When giving your phone number in Mandarin, why do Chinese say yao instead of yi for the number 1?

March 26, 2023 0 Comments

“1“ being pronounced as “yao” (幺) is a military number variant. It became popular and used by civilians. It is similar to the military alphabet for English and other languages and served a similar function. when using military codes, people often choose a word to pronounce a letter, so there’s no misunderstanding when the connection …

How is “good morning” written in Chinese?

March 24, 2023 0 Comments

Either “早上好” or “早安” is a translation of “good morning”. However, we rarely speak or write like that in daily life. If you would like to know something more “Chinese”, see next. “好” has many means as other Chinese words have. One of them is equal to “good” in English. Maybe you can use one’s …

How can I improve my Mandarin listening capabilities?

March 22, 2023 0 Comments

I have been learning Mandarin Chinese for 2 years, and although my speaking, reading and writing skills have developed well, my listening ability is still poor and very basic. How can I improve this? If you have learned Chinese for 2 years, you should be able to understand these sentences. What I want to say …

What does “我去” mean in Chinese?

March 21, 2023 0 Comments

It depends on the context 1.I will go somewhere. The tune like wǒ qù When someone asked : would you like to go to the park? Then if you want to go as well then you could say : 我去!(means I will go ) 2. Kinda of swear word (I suppose you are looking for …

How do you write “LOL” in Mandarin Chinese?

March 20, 2023 0 Comments

When you chat with your Chinese friends on Wechat, after he/she tells a joke or throws a trendy meme into the chats, how do you respond in Chinese? “lol”? Chinese don’t do the abbreviation of the phrase “laugh out loud”, instead, they use words that emulate the sound. “哈哈 haha” is the Chinese corresponding word …

What is the ugliest Chinese character?

March 18, 2023 0 Comments

肏 has always stuck me as a bit disturbing. It means fuck. This is a compound ideograph. The top part 入 means to enter. The bottom part 肉 means flesh. It creates a disturbing image. I think a lot of people find the character a bit off putting as well. It isn’t used much. If you …

How hard is learning Chinese?

March 18, 2023 0 Comments

As an exchange student in Beijing, I’m currently preparing for HSK 4 of Chinese proficiency test. I was writing my practice exam when came across this question. What I want to say is LEARNING CHINESE is not HARD, but EXTREMELY HARD. Like learning other languages, you need to practice making sentences and telling stories in …

Where did the Bai (白) surname originate from in Northern China?

March 18, 2023 0 Comments

In Northern China, this surname originated from Henan Province and Shaanxi Province. For instance, on the Wikipedia, you would find that this surname is used by “descendants of Bai Gongsheng, the son of a crown prince of the State of Chu during the Spring and Autumn Period.” The place where Bai Gongsheng was granted a …

What does “辣眼睛” mean in Chinese?

March 15, 2023 0 Comments

La Yan Jing (辣眼睛, Là yǎnjīng), literally spicy eyes, is a common internet slang word in China. It generally refers to the symptoms of discomfort to the eyes. La Yan Jing describes a person’s weird appearance and the feeling that we’d want to close eyes when we’d see it. In Internet terms, it is used …

How do I say “What the f***” in Mandarin?

March 15, 2023 0 Comments

I haven’t seen that answer it in the comments yet so: to me the closest thing to WTF in mandarin would be “什么鬼” (Shénme guǐ). It could literally be translated as “What ghost” or “What monster”. You could hear someone say “这是什么鬼”(Zhè shì shénme guǐ) for “WTF is that”. One day I was wandering in …