Collins Mandarin Chinese Visual Dictionary
Collins Mandarin Chinese Visual Dictionary
COPYRIGHT
Published by Collins
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First Edition 2019
© HarperCollins Publishers 2019
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Ebook Edition © March 2019
ISBN: 9780008319946
Version: 2019-03-26
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INTRODUCTION
Whether you’re on holiday or staying for a slightly longer period of time, your Collins Visual Dictionary is designed to help you find exactly what you need, when you need it. With over a thousand clear and helpful images, you can quickly locate the vocabulary you are looking for.
The Visual Dictionary includes:
10 chapters arranged thematically, so that you can easily find what you need to suit the situation
images – illustrating essential items
YOU MIGHT SAY… – common phrases that you might want to use
YOU MIGHT HEAR… – common phrases that you might come across
VOCABULARY – common words that you might need
YOU SHOULD KNOW… – tips about local customs or etiquette
USING YOUR COLLINS VISUAL DICTIONARY
The points set out below will help to make sure that your Collins Visual Dictionary gives you as much help as possible when using Mandarin Chinese:
1)How to address people politely
At work, you can call your peers by their names – a rule of thumb is to always address people by their job title or occupation with their family name first, for example, 张老师 (zhāng lǎo shī), “Zhang teacher”. You may also hear 小王 (xiǎo Wang), literally “young Wang” or 老李 (lǎo Lǐ), “old Li” in the workplace depending on age and seniority, although this is rather informal.
When invited to meet a friend’s family, unless they are younger or roughly the same age, you shouldn’t call them by their names. You can call their grandparents 爷爷／奶奶 (yé ye/nǎi nai) “grandfather/grandmother”, and their parents or anyone in that generation 叔叔／阿姨 (shū shu/ā yí) “uncle/auntie”, as if they were your own relatives. Addressing the older generations by their names is considered very rude in Chinese culture.
“你” or “您”？ Although both are translated as “you” in English, 您 is used to show respect when addressing, for example, your parents, grandparents, or boss. On the other hand, 你 is used to address friends and peers.
2)Measure words
Measure words are unique to Chinese, and are mandatory when using a noun with a numeral, for example, “one car” is 一辆车 (yī liàng chē) and “three bedrooms” is 三间卧室 (sān jiān wò shì). In these cases, the measure words are 辆 (liàng) and 间 (jiān) respectively. There are many different measure words in Chinese, and they are used for different types of objects. The most common measure word is 个 (gè) and this can be treated as a “default option” when you don’t know the exact measure word to use.
3)Tones for 一 and 不
To maintain consistency, we use yī (first tone) as the Pinyin for the character 一 and bù (fourth tone) for the character 不. This is in line with the authoritative Contemporary Chinese Dictionary. However, the pronunciations for these two characters may vary according to the tones of the characters that proceed or follow them, as shown below:
FREE AUDIO
We have created a free audio resource to help you learn and practise the Chinese words for all of the images shown in this dictionary. The Chinese words in each chapter are spoken by native speakers, giving you the opportunity to listen to each word twice and repeat it yourself. Download the audio from the website below to learn all of the vocabulary you need for communicating in Chinese.
www.collinsdictionary.com/resources
THE ESSENTIALS | 日常必备
Whether you’re going to be visiting China, or even staying there for a while, you’ll want to be able to chat with people and get to know them better. Being able to communicate effectively with acquaintances, friends, family, and colleagues is key to becoming more confident in Mandarin Chinese in a variety of everyday situations.
umbrella
伞
sǎn
1. green
绿色的
lǜ sè de
2. blue
蓝色的
lán sè de
3. red
红色的
hóng sè de
4. yellow
黄色的
huáng sè de
5. white
白色的
bái sè de
6. black
黑色的
hēi sè de
THE BASICS | 基础句型和词汇
Hello.
你好。
nǐ hǎo
Hi!
嗨！
hēi
Good morning/evening.
早／晚上好。
zǎo/wǎn shàng hǎo
Good afternoon.
下午好。
xià wǔ hǎo
Good night.
晚安。
wǎn ān
See you soon.
回头见。
huí tóu jiàn
See you tomorrow.
明天见。
míng tiān jiàn
Bye!
再见。
zài jiàn
Have a good day!
今天过得愉快！
jīn tiān guò de yú kuài
Yes.
是的。
shì de
No.
不是。
bù shì
I don’t know.
我不知道。
wǒ bù zhī dào
please
请
qǐng
Yes, please.
好的，请。
hǎo de , qǐng
Thank you.
谢谢。
xiè xie
No, thanks.
不，谢谢。
bù , xiè xie
Excuse me.
请问。
qǐng wèn
Sorry?
什么？
shén me
I’m sorry.
对不起。
duì bù qǐ
OK!
好的！
hǎo de
You’re welcome.
不客气。
bù kè qì
I don’t understand.
我没听懂。
wǒ méi tīng dǒng
YOU SHOULD KNOW…
Shaking hands is important for Chinese people when meeting and parting, especially in formal settings. However, a kiss on the cheek or an embrace might be considered rude as most people are still unfamiliar with these gestures of affection.
