Nǐ jǐ diǎn shuìjiàoG3d?

B: 我有时候十一点睡觉，有时候十二点睡觉。 Wǒ yǒushíhouG5 shíyī diǎn shuìjiào, yǒushíhou shí’èr diǎn shuìjiào.

Translation of Dialogue IIA: What time do you get up in the morning?B: At 7:00. After I get up, I shower, and then go for breakfast. I go to work at 9:00.A: When do you go to the cafeteria at lunchtime?B: I go to eat lunch at 12:00.A: When do you get out of work?B: I get off duty at 5:00.A: What do you usually do in the evening?B: I often go out to eat at a restaurant with friends.A: When do you go to bed?B: Sometimes I go to bed at 11:00, and sometimes at 12:00.



GRAMMAR

Grammar Notes

G1. Time words in a sentence

There are two kinds of time words in Chinese: words for specific times and words for time dura-

tion. In this lesson you will only learn words for specific times, such as 现在 xiànzài (now), 上午shàngwǔ (morning), and bā diǎn bàn (8:30). Examples of time duration words are一天 yì

tiān (one day) and 十分钟 shí fēnzhōng (ten minutes).

1) Position of time words in a sentence

Specific time words always come before the verb in a sentence. The time word may come at the

very beginning of the sentence, or it may come after the subject but before the verb. (Notice that

specific time words never come at the end of a Chinese sentence.)

a. Time words at the beginning of a sentence:

现在几点？ What time is it now?

Xiànzài jǐ diǎn?

晚上你常常做什么？ What do you usually do in the evening?

Wǎnshang nǐ chángcháng zuò shénme?

五点五分我去找你。 I will go to your place at 5:05.

Wǔ diǎn wǔ fēn wǒ qù zhǎo nǐ.

b. Time words after the subject but before the verb:

你早上几点起床？ What time do you get up in the morning?

Nǐ zǎoshang jǐ diǎn qǐchuáng?

我十一点睡觉。 I go to bed at 11:00.

Wǒ shíyī diǎn shuìjiào.

我下午有英语课。 I have English class in the afternoon.

Wǒ xiàwǔ yǒu Yīngyǔkè.

c. When the time word is interrogative, it is located immediately before the verb:



你早上几点起床？ What time do you get up in the morning?

Nǐ zǎoshang jǐ diǎn qǐchuáng?

晚上你什么时候睡觉？ When do you go to bed in the evening?

Wǎnshang nǐ shénme shíhòu shuìjiào?

2) Sequence of time words in a sentence

If there are two or more time words in a sentence, they are given in the sequence of the largest unit

of time to smallest unit of time. For example, 11:30 in the morning will be 早上十一点半

zǎoshang shíyī diǎn bàn (literally: morning, 11 o’clock, half hour).

3) Specific time word + place + action

If you want to say that somebody is “doing something at some place at a certain time,” the time

words come before the place. For example: 我四点半在饭馆等你 Wǒ sì diǎn bàn zài

fànguǎnr děng nǐ (literally: I, 4:30, at the restaurant, wait for you).

4) When telling time in Chinese, there is no need for a preposition such as 在 zài (at) before

a time word. “I go to bed at 11:00” in Chinese will be 我十一点睡觉 Wǒ shíyī diǎn

shuìjiào (literally: I, 11:00, go to bed).

G2. When expressing time, the verb 是 shì (to be) is not needed and is usually omitted, although it is OK to add it between the topic and the number:

现在八点半。 It is 8:30 now.

Xiànzài bā diǎn bàn.

现在是八点半。 It is 8:30 now.

Xiànzài shì bā diǎn bàn.

A negative sentence must contain the negative form of 是 shì, which is 不是 búshì (to not be):

现在不是八点半。 It is not 8:30 now.

Xiànzài búshì bā diǎn bàn.

Notice also that Chinese sentences do not use “it,” which would be used in English to express time:

“It is 8:30 now.”



G3. Verb-object words as intransitive verbs

a. 起床 qǐchuáng (to get up)

b. 洗澡 xǐzǎo (to take a shower, to take a bath)

c. 吃饭 chīfàn (to eat a meal)

d. 睡觉 shuìjiào (to go to bed, to sleep)

Each of these words is formed by combining a verb with an object. This verb-object structure,

which is common in Chinese, functions as a verb.

