Booking a room in a hotel  

• 您能不能替我想想办法呢？Nín néng bùnéng tì wǒ xiǎngxiǎng bànfǎ ne? Could you please help me to solve the problem? [Begging]

• 这样吧…Zhèyàng ba How about this…[Making suggestions]

E.g. 你现在没有自行车，路又这么远。这样吧，你用我的自行车 吧。

• 既然…就… Jìrán…jiù…If this is the case… then…(Conjunction]

E.g.  既然你没有时间，我就找别人吧。

• …要不…会…的。...Yào bù...huì…de …, otherwise…[Conditional]

E.g.  你必须明天上午12：00以前离开，要不我会有麻烦的。

• 你要/得/应该先…，才…。Nǐ yào/děi/yīnggāi xiān, cái…You have to/should first… only then…

E.g. 你得先注册，然后才能用我们的电脑。

• 哪儿有…的？Nǎr yǒu…de? Where is…[Asking for info. which is the format of V-O]

E.g. 哪儿有卖水果的？

• …顺便问一下儿，…？Shùnbiàn wèn yīxiàr,…? By the way, could you tell me…[Changing subject in a coversation]

• 回头见！Huítóu jiàn! See you later! [Similar to 一会儿见 ]

Booking a ticket in a hotel

• 麻烦您 …máfan nín Can I please trouble you…[A polite way to ask someone to do something or to ask a question. It should be followed by a question or a statement of request.]

• 订一张…票？dìng yī zhāng…piào I would like to book a ticket for… [The description of the ticket is placed before票.]

E.g.  订一张明天去西安的飞机票.

• 怎么才能… zěnme cáinéng…What should I do to …/how could I… [Here才indicates that the following action 买到一张飞机票can only happen under a certain  condition. In another words, the speaker thinks that the action is difficult to achieve.]

E.g. 怎么才能买到一张飞机票呢？

• 能不能用信用卡付？Néng bùnéng yòng xìnyòngkǎ fù? Could I pay it with a credit card? 

• 那… Nà…In this case… [It indicates that the speaker changes his or her mind because a different situation.]

E.g. 那…我就付现金吧!

• 到时…dào shí….then…/at that time …[到时 implies that when the time comes. Usually there is a preset circumstance which is described in the previous clause.]

E.g.  明天上午八点您就可以来拿票了,  到时我把多余的钱一起退给您。

Entering China

• 你打算在中国逗留/居留多长时间？nǐ dǎsuàn zài zhōngguó dòuliú/jūliú duōcháng shíjiān? How long are you going to stay in China? [The verbs 逗留 and 居留are formal usages]

• 我打算在somewhere + Verb…wǒ dǎsuàn zài somewhere do sth. I am planning to…
  E.g. 我打算在中国学习汉语。

• 持+ what type of visa/which country’s passport chí... Holding what type of visa/ which country’s passport.

       E.g. 1. 你持旅游签证不可以在中国学习。2. 我持英国护照。

• 对sb. 来说，sth. 很+ SV duì sb.lái shuō, sth hěn + sv… sth is very+ SV to sb.…

       E.g. 对我来说，在北京学习汉语可重要了！

• 可…了! kě+sv/negation/sentence…le! very…

       E.g. 1.学汉语可重要了。2. 他可不喜欢我了。

• 那怎么办？nà zĕnme bàn? What can I do?

• 你可以把你在中国的详细地址写下来，行吗？ nǐ kĕyǐ bǎ nǐ zài zhōngguó de xiángxì dìzhǐ xiě xià lái, xíng ma? Could you write down your address details in China?

• 要是…你得先…然后…yàoshì…nǐ děi xiān…ránhòu…If…, first you have to do…, then do…

• 劳驾，和/跟您打听一下。láojià, hé/gēng nín dǎting yíxià. Excuse me, may I ask you something?

• 请sb.出面解决问题。Qǐng sb. chūmiàn jiějué wèntí. Ask sb. to solve the problem. [very formal. In this case, the sb. normally refers to a figure of authority.]

E.g. 请英国大使馆出面解决问题。

Leaving China

• 您入境时填写的报关表/单呢？Nín rùjìng shí tián de bàoguānbiǎo/dān ne? Where is your customs declaration when you entered China? [Here 呢 means where.]

