Learn how to use "This" 这 (zhè) and "that" 那 (nà)
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Frank: Hey, everyone. |
| Echo: Da jia hao! |
| Frank: Welcome back to ChineseClass101.com, Season 1, Lesson 24 in our Beginner series. |
| Echo: 第二十四课了！(Dì èrshísì kèle!) |
| Frank: Today’s lesson is between our good friend… |
| Echo: Zhang Fei and his co-worker, Wang Lin. |
| Frank: They’re at the office and his co-worker is giving him a hem with something. |
| Echo: They are speaking casually. |
| Frank: Exactly. Let’s get on to the dialogue now. |
| Echo: But before we do… |
| Frank: Before we do, that’s right, Echo, we want to remind you to head up to ChineseClass101.com, checkout that voice-recording tool if you haven’t already. It’s a great thing. You can actually record your own voice, play it back, and compare it to native Mandarin speakers to see if you’re getting those tones right. It really helps drive that stuff home. |
| Echo: Exactly. |
| Frank: Let’s go ahead and listen to the dialogue. |
Lesson conversation |
|---|
| 王林:这是你的钥匙.(WÁNG LÍN: Zhè shì nǐ de yàoshi.) |
| 张飞:对不起，我听不懂。(ZHĀNG FĒI: Duìbuqǐ, wǒ tīngbudǒng.) |
| 王林:它可以开门。(WÁNG LÍN: Tā kěyǐ kāi mén.) |
| 张飞:哦，a key。(ZHĀNG FĒI: ò, a key.) |
| 王林:对。Key，钥匙。(WÁNG LÍN: Duì. Key, yàoshi.) |
| 张飞:谢谢你。(ZHĀNG FĒI: Xièxie nǐ.) |
| Frank: Let’s hear that one more time, just a little slower. |
| 王林:这是你的钥匙.(WÁNG LÍN: Zhè shì nǐ de yàoshi.) |
| 张飞:对不起，我听不懂。(ZHĀNG FĒI: Duìbuqǐ, wǒ tīngbudǒng.) |
| 王林:它可以开门。(WÁNG LÍN: Tā kěyǐ kāi mén.) |
| 张飞:哦，a key。(ZHĀNG FĒI: ò, a key.) |
| 王林:对。Key，钥匙。(WÁNG LÍN: Duì. Key, yàoshi.) |
| 张飞:谢谢你。(ZHĀNG FĒI: Xièxie nǐ.) |
| Frank: Okay, we’re back. You know, sometimes I forget that Zhang Fei is not a native of China. |
| Echo: Yeah, because his 中文(Zhōngwén) is so good. |
| Frank: Exactly. You know, we only need to learn new words. |
| Echo: Right. |
| Frank: This is a great dialogue for that. |
| Echo: Exactly. |
| Frank: You know what, there’s something else I wanted to point out here. As long as you’re making the effort here, as long as you’re trying to speak Chinese, people in China are so helpful |
| Echo: Exactly. |
| Frank: They really will do help you out… |
| Echo: We are. |
| Frank: …just like in this dialogue. Let’s go ahead and translate it. |
| 王林:这是你的钥匙.(WÁNG LÍN: Zhè shì nǐ de yàoshi.) |
| Frank: This is your key. |
| 张飞:对不起，我听不懂。(ZHĀNG FĒI: Duìbuqǐ, wǒ tīngbudǒng.) |
| Frank: I'm sorry. I don’t understand. |
| 王林:它可以开门。(WÁNG LÍN: Tā kěyǐ kāi mén.) |
| Frank: It can open doors. |
| 张飞:哦，a key。(ZHĀNG FĒI: ò, a key.) |
| Frank: Oh! A key. |
| 王林:对。Key，钥匙。(WÁNG LÍN: Duì. Key, yàoshi.) |
| Frank: Yes. Key, yàoshi. |
| 张飞:谢谢你。(ZHĀNG FĒI: Xièxie nǐ.) |
| Frank: Thank you. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Frank: All right, gang, we’re almost through our first 25 lessons in our series. Let’s go ahead and rock this vocab. |
| Male: Now, the vocab section. |
| Echo: 对不起(duìbuqǐ) [natural native speed]. |
| Frank: Sorry. |
| Echo: 对不起(duìbuqǐ)[slowly - broken down by syllable].对不起(duìbuqǐ)[natural native speed]. |
| Echo: 它(tā) [natural native speed]. |
| Frank: It. |
| Echo: 它(tā)[slowly - broken down by syllable]. 它(tā)[natural native speed]. |
| Echo: 开门(kāi mén) [natural native speed]. |
| Frank: To open a door. |
| Echo: 开门(kāi mén)[slowly - broken down by syllable]. 开门(kāi mén)[natural native speed]. |
| KEY VOCABULARY AND PHRASES |
| Echo: Okay, we’re back. |
| Frank: Okay. The first word we wanted to talk about in today’s vocab… |
| Echo: 它(tā) [natural native speed]. |
| Frank: “It”. The word means “it”. Let’s hear it one more time. |