ABOUT YOU | 你自己
How old are you?
你多少岁？
nǐ duō shǎo suì
When is your birthday?
你的生日是什么时候？
nǐ de shēng rì shì shén me shí hou
I’m … years old.
我…岁。
wǒ … suì
I was born in…
我是…生的。
wǒ shì … shēng de
Where do you live?
你住哪里？
nǐ zhù nǎ lǐ
Where are you from?
你从哪里来？
nǐ cóng nǎ lǐ lái
I’m from…
我从…来。
wǒ cóng … lái
I live in…
我住在…。
wǒ zhù zài
I’m…
我是…。
wǒ shì
Scottish
苏格兰的／人
sū gé lán de/rén
English
英格兰的／人
yīng gé lán de/rén
Irish
爱尔兰的／人
ài ěr lán de/rén
Welsh
威尔士的／人
wēi ěr shì de/rén
British
英国的／人
yīng guó de/rén
Are you married/single?
你结婚了／单身吗？
nǐ jié hūn le/dān shēn ma
I’m married.
我结婚了。
wǒ jié hūn le
I have a partner.
我有伴侣。
wǒ yǒu bàn lǚ
I’m single.
我单身。
wǒ dān shēn
I’m divorced.
我离婚了。
wǒ lí hūn le
I’m widowed.
我丧偶。
wǒ sàng ǒu
Do you have any children?
你有孩子吗？
nǐ yǒu hái zi ma
I have … children.
我有…个孩子。
wǒ yǒu … gè hái zi
I don’t have any children.
我没有孩子。
wǒ méi yǒu hái zi
YOU SHOULD KNOW…
You might be asked about your age, occupation, or even your salary by people who are not that close to you. Don’t be offended, this is part of the Chinese culture, although people’s views on privacy are starting to change.
FAMILY AND FRIENDS | 家人和朋友
This is my…
这是我的…。
zhè shì wǒ de
These are my…
这些是我的…。
zhè xiē shì wǒ de
husband
丈夫
zhàng fu
wife
妻子
qī zǐ
boyfriend
男朋友
nán péng you
girlfriend
女朋友
nǚ péng you
partner
伴侣
bàn lǚ
fiancé/fiancée
未婚夫／妻
wèi hūn fū/qī
son
儿子
ér zi
daughter
女儿
nǚ ér
parents
父母
fù mǔ
mother
母亲
mǔ qīn
father
父亲
fù qīn
brother
兄弟
xiōng dì
sister
姐妹
jiě mèi
grandfather
祖父
zǔ fù
grandmother
祖母
zǔ mǔ
granddaughter
孙女
sūn nǚ
grandson
孙子
sūn zi
mother-in-law
婆母／岳母
pó mǔ/yuè mǔ
father-in-law
公公／岳父
gōng gong/yuè fù
daughter-in-law
儿媳妇
ér xí fù
son-in-law
女婿
nǚ xu
brother-in-law
姐夫／妹夫
jiě fu/mèi fu
sister-in-law
嫂子／弟妹
sǎo zi/dì mèi
stepmother
继母
jì mǔ
stepfather
继父
jì fù
stepson
继子
jì zǐ
stepdaughter
继女
jì nǚ
uncle
叔叔／舅舅
shū shu/jiù jiu
aunt
姑妈／姨妈
gū mā/yí mā
nephew
侄子／外甥
zhí zi/wài sheng
niece
侄女／外甥女
zhí nǚ/wài sheng nǚ
cousin
堂／表兄弟姊妹
táng/biǎo xiōng dì zǐ mèi
extended family
亲戚
qīn qi
friend
朋友
péng you
baby
婴儿
yīng ér
child
孩子
hái zi
teenager
青少年
qīng shào nián
YOU SHOULD KNOW…
You may have noticed that relatives from the maternal side and paternal side have different names. For example, an aunt from your father’s side is 姑姑 (gū gu) but one from your mother’s side is called 姨姨 (yí yi). When talking about your siblings, their age (as compared to your own) is always indicated, for example, 哥哥 (gē ge) is older brother and 弟弟 (dì di) is younger brother.
GENERAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING | 身体状况
How are you?
你好吗？
nǐ hǎo ma
How’s it going?
最近好吗？
zuì jìn hǎo ma
Very well, thanks, and you?
挺好的，谢谢。你呢？
tǐng hǎo de , xiè xie. nǐ ne
Great!
挺好的。
tǐng hǎo de
So-so.
还行吧。
hái xíng ba
Could be worse.
一般般。
yī bān bān
I’m fine.
我还好。
wǒ hái hǎo
I’m tired.
我累了。
wǒ lèi le
I’m hungry/thirsty.
我饿了／渴了。
wǒ è le/kě le
I’m full.
我吃饱了。
wǒ chī bǎo le
I’m cold.
我很冷。
wǒ hěn lěng
I’m warm.