• Sb. 忘了把sth.交给sb.了。Sb. wàng le bǎ sth. jiāo gěi sb. le. Sb. forgot to give sb. sth. [The '把' construction is commonly used under this kind of situations.] 

   E.g. 1. 我忘了把报关表交给您了。2. 我忘了把书还给图书馆了。

• 对，就是这个！Duì, jiù shì zhè ge! Right, this is it!/ Right, this is the one!
  

• 交原价200%的税 Jiāo yuánjià 200% de shuì  Pay 200% of the original price tax.

• 我干吗（要）…? wǒ gàn má (yào)…? Why should I ... ?

• 你有没有sth.的证明（呢）？nì yǒu méiyǒu sth. de zhèngmíng ?  Do you have any proof ...?

• Sth.上（没有）说…Sth. shàng (méiyǒu) shuō… It does not say in…[ ‘上’ is short for 在...上]

      E.g. 证明上没有说您的摄像机被偷了。

• 请把箱子打开，我看看。Qǐng bǎ xiāngzi dǎkāi, wǒ kànkan. Please open your luggage. I need to check [lit. I'll have a look.]

• 我箱子里没有要报关的东西。wǒ xiāngzi lǐ méiyǒu yào bàoguān de dōngxi. There is nothing needs to declare in my luggage.

• 您买的这些东西都有收据吗？Nín mǎide zhèxiē dōngxi dōu yǒu shōujù ma? Do you have receipts for these things that you have bought?

• 没有sth怎么行！Méiyǒu sth. zěnmexíng! It won't do without sth.

      E.g.没有收据怎么行（啊）！

• 请问，哪儿有换钱的？Qǐngwèn, nǎr yǒu huànqián de? Where can I exchange money?

• 把one currency换/换回 another currency bǎ one currency huàn/huàn huí another currency. Exchange one currency (back) to another currency.

E.g.  1. 把人民币换英镑。2. 把英镑换回人民币。

Looking for a job

• …招聘… …zhāopìn… … is hiring …

     E.g.  请问，您这儿是不是要招聘英语老师？

• 我们公司正式聘用/录用你。Or：你会被我们公司聘用/录用。Wǒmen gōngsī zhèngshì pìnyòng/lùyòng nǐ. Or: Nǐ huì bèi wǒmen gōngsī pìnyòng/lùyòng. Our company will employ you. Or: You will be employed by our company.
•  Sb. 有过…的经历 Sb. yǒu guò de jīnglì ... Sb. has experience of…

     E.g. 我有过教英语的经历。

• 英语作为第二语言的教学 Yīngyǔ zuòwéi dì èr yǔyán de jiàoxué. Teaching English as a foreign language.
• 第一周是试用期，如果你教得好，你可以在我们这儿得到 一个正式的职位。Dì yīzhōu shì shìyòng qí, rúguǒ nǐ jiào de hǎo, nǐ kěyǐ zài wǒmen zhèr dédào yīgè zhèngshì de zhíwèi. The first week is a trial. If you have taught well, you can get a formal position here.
•  Sb. 是什么水平？Sb. Shì shénme shuǐpíng? What is the level of sb.? 
• 老师准备教材。Lǎoshī zhǔnbèi jiàocái. Teachers prepare the materials. 
• Sb. 给 sb. 介绍一下… Sb. gěi sb. jièshào yīxià... Sb. is going to introduce sb. sth.

      E.g. 我给你们班同学介绍一下你。

• 我曾经去过美国很多次。Wǒ céngjīng qù guò měiguó hěnduō cì. I have been to America several times.
•  Sb. 来 somewhere 任教。Sb. lái somewhere rènjiào. Sb. comes to somewhere to teach.

      E.g. 他来英国任教。

• 断断续续地…过… Duànduànxùxù de… guò... Do sth. on and off.