| Echo: 它(tā) [natural native speed]. |
| Frank: Now, if you’ve been paying attention over the last 24 episodes or so, you’ve heard this sound before. When we say “hear him”…. |
| Echo: 他(Tā) |
| Frank: …or “she” or “her”… |
| Echo: 她(Tā) |
| Frank: All three of them, exactly the same sound. |
| Echo: Yes. |
| Frank: So let’s hear them in sample sentences. “It is in China”. |
| Echo: 它在中国。(Tā zài zhōngguó.) |
| Frank: “She is in America”. |
| Echo: 她在美国。(Tā zài měiguó.) |
| Frank: “He is in Canada”. |
| Echo: 他在加拿大。(Tā zài jiānádà.) |
| Frank: Okay, they sound identical, Echo. How can you tell the difference? |
| Echo: Context-ing. |
| Frank: Context-ing. Exactly. Now the next word we wanted to cover in today’s vocab was the word for “I’m sorry”. |
| Echo: 对不起。(duìbuqǐ.) |
| Frank: How else can you say that in Chinese? |
| Echo: 不好意思。(bùhǎo yìsi.) |
| Frank: This is another set phrase, just like…. |
| Echo: 对不起。(duìbuqǐ.) |
| Frank: Mean roughly the same thing. But is there a difference culturally when you would use and the other? |
| Echo: Not really. But if you use 不好意思(bùhǎo yìsi), it’s not as strong as 对不起.(duìbuqǐ.) |
| Frank: As if sort of you’re really sorry. |
| Echo: Yeah. |
| Frank: Okay. |
| Echo: We learned this word, 我真对不起(Wǒ zhēn duìbùqǐ) or 真的对不起。(Zhēn de duìbùqǐ.). |
| Frank: Great points. Next word in our vocab is the word for “key”. |
| Echo:钥匙(Yàoshi) |
| Frank: Echo, what kind of key is this that we’re talking about here? |
| Echo: You use that to 开门(Kāimén) . |
| Frank: Right. We’re talking about a metal key though, right? |
| Echo: Uh-hmm. |
| Frank: Okay. Now if you go to a hotel or something, they have those magnetic sliding card thing used. |
| Echo: Yeah. |
| Frank: Is there a different word for that or is still called a key? |
| Echo: You can either call it key, 要吃(Yào chī), or call it door card, like 门卡(Mén kǎ) |
| Frank: Great. So the word we learn in today’s vocab… |
| Echo: 钥匙(Yàoshi) |
| Frank: Can be used for both. |
| Echo: Uh-hmm. |
| Frank: Let’s hear it in some sample sentences. “Is this your key?” |
| Echo: 这是你的钥匙吗？(Zhè shì nǐ de yàoshi ma?) |
| Frank: Where is your key? |
| Echo: 你的钥匙在哪？(Nǐ de yàoshi zài nǎ?) |
| Frank: This key can open the door. |
| Echo: 这把钥匙可以开门。(Zhè bǎ yàoshi kěyǐ kāimén.) |
| Frank: Hey, you’re throwing a new measure word there, Echo. |
| Echo: Right, very useful one. |
| Frank: What is the measure word for “key”? |
| Echo: 把。一把钥匙.(Bǎ. Yī bǎ yàoshi.) |
| Frank: Great. Let’s talk about opening a door. |
| Echo: 开门。(Kāimén.) |
| Frank: You know what, let’s also hear the word for closing a door because that’s going to be useful too. |
| Echo: Yeah. 关门。(guān mén.) |
| Frank: So the word for door is 门(Mén) |
| Echo: as we learned 门卡(ménkǎ) like door card. |
| Frank: That’s right. You know, this sounds a lot like the word that we use to make something plural. |
| Echo: Yeah. It sounds the same. |
| Frank: It sounds the same but it’s not the same character. |
| Echo: Right. |
| Frank: Perfect chance for you to check that out on our PDF transcripts, folks. |
| Echo: Exactly. |
| Frank: Let’s hear some sample sentences here. “She opened my door”. |
| Echo: 她开了我的门。(Tā kāile wǒ de mén) |
| Frank: Close the door. I’m cold. |
| Echo: 请关门(Qǐng guānmén)，我很冷。(Wǒ hěn lěng.) |
| Frank: Open the doors, I’m hot. |
| Echo: 请开门(Qǐng kāimén)，我很热。(Wǒ hěn rè) |
| Frank: Notice that the plural for doors here is still.. |
| Echo: 门(Mén) |
| Frank: Doesn’t change. You’ll notice this for other nouns as well like “apple”. |
| Echo: 苹果(Píngguǒ) |
| Frank: And “apples”. |
| Echo: 苹果(Píngguǒ) |
| Frank: No change. Great. Echo, what else do we find in hotel rooms that we can turn on and off? |