G4. The word order of 以前 yǐqián (before) or 以后 yǐhòu (after) in a Chinese sentence is the reverse of that in English, where “before” or “after” precedes a time or event.

In Chinese they follow a time or event word, so that the English “before 11:00” or “after class”

becomes “11:00以前yǐqián” (literally: 11:00, before) or 下课以后 xiàkè yǐhòu (literally:

class, after). The placement of 以前 yǐqián (before) or 以后yǐhòu (after) in a sentence is al-

ways between one time or event and another time or event. With 以前 yǐqián (before), the time

or event following 以前 yǐqián happens before that time or event. With 以后 yǐhòu (after),

the time or event following 以后 yǐhòu happens after the that time or event.

我十一点以前睡觉。 I go to bed before 11:00.

Wǒ shíyī diǎn yǐqián shuìjiào.

起床以后我先洗澡。 After I get up, I shower.

Qǐchuáng yǐhòu wǒ xiān xǐzǎo.

G5. The adverbs 常常 chángcháng (often) and 有时候 yǒushíhòu (sometimes) are treated as time words, and thus their placement in a sentence is the same as time words.

G6. 跟 gēn… 一起 yìqǐ (together with…)

This is used with a verb in order to say “[to do something] together with [someone].” Notice that

“跟 gēn… 一起 yìqǐ” comes before the verb.



Grammar Practice & Sentence Patterns

1. Asking what time it is now

Question Answer Subject Int Subject Time

现在几点？现在七点五十分。Xiànzài jǐ diǎn? Xiànzài qī diǎn wǔshí fēn.

What time is it now? Now it is 7:50.

2:00

4:15

7:30

5:05

6:45

9:10

8:55

Can you tell what this schedule of hours is for?



2. Position of time words in a sentence

a. Time words at the beginning of a sentence:

Question Answer Time word Subject + Interrogative Subject + Verb + Object + Verb Time word

下午你做什么？下午我上班。Xiàwǔ nǐ zuò shéme? Xiàwǔ wǒ shàngbān.

What do you do in the afternoon? I go to work in the afternoon.

上午上午上汉语课shàngwǔ shàngwǔ shàng Hànyǔkè

晚上晚上给美国打电话wǎnshang wǎnshang gěi Měiguó dǎ diànhuà

下班以后下班以后去换钱xiàbān yǐhòu xiàbān yǐhòu qù huànqián

下午下午去商店xiàwǔ xiàwǔ qù shāngdiàn

洗澡以后洗澡以后去吃饭xǐzǎo yǐhòu xǐzǎo yǐhòu qù chīfàn

b. Time words after the subject but before the verb:

Question Answer Subject Time word Verb + Interrogative Subject Time word Verb + Object

你中午做什么？我中午休息。Nǐ zhōngwǔ zuò shéme? Wǒ zhōngwǔ xiūxi.

What do you do at noon time? I rest at noon.

下课以后去网吧xiàkè yǐhòu qù wǎngbā

下午上课xiàwǔ shàngkè

晚上睡觉wǎnshang shuìjiào



c. The interrogative time phrase is located immediately before the verb:

Question Answer Subject Interrogative- Verb + Object Subject Time word Verb + Object Time word

你几点起床？我六点起床。Nǐ jǐ diǎn qǐchuáng? Wǒ liù diǎn qǐchuáng.

What time do you get up? I get up at 6:00.

睡觉 10:30 睡觉 shuìjiào shuìjiào

吃早饭 7:00 吃早饭 chī zǎofàn chī zǎofàn

吃午饭 12:00 吃午饭 chī wǔfàn chī wǔfàn

上班 9:00 上班 shàngbān shàngbān

下课 3:45 p.m. 下课 xiàkè xiàkè

去餐厅 11:55 a.m. 去餐厅 qù cāntīng qù cāntīng

换钱 2:30 p.m. 换钱 huànqián huànqián

去网吧下课以后去网吧 qù wǎngbā xiàkè yǐhòu qù wǎngbā

吃晚饭 6:00 p.m. 吃晚饭 chī wǎnfàn chī wǎnfàn

去商店 4:30 去商店 qù shāngdiàn qù shāngdiàn

休息下午休息 xiūxi xiàwǔ xiūxi

睡午觉 1:00 p.m. 睡午觉 shuì wǔjiào shuì wǔjiào



3. Sequence of time wordsRead aloud the following time expressions. Notice that the sequence of time words always is from largest unit of time to smallest unit of time.

