Talking About Transportation in Chinese - Exercises

Practice how to describe how you get to places like work, school, or the gym

Lesson Transcript

Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?

我(pause with a tap of the finger)地铁去公司。 (Wǒ (pause with a tap of the finger) dìtiě qù gōngsī.)

坐 (zuò)

我坐地铁去公司。 (Wǒ zuò dìtiě qù gōngsī.)

"I take the subway to the office."

We use 坐 (zuò) in this sentence because it's the correct verb for taking most public transportation—like subways, buses, and trains. 坐 describes the act of sitting or riding as a passenger, which is exactly what we do when we take the subway.

The wrong option was 开 (kāi), which means "to drive." This verb only applies when you are personally operating a vehicle, like a car. Since the subject is a passenger on the subway and not the driver, 开 is not appropriate here.

Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?

姐姐(pause with a tap of the finger)去学校上课。 (Jiějie (pause with a tap of the finger) qù xuéxiào shàngkè.)

走路 (zǒulù)

姐姐走路去学校上课。 (Jiějie zǒulù qù xuéxiào shàngkè.)

"My older sister walks to school for class."

We use 走路 (zǒulù) because the sentence describes someone going to school on foot. 走路 is the correct verb when the subject is walking—not riding or driving.

The wrong option was 骑 (qí). This verb is always used with an object — for example, 骑自行车 (qí zìxíngchē, "ride a bike") or 骑摩托车 (qí mótuōchē, "ride a motorcycle"). You cannot just say 骑去 by itself.

Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?

她(pause with a tap of the finger)出租车去饭店。 (Tā (pause with a tap of the finger) chūzūchē qù fàndiàn.)

乘 (chéng)

她乘出租车去饭店。 (Tā chéng chūzūchē qù fàndiàn.)

"She takes a taxi to the restaurant."

We use 乘 (chéng) because it's a formal verb used for taking vehicles like taxis, airplanes, or buses. It fits well when describing someone traveling as a passenger.

The wrong option was 走路 (zǒulù). This verb is a complete action by itself and doesn't take an object. In this sentence, we already have 出租车 (chūzūchē, "taxi"), so 走路 cannot be used.

Unscramble the words to make a sentence.

Ready?

他 (tā)

他坐 (Tā zuò)

他坐公共 (Tā zuò gōnggòng)

他坐公共汽车 (Tā zuò gōnggòng qìchē)

他坐公共汽车去 (Tā zuò gōnggòng qìchē qù)

他坐公共汽车去体育馆。 (Tā zuò gōnggòng qìchē qù tǐyùguǎn.)

"He takes the bus to the gym."

他坐公共汽车去体育馆。 (Tā zuò gōnggòng qìchē qù tǐyùguǎn.)

Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?

我们坐(船 or 走路)去对面的岛。 (Wǒmen zuò (chuán or zǒulù) qù duìmiàn de dǎo.)

船 (chuán)

我们坐船去对面的岛。 (Wǒmen zuò chuán qù duìmiàn de dǎo.)

"We take a boat to the island across."

We use 船 (chuán) here because it refers to a boat. The verb 坐 (zuò) is the correct one to pair with 船 because you ride as a passenger, not operate it yourself.

The wrong option was 走路 (zǒulù), meaning "to walk."

Choose the best answer to complete the sentence. Ready?

妈妈乘(自行车 or 飞机)去上海看朋友。 (Māma chéng (zìxíngchē or fēijī) qù Shànghǎi kàn péngyou.)

飞机 (fēijī)

妈妈乘飞机去上海看朋友。 (Māma chéng fēijī qù Shànghǎi kàn péngyou.)

"Mom takes a plane to Shanghai to visit a friend."

We use 飞机 (fēijī) here because it refers to an airplane, and the verb 乘 (chéng) is the formal verb used to describe traveling by larger vehicles such as planes, trains, and buses when you're a passenger.

The wrong option was 自行车 (zìxíngchē). We don't say 乘自行车 — the natural verb is 骑 (qí). Also, the destination here is Shanghai, which is very far away. It's not realistic to go there by bicycle. That's why 飞机 (fēijī, "plane") is the correct and natural choice.