      E.g. 我曾经断断续续地教过一年多英语。

• 你一个礼拜可以教多少个课时？Or:  你一个星期可以教多少节课？Nǐ yīgè lǐbài kěyǐ jiào duōshǎo gè kèshí? Or: Nǐ yīgè xīngqí kěyǐ jiào duōshǎo jié kè? How many hours can you teach per week? 
• 在somewhere看到…Zài somewhere kàn dào... I saw…on/in…

     E.g. 我在网上看到招聘翻译的消息。

• 我对这份工作很有兴趣，请问工作的具体内容是什么呢？Wǒ duì zhè fèn gōngzuò hěn yǒu xìngqù, qǐngwèn gōngzuò de jùtǐ nèiróng shì shénme ne? I am very much interested in this job. Could you tell me more about the job in detail? [具体内容 literally means concrete content.]
• 你的工作量大概是…Nǐ de gōngzuò liàng dàgài shì... Your workload is approximately…

E.g. 你的工作量大概是平均每天翻译10页左右的文字。

Booking a taable and eating in a restaurant

• 欢迎光临！请问您几位？Huānyíng guānglín! Qǐngwèn nín jǐ wèi? Welcome!  How many people are there? [This expression is used in restaurants.]
• 请给我找(个)…吧。Qǐng gěi wǒ zhǎo (gè)... ba.  Please find me …
• Sb. 要赶…Sb.Yào gǎn...  Sb. is going to catch+ train, bus, ferry…

           E.g.  我要赶三点的飞机/火车。

• 来一个…，再来一个…Lái yīgè..., zàilái yīgè… I want…, and… [This speech pattern is used when ordering food in restaurants.]
• 就要…了。Jiù yào... le.  It is about to…

           E.g. 就要下雨了。

• …都齐了。…dōu qí le.  (Everything) is here.

E.g.  您的菜都齐了。

• 结帐啊！Jié zhàng a！Bill please! [lit. settle the bill please!]
• 给你钱，零钱就不找了，作为小费吧。Gěi nǐ qián, língqián jiù bù zhǎo le, zuòwéi xiǎofèi ba.  Here is the money. Do not need changes. The changes are for the tip.
• 您有什么事？Nín yǒu shé me shì? What do you want?/ What’s up ?
• 我查一下…Wǒ chá yīxià…  I check …

           E.g. 我查一下现在的定位情况。

• 这/那要看…Zhè/nà yào kàn…  It depends on…

E.g.  这要看明天的天气情况。

• …包括…bāokuò…   Sth. includes sth…
• …得另加/算钱 Děi lìng jiā/suàn qián   …is additional [lit is counted in a different way.]

          E.g. 酒水得另加/算钱。

• 得先付定金吗？Děi xiān fù dìngjīn ma?  Do I have to pay the deposit?
• …, 要不… …,yào bù…  …  otherwise…

          E.g. 你明天必须来，要不我会有麻烦。

Shopping

• 请问，哪儿卖…？Qǐngwèn, nǎr mài…? May I ask, where can I get (buy)...

• 卖…什么的，在…(place)…。Mài…shénme de, zài…The one that sells…is+ (place).

        E.g. 卖箱子的在三楼/层。

• 小姐，这个…，给我看看。Xiǎojiě,zhè ge…,gěi wǒ kànkàn....Could I have a look at this...

• …有大一点儿的吗？Yǒu dà yīdiǎn er de ma? Do you have anything bigger?

• 我就要…吧。Wǒ jiù yào…ba. I would just like to have...

• …和…都一样价钱吗？…hé…dōu yīyàng jiàqián ma? Are ... and ... the same price?

• 小姐，这是…刚从您这儿买的…，…以后我发现…。Xiǎojiě, zhè shì... Gāng cóng nín zhèr mǎi de... ... Yǐhòu wǒ fāxiàn... Miss, this is the…I have just bought from here. Then I found out…

• 我想换一个。Wǒ xiǎng huàn yīgè. I would like to change another one.

• 一般来说... Yībān lái shuō...Generally speaking...

• 这是我…刚买的 Zhè shì wǒ mǎi dōng xī de. This is the one that I've just bought.

• 这是我买东西的小条儿，当时你也没有…，我也没想到…。Zhè shì wǒ mǎi dōng xī de xiǎo tiáor, dāngshí nǐ yě méiyǒu..., Wǒ yě méi xiǎngdào... This is the receipt for what I bought. At that time, you didn't…, I didn't realize…

• 给您换个…的吧。Gěi nín huàngè…de ba. Should I change a ... one for you?