| Echo: Lights. |
| Frank: Lights. Absolutely right. What’s the word for “lights”? |
| Echo: 灯(Dēng) |
| Frank: One more time. |
| Echo: 灯(Dēng) |
| Frank: Awesome. Let’s hear those in some sample sentences, turning them on and off. “Please shut the light”. |
| Echo: 请关灯。(Qǐng guān dēng.) |
| Frank: He turned on the light. |
| Echo: 他开灯了。(Tā kāi dēngle.) |
| Frank: Please turn off the light at 10:00 o’clock. |
| Echo: 十点请关灯。(Shí diǎn qǐng guān dēng.) |
| Frank: It’s 10:00 o’clock. Please turn off the light. |
| Echo: 已经十点了(Yǐjīng shí diǎnle)，请关灯。(Qǐng guān dēng.) |
| Frank: Awesome. Let’s head over to the grammar section. |
| Echo: Yes. |
Lesson focus |
| Male: It’s grammar time. |
| Frank: As you’ve noticed, this is a progressive lesson series. So we’re focusing on the basics of the language and less on the names of specific things. |
| Echo: Right. |
| Frank: So now, we want to teach you how to learn the names of things for yourself. |
| Echo: Exactly. |
| Frank: Echo, how do you say “what is this?” |
| Echo: 这是什么？(Zhè shì shénme?) |
| Frank: Great. Now let’s hear some of the answers you might hear. |
| Echo: 这是椅子。(Zhè shì yǐzi.) |
| Frank: This is a chair. |
| Echo: 这是一瓶水。(Zhè shì yī píng shuǐ.) |
| Frank: This is a bottle of water. |
| Echo: 这是我的手机。(Zhè shì wǒ de shǒujī.) |
| Frank: “This is my cell phone.” Awesome. How do we say “what is that?” |
| Echo: 那是什么？(Nà shì shénme?) |
| Frank: And some of those answers might sound like this… |
| Echo: 那是出租车。(Nà shì chūzū chē.) |
| Frank: That’s a taxi. |
| Echo: 那是我的车。(Nà shì wǒ de chē.) |
| Frank: That’s my car. |
| Echo: 那是一台笔记本。(Nà shì yī tái bǐjìběn.) |
| Frank: That’s a laptop. |
| Echo: Yes. |
| Frank: Last but not least, if the “what is this” and “what is that” doesn’t get you where you’re going… |
| Echo: Yeah. |
| Frank: …you can actually say the word in English and then ask them how to say it in Chinese. |
| Echo: Right. |
| Frank: For example… |
| Echo: Taxi 怎么说？(Zěnme shuō?) |
| Frank: How do you say taxi? |
| Echo: The answer may be, taxi 是出租车(Shì chūzū chē)or just 出租车.(Chūzū chē.) |
| Frank: Great. Next, what if I didn’t know the word for “cell phone”? |
| Echo: Cell phone 怎么说？(Zěnme shuō?) |
| Frank: And the answer there? |
| Echo: Cell phone 是手机. 手机(Shì shǒujī. Shǒujī) |
| Frank: Okay, Echo, let’s say that I’m in a café and I want to get online. |
| Echo: Yeah. |
| Frank: How do I ask them what’s the word for “wi-fi”? |
| Echo: Wi-fi 怎么说(Zěnme shuō). Actually, 我们说(Wǒmen shuō) wi-fi. |
| Frank: We say wi-fi. |
| Echo: Yeah, just wi-fi. |
| Frank: Well, that’s easy enough then. Well, I tell you what, if you do want to get online, we want you to visit ChineseClass101.com. When you’re there, we want you to become a premium subscriber. |
| Echo: Yes. |
| Frank: Get all the great benefits of being a subscriber, learn twice as fast with our great tools, the voice-recording tool. |
| Echo: Yes. |
| Frank: The PDF transcripts. All of these great tools are yours for the asking. We will see you there. But for now, from Beijing, I’m Frank Fradella… |
| Echo: 我是(Wǒ shì) Echo. |
| Frank: …and we’ll see you next time. 再见。(Zàijiàn.) |
| Echo: 下次见。(Xià cì jiàn.) |
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Comments
HideSpeaking of keys... what is your key to learning? Everyone's got their own method that works best for them and we'd like to know yours! Leave a comment and share it with us. Maybe someone will find a way they haven't thought of yet!
你好 robert groulx！
不用谢。(Bú yòng xiè.) = No need for thanks. You're welcome. 😇
谢谢 (Xièxie) for studying with us, it's great to have you here!
