Learn the key pattern to introduce yourself
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| Let's take a closer look at Mark's response. |
| Do you remember how Mark Lee introduces himself? |
| "Hello. My name is Mark Lee. Pleased to meet you." |
| 你好。我叫马克李。很高兴认识你。(Mǎkè Lǐ: Nǐhǎo. Wǒ jiào Mǎkè Lǐ. Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ.) |
| First is 你好 (Nǐhǎo), meaning "Hello." 你 好. 你好. |
| This is a commonly used greeting, and is often said when meeting people for the first time. |
| This starts with the word, 你 (Nǐ), "you." 你. 你. |
| Next is the word, 好 (hǎo), "good." 好. 好. |
| Together, it's 你好. |
| This phrase literally means "you good" but translates as "Hello." 你好. |
| Pronunciation note: when there are two third tones in a row, the first one changes to the second tone. Listen to the pronunciation again. 你好 (Nǐhǎo). 你好 (Nǐhǎo). |
| This pronunciation change is not reflected in the pinyin, as you will still see two third tones. |
| Before we look at how Mark introduces his name, let's look at the last part of Mark's response. |
| 很高兴认识你。(Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ.) "Nice to meet you" or "Pleased to meet you." 很高兴认识你。 |
| First is 很 (hěn), "very." 很(enunciated). 很. |
| This is followed by, 高兴 (gāoxìng), translating as "pleased" in this context. 高 兴. 高兴. |
| Next is the word 认识 (rènshi), "to know." 认识. 认识. |
| Last is the word, 你 (nǐ), "you." 你. |
| All together, 很高兴认识你。(Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ.) Literally, "Very pleased to know you," but it translates as "Pleased to meet you." 很高兴认识你。 |
| When meeting someone for the first time, you'll often hear this phrase, but omitting it in favor of a simple 你好 (nǐhǎo) is often enough. |
| Do you remember how Mark Lee says, |
| "My name is Mark Lee." |
| 我叫马克李。(Wǒ jiào Mǎkè Lǐ.) |
| First is 我 (Wǒ), "I." 我. 我. |
| Next is the word, 叫 (jiào), which translates as "to be called." 叫. 叫. |
| Together it's, 我叫 (Wǒ jiào), literally, "I'm called," but it translates as "My name is…" 我叫. |
| This phrase is used to introduce one's own name. |
| Next is Mark Lee's name, 马克李 (Mǎkè Lǐ). |
| Note: there is often a short pause between the first and the last name. For example, 马克 (pause) 李. |
| First is Mark's given name 马克 (Mǎkè), Mark. 马 克. 马克. |
| Followed by his family name, 李 (Lǐ), Lee. 李. 李. |
| All together, 我叫马克李。(Wǒ jiào Mǎkè Lǐ.) "I am called Mark Lee." 我叫马克李。 |
| When giving foreign names in Chinese, the name order follows the order of the original language. For example, Mark Lee translates to 马克李, as the name order in English is given name followed by family name. |
| For Chinese names, the order is family name followed by given names. |
| Zheng Zhu uses this order when he says, 我叫朱正。His family name, 朱 (Zhū), is followed by his given name, 正 (Zhèng). |
| The pattern is |
| 我叫 {NAME}。 |
| "My name is {NAME}." |
| 我叫 {NAME}。 |
| To use this pattern, simply replace the {NAME} placeholder with your name. |
| Imagine you're Karen Lee. In Chinese, 凯伦李 (Kǎilún Lǐ.). 凯伦李. 凯伦李. |
| Say |
| "My name is Karen Lee." |
| Ready? |
| 我叫凯伦李。 (Wǒ jiào Kǎilún Lǐ.) |
| "My name is Karen Lee." |
| 我叫凯伦李。 |
| When introducing yourself as a Chinese learner, you might want to use just your given name. |
| 我叫凯伦。 (Wǒ jiào Kǎilún.) |
| "My name is Karen." |
| 我叫凯伦。 |
| You can feel free to use the name you would like to be called. |
Comments
HideCan you introduce yourself using the pattern introduced in this lesson?
Hi Kendria!
Your name "Kendria" can be translated and pronounced in Chinese as "肯德里娅" (Kěn dé lǐ yà). 😊 The pronunciation is similar to your English name, and the characters are chosen to match the sounds closely.
Feel free to let us know if you have any questions. 谢谢！(Xièxiè! "Thank you!")
Team ChineseClass101.com
How do I pronounce and spell my name in
Chinese.
Hello Tyler,
Thank you for your comment, very good! 👍
Thank you for learning with us, let us know if you have any questions.
Ngai
Team ChineseClass101.com
大家好，我叫Tyler
Hello again Caoimhe Murphy,
You're welcome! I'm glad that you like the name. The name Keeva can be translated into 奇娃 (qí wá).
Thank you for learning with us, let us know if you have any questions.
Ngai
Team ChineseClass101.com
HI Ngai
Thank you for the Mandarin Chinese name Mel li ya I really like it. May I ask what is my name Keeva translated into Mandarin Chinese please?
Thank you
Hello Harsha,
Thank you for your comment. Your name can be translated into 哈沙瓦迪尼 (hā shā wǎ dí ní).
Thank you for learning with us, let us know if you have any questions.
Ngai
Team ChineseClass101.com
Ni hao. My name is Harshavardhini. How should it be in chinese?
Hello Katherine,
Thank you for your comment. In Chinese the sequence is also last name first name. If your name is in Kanji then you would also use the Hanzi readings of your Kanji name.
Hope it helps, let us know if you have any questions.
Ngai
Team ChineseClass101.com
My name is Japanese and English. I am a permanent resident of Japan and I am learning Chinese for using with Chinese people in Japan. How would I go about introducing myself (professionally I introduce myself last name first name as is the way in Japan) and how do I go about using my last name in Chinese? Do I use the hanzi readings of my kanji or transliterate it into approximate sounds?
My name is 平良 Katherine
Hello Amarie Jimenez,
你好！Thank you for your comment. Your name can be translated into 阿玛丽 (ā mǎ lì) 希梅内斯 (xī méi nèi sī) in Chinese.
Thank you for learning with us, let us know if you have any questions.
Ngai Lam
Team ChineseClass101.com
Ni hao, Wo jiao Amarie Jimenez
Im wondering how would you say that in mandarin?
你好Dyan，
Thank you for your comment, 很高兴认识你！
Hope to see you here often, let us know if you have any questions.
Ngai Lam
Team ChineseClass101.com
我叫Dyan (read Dian). 很高兴认识你们
你好 robert groulx,
谢谢 for posting and studying with us. If you have any questions, please let us know.😄
Kind regards,
雷文特 (Levente)
Team ChineseClass101.com
thank you for the lesson transcript
favorite phrase is (Wǒ jiào robert groulx.)
robert
Hello Noemi Gomez,
你好！Yes I saw your comment in the other lesson. Your name Noemi is translated into 拿俄米 (ná é mǐ) in Chinese, your last name can be translated into 戈麦斯 (gē mài sī).
Thank you for learning with us, let us know if you have any questions.
Ngai Lam
Team ChineseClass101.com
Ni hao, Wo jiao Noemi Gomez.
What would that be in Chinese? I have tried asking before, but has not gotten an answer yet. my name comes from the bible so I imagine that there is a translation in Chinese already. The meaning is pleasant and the English version would be Naomi.