     E.g. 请给您换个新的吧！

• 那不行… Nà bùxíng ...That's no good...

• 请你把钱退给我。Qǐng nǐ bǎ qián tuì gěi wǒ. Please return me the money.

Asking direction in streets and hiring a car

• 请问到somewhere应该坐几路公共汽车？Qǐngwèn dào somewhere yīnggāi zuò jǐ lù gōnggòng qìchē? Which bus should I take to go to…

E.g. 请问到南京路应该坐几路公共汽车？

• 先坐No.路公共汽车到somewhere，再换/倒No.路到somewhere下车Xiān zuò … lù gōnggòng qìchē dào ..., zài huàn/dăo… lù, dào ... xià chē. First take…bus to somewhere, then change to bus… and get off somewhere.

E.g. 先坐13.路公共汽车到和平路，再换41路到长城路下车

• 不清楚的话再问人吧！Bù qīngchu dehuà zài wèn rén ba! If you are not sure, please ask someone then. [话 is short for the if clause.]
• 请问到somewhere怎么走？离这儿远吗？Qǐngwèn dào somewhere zěnme zǒu? Lí zhèr yuǎn ma? How do I go to…? Is it far from here?
• 南京路离这儿不远，过了马路，往西走，到红绿灯那儿，再往右拐，然后再一直往前走，左边的第三个路口儿就是南京路。Nánjīng lù lí zhèr bù yuǎn, guò le mǎlù, wǎng xī zǒu, dào hónglǜdēng nàr, zài wǎng yòu guǎi, ránhòu zài yīzhí wǎng qián zǒu, zuǒbiān de dì sān gè lùkǒu er jiùshì nánjīng lù. Nanjing Road is not far from here. Cross the road, head towards the west. Turn right at the traffic light. Then go straight, the third road on the left is the Nanjing Road.
• 想不起来…叫什么名字了Xiǎng bù qǐlái…jiào shénme míngzì le. I cannot remember what it is called.

E.g. 我想不起来那个商店叫什么名字了。

• 你找错地方了! Nǐ zhǎo cuò dìfāng le! You are in the wrong place!
• 请问，在哪儿有出租汽车？Or在哪儿可以打车/打的? Qǐngwèn, zài nǎr yǒu chūzū qìchē? Or zài nǎer kěyǐ dǎchē/dǎ dī? Excuse me, where can I get a taxi?
• 往direction走五分钟就到了Wǎng ... zǒu wǔ fēnzhōng jiù dàole. Walk 5 minutes towards…
• 租一辆汽车需要多少钱呢？您要用车的时间多长？Zū yī liàng qìchē xūyào duōshǎo qián ne? Nín yào yòng chē de shíjiān duō zhǎng? How much does it cost to hire a car? How long will you hire for?
•   …包括/不包括… …Bāokuò/bù bāokuò… including/excluding
• 填一张表 Tián yī zhāng biǎo Fill in a form
• 付…(的)押金 Fù...(De) yājīn Pay…deposit

E.g. 你得付300块的押金。

• 我应该最晚什么时候把车还回来呢？Wǒ yīnggāi zuì wǎn shénme shíhou bǎ chē huán huílái ne? When shall I return the car at the latest?
• 这车是否有汽车急修服务呢？Zhè chē shìfǒu yǒu qìchē jí xiū fúwù ne? Does the hire-car come with the emergency service?

Looking for a room

• 我有一间朝南的房间要出租。Wǒ yǒu yī jiān cháo nán de fángjiān yào chūzū. I have a south-facing room to let. [朝 facing, and it is followed by a direction word ]
• Sb. 管sth. Sb. Guǎn sth. Sb. is charge of sth. Or sth. is included... [管means to provide]

E.g. 我们管早饭和晚饭。

• 吃饭的时间有限制吗？Chīfàn de shíjiān yǒu xiànzhì ma? Is there a restriction for the meal time? [限制 can be used as a noun or a verb.]

• 是sb. 那儿吗？Shì sb. nàr ma? Is this sb.? [This expression is used to start a telephone conversation.]