早上六点一刻zǎoshang liù diǎn yí kè

上午七点半shàngwǔ qī diǎn bàn

中午十二点三十五zhōngwǔ shí’èrdiǎn sānshíwǔ

下午四点零五xiàwǔ sì diǎn líng wǔ

晚上十点五十五分wǎnshang shí diǎn wǔshíwǔ fēn

4. Specific time word + place + action

When you say that someone is “doing something at some place at a certain time,” the time words

come before the place and the action.

Subject Time words Place Action

我四点半在饭馆等你。Wǒ sì diǎn bàn zài fànguǎnr děng nǐ.

I will wait for you in the restaurant at 4:30.

下午四点在网吧上网 xiàwǔ sì diǎn zài wǎngbā shàngwǎng

中午十二点在食堂吃饭 zhōngwǔ shí’èr diǎn zài shítáng chīfàn

晚上在宾馆上班 wǎnshang zài bīnguǎn shàngbān

上午在银行换钱 shàngwǔ zài yínháng huànqián



5. Practice using 以前 yǐqián (before) and 以后 yǐhòu (after).

Time words yǐqián/yǐhòu Subject Action

八点以前 / 以后我洗澡。Bā diǎn yǐqián / yǐhòu wǒ xǐzǎo.

I take a shower before/after 8:00.

七点半起床qī diǎn bàn qǐchuáng

下课休息xiàkè xiūxi

中午睡午觉zhōngwǔ shuì wǔjiào

下班去商店xiàbān qù shāngdiàn

找马丽莎一起去餐厅zhǎo Mǎ Lìshā yìqǐ qù cāntīng

三点去网吧sān diǎn qù wǎngbā

换钱买电话卡huànqián mǎi diànhuàkǎ

6. 常常 chángcháng (often) and 有时候 yǒushíhou (sometimes) as time words

Question Answer Subject chángcháng Verb + Object ma? Subject yǒushíhòu Verb + Object

你常常去饭馆吗？我有时候去。Nǐ chángcháng qù fànguǎnr ma? Wǒ yǒushíhòu qù.

Do you often go out to restaurants? I sometimes do.

换钱换 huàn qián huàn

去网吧去 qù wǎngbā qù



Question Answer Subject chángcháng Verb + Object ma? Subject yǒushíhòu Verb + Object

去商店去 qù shāngdiàn qù

买电话卡买 mǎi diànhuà kǎ mǎi

上汉语课上 shàng Hànyǔkè shàng

7. Practice using the phrase 跟 gēn…一起 yìqǐ… ([to do something] with [somebody]).

Subject gēn + person + yìqǐ Verb Object

我跟朋友一起吃饭。Wǒ gēn péngyou yìqǐ chī fàn.

I eat with a friend.

英国人喝咖啡 Yīngguórén hē kāfēi

王老师去换钱 Wáng lǎoshī qù huànqián

她洗衣服 tā xǐ yīfu

Liú小姐去商店 Liú xiǎojie qù shāngdiàn

马丽莎上课 Mǎ Lìshā shàng kè

Chén小姐去网吧 Chén xiǎojie qù wǎngbā

Huáng小姐买电话卡 Huáng xiǎojie mǎi diànhuàkǎ



PRONUNCIATION

Pronunciation Notes

M PN.1. Differences between “j,” “q,” “x,” and “zh,” “ch,” “sh”

Most English-speaking learners of Chinese need to pay special attention to the differences in pro-

nunciation between the initials “j,” “q,” “x,” and “zh,” “ch,” “sh.” You need to pronounce them accu-

rately enough so a listener can distinguish between pairs such as

“jiā” 家 home and “xiā” 虾 shrimp, or

“quán” 全 complete and “chuán” 船 boat

The sounds of “j,” “q,” and “x” are produced with the tip of your tongue placed behind your lower

front teeth and with the upper part of your tongue just behind your upper teeth. Your mouth

should be stretched wide and your lips should be tight. There should be a strong puff of air.

The sounds of “zh,” “ch,” and “sh” are produced with your tongue pulled somewhat back and

with its tip just touching the roof of your mouth. There should be a strong puff of air.