Let us know if you have any questions.
Kind regards,
雷文特 (Levente)
Team ChineseClass101.com
thank you for the lesson transcript
favorite phrase is 怎么说？
robert
Hello Steve Hunter,
Thank you for your comment. Please, send us an email to: contactus@ChineseClass101.com
Our customer support team will be able to help you and give you more information.
Thank you for your patience.
Ngai Lam
Team ChineseClass101.com
Have Pathways actually been activated yet? I received the notice for it, but I don't actually see any functionality for it in the dashboard or this pathway.
Hello, Kethmura,
Thank you for your posting.
If you have any question, please let us know.
Cho
Team ChineseClass101.com
That is a great tools thanks
Hello, 伯纳德,
Thank you for your comment.
I checked the text, but I didn't find "要吃" anywhere.
Can you tell me where does it appear?
Cho
Team ChineseClass101.com
Hey guys,
I really like your lessons, but sometimes your really mixing it up. Using traditional and simplified characters. So far that's ok for me but this time.... When you look at the section with the key phrases you wrote 要吃 instead of 钥匙。 Was there somebody who was hungry? Such mistakes will may confuse readers.
说好
伯纳德
Hi, Jay,
It's my pleasure.:smile:
If you have any question, please let us know.
Cho
ChineseClass101.com
我了解！ Very clear and concise answer. Thank you, Cho!
Hi, Jay,
Quite interesting question!
If we want to call a taxi, we wave a hand, and say, '出租車' or '計程車'.
The action of 'call a taxi' is '打的'(dǎ dī ).
literary translation for 出租車 is rent car
計程車 is measure distance car
while 的 is the short term of 的士(dī shì, which means taxi), 打的 is more widely used in Cantongnese.
By the way, in Shanghainese, taxi is called 差头(cā tóu ).:wink:
Cho
Team ChineseClass101.com
Hi Guys! I have a question about how to say "taxi" in Chinese. You use 出租車 in the lesson, but I have also heard 計程車 and da di (sorry, I don't know what the Chinese characters are here). Could you explain the differences, if any, in the usages of these three terms? Thanks guys, I LOVE the lessons!!
Jay
你好，卫力
Good question.
We put "when" and "where" at the begining of the sentence.
And sometimes we put it after the subject.
我们把 时间状语 和 地点状语 放在句首。
有时候我们把它们放在主语后面。
我七点半学中文。正确
Cho
Team ChineseClass101.com
大家好，
我有一个问题。 In the lesson, there was the sentence, Please turn off the light at 10:00 o'clock, which Echo translated as 十点请关灯。 With times in Chinese, should the time be at the beginning of the sentence, but after the subject. For example, I study chinese at 7:30 would that be 我七点半学中文？
再见，
卫力
Hi 卫力 (aka Alexis) ,
Congrats!!!:smile::thumbsup: On to the next level!!
Learning is so fun and satisfying, especially when progressing and improving!
Keep up the good work and let us know if you need any help!! :wink:
加油！(Jiāyóu!)
Olivia
Team ChineseClass101.com
你好 Olivia,
Yes, it should be 卫力。Thanks for catching that. I have the right name in my account, but typing it in below together the mac put in the wrong characters for wei li. It does that quite a bit! :laughing:
Thanks also for fixing the vocabulary. I do feel like I'm no longer an absolute beginner in Chinese, which is a good feeling. I'm also thinking about perhaps going premium plus if and when I reach intermediate.
卫力
Hi 为力 (aka Alexis) [wasn't it 卫力?]
Thank you very much for your comments, we've edited the sample sentences, they should be fine now :sweat_smile:
And you are right: "I have three keys" 我有三把钥匙 :thumbsup:
The definition of 把 is also updated.
Those are some excellent suggestions on tests, especially the "match the measure words test"! We'll keep them in mind for our next upgrade. :wink:
Olivia
Team ChineseClass101.com
你好！
You may want to take a look at the extended vocabulary. There are a lot of sample sentences that do not go with the lesson key words. Also in the lesson notes, it has 把 defined as to take, which I assume is not wrong, but in the lesson the word 把 was introduced as a measure word for key such as in the sentence I have three keys: 我有三把钥匙。(Did I get it right?), so I think it would be good to have it listed in the vocabulary and flashcards at least with that meaning as well.
Finally, just a suggestion, you might want to consider making some more challenging tests that do more than test word recall. Perhaps, you could use some multiple choice that could test grammar knowledge about syntax. Or since I spoke about measure words. Match the measure words test. Actually, may be there could even be a series of tests.
谢谢你。
为力
Hi John,
on behalf of Yinru, you're welcome :innocent::thumbsup:
Natsuko,
Team ChineseClass101.com
Ok. Thanks for the insight, Yinru