E.g. 是王小姐那儿吗？

• 这套房子一共有五个房间，其中的四个房间已经住了人，只有一个朝北的房间还空着。Zhè tào fángzi yīgòng yǒu wǔ gè fángjiān, qízhōng de sì gè fángjiān yǐjīng zhù le rén, zhǐyǒu yīgè cháo běi de fángjiān hái kōng zhe. This flat has 5 rooms. 4 rooms have been occupied, only the north-facing one is still available. [着indicates that the room still in the stae of 空.]
• 费用账单都是5个人平摊的。Fèiyòng zhàngdān dōu shì 5 gèrén píng tān de. The bills are shared by 5 people. [The word ‘平摊’does not have the passive implication, so there is no such thing like 被平摊, unless it is used in a formal document. The passive vioce here is 是...的.]

• 尽快…Jǐnkuài... as soon as possible…

E.g. 我想尽快看看房子，可以吗？

• Sb. 找sb. Sb. zhǎo sb. Sb. is looking for sb.

E.g. 我找张先生。

• 您哪位？有什么事吗？Nín nǎ wèi? Yǒu shé me shì ma? Who is that? What is up? [These two expressions are used on telephone conversations.]
• 我在报纸上看到一个租房的广告 Wǒ zài bàozhǐ shàng kàn dào yīgè zūfáng de guǎnggào. I have seen an ad. on the newspaper.
• 用sth.来作为报答 Yòng sth.lái zuòwéi bàodá. (Use)…in return to do sth.

     E.g. 我们会用比较低的房租来作为报答。

• 在我们作决定以前我想跟您面谈一下，可以吗？Zài wǒmen zuò juédìng yǐqián wǒ xiǎng gēn nín miàntán yīxià, kěyǐ ma? Is it possible that we meet each other before making a decision? [Pay attention to the usge of sb. 跟sb. 面谈]

• 现在只剩一套了。Xiànzài zhǐ shèng yī tào le. Now there is only one set of rooms left.

• 这得看…Zhè děi kàn…It depends on…

      E.g. 这得看有多少人住我们的房子。

• 我们四个人合租。 Wǒmen sì gèrén hé zū. Four of us are sharing the flat.
• 床单被子什么的有吗？有没有厨房用具？Chuángdān bèizi shénme de yǒu ma? Yǒu méiyǒu chúfáng yòngjù? Are there bedding and kitchen utensils?
• 单元房里有没有上网设施? Dānyuán fáng li yǒu méiyǒu shàngwǎng shèshī? Is there an internet access in the flat?
• …和…签合同…hé …Qiān hétóng ...sb. signs the contract with sb…

E.g. 我和我的房东签合同。

At a train station

• 买从 Place A 到 Place B的单程/往返票 mǎi cóng place A dào place B de dān chéng/wǎngfǎn piào  To buy single/return tickets from place A to place B.

    E.g. 我要买从南京到北京的往返票。

• 再说… Zàishuō… In addition [This phrase gives additional information to a previous sentence. So there must be a sentence preceding 再说.]

E.g.  我生病了，不能去明天的晚会。再说，我听说那个晚会也没有很多人去，肯定没有意思。

• 难道…吗？ nándào…ma?  Surely not... [This is a rhetorical question. lit. it is difficult to say that ...]

    E.g. 难道台湾学生不应该和大陆的一样待遇吗？[In other words, Taiwan students must 

         be treated the same as students from Mainland China.]

• 找sb.（出）来+ verb… Zhǎo sb. (chū) lái + verb… Ask sb. to do sth. In the dialogue with sb, [It is an aggressive way of talking. Use it carefully. The message you convey by using this expression very much depends on how you say it.]

E.g.  1. 找你们站长出来说话。[Aggressive] 2. 找你们经理来谈谈。[Aggressive]

• 你别唱（政治）高调了。Nǐ bié chàng zhèngzhì gāodiào le. [This is a fixed speech pattern. It originally came from the period of the Chinese Culture Revolution, which means that someone is quoting some well-known words from the authorities, e.g. the government, to indicate that the issue he/she is talking about should be very much concerned.]

• 别+verb…了！Bié…le! Do not do…

• 得到…的待遇 Dédào…de dàiyù To obtain…treatment/allowance/ benefits

• 非…不可 Fēi…bùkě have to do / absolutely must…

E.g. 我今天非去南京不可。

• 真不够水平/水准！Zhēn bú gòu shuǐpíng/shuǐzhŭn! [This is a fixed expression, which means sth. has not reached the standard level / is not up to the standard.]