Notice that the initials “j,” “q,” and “x” only take “i” or “ü” (spelled “u”) as finals or the head of

finals. For example:

jī 鸡 chicken jiā 家 home juān 捐 to donate

qī 七 seven qiā 掐 to pinch quān 圈 circle

xī 西 west xiā虾 shrimp xuān 宣 to declare

When you carefully listen to the sounds “j,” “q,” and “x,” you will find there is always an “i” or “ü”

involved.


1. M PE.1. Read the following words aloud. Pay special attention to the differences between “j,” “q,” “x,” and “zh,” “ch,” “sh.”

Pinyin Characters English … Pinyin Characters English

1) júzi 桔子 orange … zhúzi 竹子 bamboo

2) jūzi 锔子 cramp … zhūzi 珠子 bead



3) jiāng 姜 ginger … zhāng 张 to open

4) qiū 秋 autumn … chōu 抽 to take out (from in between)

5) qiáng 墙 wall … cháng 长 long

6) xùn 训 to train … shùn 顺 smooth

7) xuān 宣 announce … quān 圈 circle

8) zhuān 专 special … chuān 川 river

9) qúnzi 裙子 skirt … Xúnzǐ 荀子 surname of a Chinese philosopher

10) shàng 上 up … xiàng 向 toward

2. M PE.2. In each of the groups below, combine the initials with the finals to make complete words. Read them aloud.

Group A: Group B: Group C: Group D:

j iǔ zh è y (i) īng z ài

q ián ch ǎo w (u) ǔ c óng

x iǎo sh āng yu (ü) án s ì

Ticket office hours



3. M PE.3. Practice Pinyin by reading aloud the following words, which are common items of furniture and kitchenware.

1) jiājù 家具 furniture 13) bēizi 杯子cup

2) shāfā 沙发 sofa 14) wǎn 碗 bowl

3) zhuōzi 桌子 table, desk 15) wēibōlú 微波炉 microwave oven

4) yǐzi 椅子 chair 16) kuàizi 筷子 chopsticks

5) shūguì 书柜 bookcase 17) sháozi 勺子 spoon

6) cānzhuō 餐桌 dining table 18) pánzi 盘子 plate/dish

7) diànshì 电视 TV 19) chāzi 叉子 forks

8) chuáng 床 bed 20) càidāo 菜刀 kitchen knife

9) shuāngrénchuáng 双人床 double bed 21) qiēcàibǎn 切菜板 cutting board

10) chújù 橱具 kitchenware 22) guōchǎn 锅铲 slice

11) guō 锅 pot, wok 23) cānjīnzhǐ 餐巾纸 napkin

12) bīngxiāng 冰箱 refrigerator 24) tāngsháo 汤勺 soup ladle

What are the times on these clocks in a hotel lobby?



EXERCISES


1. M LCE.1. Listen to the words on the CD, and then write the correct Pinyin spelling with tone marks for each word in the blanks below.

1) __________________________________ 11) ___________________________________

2) __________________________________ 12) ___________________________________

3) __________________________________ 13) ___________________________________

4) __________________________________ 14) ___________________________________

5) __________________________________ 15) ___________________________________

6) __________________________________ 16) ___________________________________

7) __________________________________ 17) ___________________________________

8) __________________________________ 18) ___________________________________

9) __________________________________ 19) ___________________________________

10) _________________________________ 20) ___________________________________

2. M LCE.2. Listen to the dialogue and then answer the questions.

First review the words which are not in the vocabulary list for this lesson:

开门 kāimén (to open a door) 离 lí (from)

ROLES A: American 美国人 Měiguórén; B: Chinese person 中国人 Zhōngguórén

A: 我要换一点儿钱。你知道银行几点钟开门吗？B: 银行九点钟开门。A: 现在几点了？B: 现在八点。



A: 银行离这儿远吗？B: 不远。就在书店旁边。A: 好。谢谢。B: 不客气。

Questions:

1) What time does this conversation take place? _______________________________________

2) What time does the bank open? _________________________________________________

3) Why does the American want to go to the bank?

