Culture Class: Essential Chinese Vocabulary
Let Chinese culture be your guide as you build up essential vocabulary and phrases.
Intermediate

Curriculum

Culture Class: Essential Chinese Vocabulary

What are the 5 most popular sweets in China? What vocabulary do you need to know to have a conversation with Chinese-speaking locals? You'll learn all this and more in this Culture Class Series! Vocabulary is essential to mastering Chinese. In this 25-lesson series, you'll learn the *most* essential Chinese vocabulary words related to culture and daily life. These words have been hand picked by our Chinese native speakers and cover topics like popular Chinese dishes, national holidays, and cities.

Lesson # Title
(English)
Topic
(English)
Target sentences
(Target Language)
1 National Holidays Daily Life 春节
端午节
清明节
中秋节
国庆节
2 Food Food & Drink 饺子
汤圆
粽子
火锅
小笼包
3 Drinks Food & Drink 乌龙茶
普洱茶
白酒
啤酒
珍珠奶茶
4 Home-cooked Meals Food & Drink 东坡肉
宫保鸡丁
叉烧
麻婆豆腐
皮蛋
5 Sweets and Desserts Food & Drink 金银馒头
老婆饼
龙须糖
沙琪玛
龟苓膏
6 Fruits Food & Drink 荔枝
哈密瓜
龙眼

枇杷
7 Vegetables Food & Drink 番茄
红薯
胡萝卜
大白菜
辣椒
8 Food Souvenirs Food & Drink
腊肉
蛋挞
茅台
月饼
9 Pop and Traditional Culture Society & Culture 京剧
书法
儒家思想
武术
中医
10 Traditional Clothing Society & Culture 旗袍
莲履
襦裙
深衣
唐装
11 Historical Figures Society & Culture 秦始皇
孔子
武则天
孙中山
毛泽东
12 Animals Geography & Nature 大熊猫
东北虎
扬子鳄
金丝猴
丹顶鹤
13 Plants Geography & Nature 冬虫夏草

当归
牡丹
水仙
14 Geographical Features Geography & Nature 喀斯特地貌
哈尼梯田
戈壁沙漠
黄土高原
内蒙古大草原
15 Cities Geography & Nature 北京
上海
广州
南京
香港
16 Sports Recreation & Leisure 足球
游泳
乒乓球
羽毛球
太极拳
17 Tourist Attractions and Places Recreation & Leisure 长城
故宫
兵马俑
少林寺
香格里拉
18 Common Things in the Home People & Homes 泡菜坛

屏风
盆栽
春联
19 Medicines and drugs Health & Emergencies 云南白药
创可贴
板蓝根冲剂
念慈庵川贝枇杷膏
阿司匹林
20 Natural disasters Health & Emergencies 地震
台风
洪水
沙尘暴
干旱
21 Modes of transportation Transportation & around town 公交车
地铁
出租车
私家车
自行车
22 Shops or services in town Transportation & around town 菜市场
药店
超市
加油站
书店
23 Chain Stores Transportation & around town 屈臣氏
同仁堂
国美电器
沃尔玛
大润发
24 Musicians and Artists Fine Arts 梅兰芳
王羲之
苏轼
邓丽君
张学友
25 Writers Fine Arts 李白
金庸
老舍
鲁迅
莫言