• 差一点…了 Chà yi diǎn…le. ...is almost + verb/sv
  

E.g. 我差一点忘了明天有考试。

• 这样吧，… Zhèyàng ba, …How about that... [It is used to give a suggestion...]

• 哪里，还差得远呢。… Nǎlǐ, hái chà de yuǎn ne. [This is a very modest way to say:] ‘I am not that good.’

• Sth 不见了。sth. bú jiàn le. Sth. is lost/cannot be found.

• Sb.好好+ verb… sb. hǎohāo + verb…[It is commonly used in imperative sentence, which means] (you) should do sth. thoroughly.

E.g. 1. 你好好找找。2. 你好好看看。

• …倒…, 可是/但是… …dào…, kěshì/dànshì…[This speech pattern is similar to the conjunction ‘虽然…但是…’ which means] ‘although...' actually…’

E.g. 钱倒不多，可是钱包里有信用卡，还有别的东西。

• 您说这可怎么办呢？Nín shuō zhè kě zěnme bàn ne? What can I do?

• Sb. 把 sth.丢了/忘了… Sb. bǎ sth. diū le/wàng le…Sb. lost/forgot sth. [Pay attention to the use of the ‘把’ construction.]

• 扣除原票价 的 …% kòuchú yuán piàojià de…bǎi fēng zhī…Deduct …% of the original price

• 那怎么行呢！Nà zěnme xíng ne! This is impossible!

• Sb. 不得不 do sth. Sb. bù dé bù do sth… Sb. has to do sth./ there is no alternative, but....

E.g. 我不得不退了这张票。

• 把 sth. 退还给sb. Bǎ sth. tuìhuán gěi sb. Return sth. to sb. [Pay attention to the ‘把’construction.]

In a hopital

• 我发烧了，可能得了重感冒。Wǒ fāshāo le, kěnéng déle zhòng gǎnmào. I got fever. Maybe I’ve got flu.

• …从来没/不… …Cónglái méi/bù… Never did/had…

E.g. 我从来没来这个医院看过病。

• 那你得在这个医院建一个病历。Nà nǐ děi zài zhège yīyuàn jiàn yī gè bìnglì. Then you have to register a doctor here. [建一个病历literally means that to set up a personal medical file.]

• 请先量一量体温。Qǐng xiān liàng yī liàng tǐwēn. Please (let me) measure your body temperature.

• 发烧三十八度五！你还有哪儿不舒服？/你还有什么地方不舒服？Fāshāo sān shí bā dù wǔ! Nǐ hái yǒu nǎr bú shūfú?/Nǐ hái yǒu shé me dìfāng bú shūfú? Your body temperature is 38.5. Where else do you find uncomfortable?

• Sb. 觉得呼吸（有点儿）困难 Sb. juéde hūxī (yǒudiǎnr) kùnnán. Sb. feels it is hard to breathe.

• 以前是不是也有过类似的症状？Yǐqián shì bùshì yěyǒu guò lèisì de zhèngzhuàng? In the past, did you have the similar symptom?

• Sb. 很难确定sth. Sb.hěn nán quèdìng. Sb. feels hard to say…

E.g. 现在我还很难确定你得了什么病。

• 你明天早饭以前来验一下儿血，拍个X光。Nǐ míngtiān zǎofàn yǐqián lái yàn yīxià ér xuè, pāi gè X guāng. You come here to have a blood test and take an X-ray tomorrow before breakfast.

• Sb. 给sb. 开…药 Sb. gěi sb. kāi… yào. Sb. gives sb. a prescription.

E.g. 我今天先给你开点儿中药

• Sb. 保证…Sb. bǎozhèng… Sb. guarantee …

E.g. 我保证你会睡个好觉！

• 我不能给你开一些不必要的药。Wǒ bùnéng gěi nǐ kāi yīxiē bù bìyào de yào. I cannot give any unnecessary medicines.

• Sth. 起不了…作用Sth. qǐ bùliǎo…zuòyòng. Sth. does not function well. or sth. does not work properly. [It especially applies medicines.]

E.g. 如果你得的是一种病毒性感冒，抗生素是起不了作用的。