4) Where is the bank located? _____________________________________________________

Communication ActivitiesPair Work

Working in pairs, one person asks in Chinese, “What do you do at __ o’clock?” for each of the times

given in Column A. The other person answers in Chinese, using the information given in Column

B. When you have finished, take turns asking each other about your own daily schedules.

A B

7:00 A.M. get up

8:00 go to Chinese class

9:30 go to buy a telephone card

12:00 p.m. go to eat lunch

1:00 rest

2:45 teach English

4:10 finish class

4:15 go to the Internet cafe

6:30 go to eat dinner

7:50 call the United States

11:00 go to bed



Review Exercises

1. Say the following times in Chinese:

2:00 p.m. 4:10 p.m. 6:15 p.m. 9:45 a.m.10:05 a.m. 11:00 a.m. 8:30 a.m. 7:10 a.m.12:00 p.m. 3:50 p.m. 5:55 p.m. 1:00 p.m.

2. Fill in the blanks with question word(s):

1) 你早上 _____________________________________ 起床？ Nǐ zǎoshang qǐchuáng?

2) 下课以后你做 ____________________________________ ？ Xiàkè yǐhòu nǐ zuò

3) 你跟 ________________________________________ 一起去商店？ Nǐ gēn yìqǐ qù shāngdiàn?

4) 晚上我去找你， _________________________________ ？ Wǎnshang wǒ qù zhǎo nǐ

5) 电话卡______________________________________ 钱一张？ Diànhuàkǎ qián yì zhāng?

6) 厕所在______________________________________________ ？ Cèsuǒ zài

7) 你下午______________________________________________ 上班？ Nǐ xiàwǔ shàngbān?

3. You are studying in China and you know that you will often need to ask or tell about schedules in Chinese. To prepare, you want to translate the following sentences into Chinese. Write the Chi-nese in Pinyin or characters.

1) What time is it now? It is five to ten.

2) Are you busy this afternoon? Shall we go to dinner together tonight?

3) What are you doing today? I am going to the Internet cafe after teaching English.

4) It is a quarter to four now. I will take a rest.

5) When do you go to bed everyday? I often go to bed at 11:00 p.m.



6) Sometimes I take a shower in the morning, sometimes in the evening.

7) I go to Chinese class in the morning, and go to work in the afternoon.

8) I get off work at 5:00 p.m.


Twelve-hour and 24-hour Time Systems

In China the 24-hour time system is used by the media, business, government, and for all official

schedules, such as train and airplane schedules. But in daily conversation people usually use the

12-hour time system plus the portion of the day, such as: shàngwǔ qī diǎn (7:00 in the morning),

xiàwǔ sì diǎn (4:00 in the afternoon), or wǎnshàng jiǔ diǎn (9:00 in the evening).

Working Hours of Stores, Restaurants, and Government Agencies

Stores and restaurants are open seven days a week. Government agencies, including banks and of-

fices, are open Monday through Friday. Daily working hours are 8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., with a one- or

two-hour lunch break around noon.

A typical daily schedule for a school in China:

Morning

6:20–6:40 a.m. Morning exercises

6:40–7:10 Breakfast

7:30–8:10 First period

8:20–9:00 Second period

9:00–9:40 Third period

9:40–10:10 Break, exercises

10:10–10:50 Fourth period

10:50–11:10 Eye-health exercises

11:10–11:50 Fifth period

Midday

11:50–12:20 p.m. Lunch

12:20–1:50 Midday break



Afternoon

1:50 Wake up

1:55 Five-minute warning bell

2:00–2:40 Sixth period

2:50–3:30 Seventh period

3:40–4:20 Eighth period

4:30–5:30 Extracurricular activities

5:30 Dinner

Evening

6:45–7:45 Self-study

7:45–8:00 Break

8:00–9:30 Self-study


235

Appendix Vocabulary List

Guide to abbreviations in Lesson column

Sample abbreviation Vocabulary location2 Lesson 2 in Listening & Speaking book

2-supp Lesson 2 in Listening & Speaking book, in “Supplementary Words” section

2-rw Lesson 2 in Reading & Writing book

Characters Part of English Lesson & Pinyin Speech

八 Num eight 2, 2-rw

bā

吧 N bar, cafe 9, 13-rw

bā

吧 Part (to make a mild imperative, to imply agreement 8, 9, 13-rw

ba or a degree of certainty, to express unwillingness

or hesitation)

白 Adj white; plain 9-rw

bái

百 Num hundred 2, 2-rw

bǎi

班 N/Adj class; shift; regularly-run 15-rw

bān

半 Adj half, partly 9, 15-rw

bàn


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