Let's translate some sentences into Chinese.

Translate "I plan to go to the supermarket by bike." into Chinese.

我 (wǒ) — the subject, meaning "I,"

followed by

打算 (dǎsuàn) — meaning "plan to,"

骑自行车 (qí zìxíngchē) — the verb phrase meaning "ride a bicycle,"

followed by

去超市 (qù chāoshì) — meaning "go to the supermarket."

骑 (qí) is used here because it specifically refers to riding something you physically sit on and straddle, like a bicycle, motorcycle, or horse.

我打算骑自行车去超市。 (Wǒ dǎsuàn qí zìxíngchē qù chāoshì.)

"I plan to go to the supermarket by bike.

Translate "Dad drives to the airport to pick someone up." into Chinese.

爸爸 (bàba) — the subject, meaning "dad,"

followed by

开车 (kāi chē) — the verb phrase meaning "to drive a car,"

去机场 (qù jīchǎng) — meaning "go to the airport,"

followed by

接人 (jiē rén) — meaning "pick someone up."

开车 (kāi chē) is used here because it means "to drive a car." This verb is appropriate when the subject is the person actively driving, not just taking a ride. In this sentence, the dad is the one driving to the airport.

爸爸开车去机场接人。 (Bàba kāi chē qù jīchǎng jiē rén.)

"Dad drives to the airport to pick someone up.

Translate "I like to jog to the gym." into Chinese.

我 (wǒ) — the subject, meaning "I,"

followed by

喜欢 (xǐhuan) — meaning "like,"

跑步 (pǎobù) — meaning "to jog,"

followed by

去健身房 (qù jiànshēnfáng) — meaning "go to the gym."

跑步 (pǎobù) is used here because it is a standalone action verb meaning "to jog" or "run." In Chinese, verbs like 跑步 (pǎobù) and 走路 (zǒulù) don't require a vehicle and are followed directly by 去 + place.

我喜欢跑步去健身房。 (Wǒ xǐhuan pǎobù qù jiànshēnfáng.)

"I like to jog to the gym.

Listen to me as I speak. Which form of transportation is used in the sentences?

我坐地铁去公司。 (Wǒ zuò dìtiě qù gōngsī.)

Let's listen one more time.

我坐地铁去公司。 (Wǒ zuò dìtiě qù gōngsī.)

Did you hear, 坐地铁 (zuò dìtiě)? That means "take the subway."

We use 坐 (zuò) with public transportation like the subway because it means "to sit on or take" a vehicle where you're a passenger, not the driver.

How about...?

他坐公共汽车去体育馆。 (Tā zuò gōnggòng qìchē qù tǐyùguǎn.)

Let's listen one more time.

他坐公共汽车去体育馆。 (Tā zuò gōnggòng qìchē qù tǐyùguǎn.)

Did you hear, 坐公共汽车 (zuò gōnggòng qìchē)? That means "take the bus."

We use 坐 (zuò) again here because a bus is also a public transportation that you ride as a passenger.

Next…

妈妈乘飞机去上海看朋友。 (Māma chéng fēijī qù Shànghǎi kàn péngyou.)

One more time.

妈妈乘飞机去上海看朋友。 (Māma chéng fēijī qù Shànghǎi kàn péngyou.)

Did you hear, 乘飞机 (chéng fēijī)? That means "take a plane."

乘 (chéng) is often used in writing or more formal speech. We can also say 坐飞机 in daily conversation.

And...

我喜欢跑步去健身房。 (Wǒ xǐhuan pǎobù qù jiànshēnfáng.)

One more time.

我喜欢跑步去健身房。 (Wǒ xǐhuan pǎobù qù jiànshēnfáng.)

Did you hear, 跑步 (pǎobù)? That means "to jog."

This verb describes using your own body to move without a vehicle, so it's used for going places on foot, like jogging to the gym.

Thank you for watching.

Now you know how to talk about means of transportation in Chinese.

...and now you can move on to the next lesson in the pathway.

再见。(Zàijiàn.)

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