我挺暖和。
wǒ tǐng nuǎn huo
happy
快乐的
kuài lè de
excited
兴奋的
xīng fèn de
surprised
惊奇的
jīng qí de
annoyed
恼怒的
nǎo nù de
sad
悲伤的
bēi shāng de
worried
担忧的
dān yōu de
afraid
害怕的
hài pà de
bored
无聊的
wú liáo de
I feel…
我觉得…。
wǒ jué de
well
健康的
jiàn kāng de
unwell
生病的
shēng bìng de
better
好转的
hǎo zhuǎn de
worse
更坏的
gèng huài de
WORK | 工作
Where do you work?
你在哪儿工作？
nǐ zài nǎr gōng zuò
What do you do?
你做什么工作？
nǐ zuò shén me gōng zuò
What’s your occupation?
你的职业是？
nǐ de zhí yè shì
Do you work/study?
你在上班／上学吗？
nǐ zài shàng bān/shàng xué ma
I’m self-employed.
我是自由职业者。
wǒ shì zì yóu zhí yè zhě
I’m unemployed.
我没有工作。
wǒ méi yǒu gōng zuò
I’m at university.
我在上大学。
wǒ zài shàng dà xué
I’m retired.
我退休了。
wǒ tuì xiū le
I’m travelling.
我在旅游。
wǒ zài lǚ yóu
I work from home.
我在家里工作。
wǒ zài jiā lǐ gōng zuò
I work part-/full-time.
我兼职／我全职。
wǒ jiān zhí/wǒ quán zhí
I’m a/an…
我是…。
wǒ shì
builder
建筑工人
jiàn zhù gōng rén
chef
厨师
chú shī
civil servant
公务员
gōng wù yuán
cleaner
清洁工人
qīng jié gōng rén
dentist
牙医
yá yī
doctor
医生
yī shēng
driver
司机
sī jī
electrician
电工
diàn gōng
engineer
工程师
gōng chéng shī
farmer
农民
nóng mín
firefighter
消防员
xiāo fáng yuán
fisherman
渔民
yú mín
IT worker
信息技术工作者
xìn xī jì shù gōng zuò zhě
joiner
木工
mù gōng
journalist
新闻记者
xīn wén jì zhě
lawyer
律师
lǜ shī
mechanic
技工
jì gōng
nurse
护士
hù shi
office worker
办公室人员
bàn gōng shì rén yuán
plumber
管道工
guǎn dào gōng
police officer
警察
jǐng chá
sailor
水手
shuǐ shǒu
salesperson
销售员
xiāo shòu yuán
scientist
科学家
kē xué jiā
soldier
士兵
shì bīng
teacher
老师
lǎo shī
vet
兽医
shòu yī
waiter
服务员
fú wù yuán
waitress
女服务员
nǚ fú wù yuán
I work at/in…
我在…上班。
wǒ zài … shàng bān
business
生意
shēng yi
company
公司
gōng sī
factory
工厂
gōng chǎng
government
政府
zhèng fǔ
hospital
医院
yī yuàn
hotel
酒店
jiǔ diàn
office
办公室
bàn gōng shì
restaurant
餐馆
cān guǎn
school
学校
xué xiào
shop
商店
shāng diàn
YOU SHOULD KNOW…
When talking about someone’s occupation, the two most commonly used measure words are 位 (wèi) and 名 (míng), for example, with “engineer” 一位工程师 (yī wèi gōng chéng shī) or with “sailor” 一名水手 (yī míng shuǐ shǒu).
TIME | 时间
morning
早晨
zǎo chén
afternoon
下午
xià wǔ
evening
晚间
wǎn jiān
night
夜晚
yè wǎn
midday
正午
zhèng wǔ
midnight
午夜
wǔ yè
What time is it?
几点了？
jǐ diǎn le
It’s nine o’clock.
九点。
jiǔ diǎn
It’s quarter past nine.
九点一刻。
jiǔ diǎn yī kè
It’s half past nine.
九点半。
jiǔ diǎn bàn
It’s quarter to ten.
差一刻十点。
chà yī kè shí diǎn
It’s 10 a.m.
早上十点。
zǎo shàng shí diǎn
It’s 5 p.m.
下午五点。
xià wǔ wǔ diǎn
It’s 17:30.
下午五点半。
xià wǔ wǔ diǎn bàn
When…?
什么时候…？
shén me shí hou
… in 60 seconds.
…在六十秒内。
zài liù shí miǎo nèi
… in two minutes.
…在两分钟内。
zài liǎng fēn zhōng nèi
… in an hour.
…在一小时内。
zài yī xiǎo shí nèi
… in quarter of an hour.
…在一刻钟内。
zài yī kè zhōng nèi
… in half an hour.
…在半小时内。
zài bàn xiǎo shí nèi
early
早的
zǎo de
late
迟的
chí de
soon
很快
hěn kuài
later
晚一点
wǎn yī diǎn
now
现在
xiàn zài
DAYS, MONTHS, AND SEASONS | 日、月和季度
Monday
星期一
xīng qī yī
Tuesday
星期二
xīng qī èr
Wednesday
星期三
xīng qī sān
Thursday
星期四
xīng qī sì
Friday
星期五
xīng qī wǔ
Saturday
星期六
xīng qī liù
Sunday
星期天
xīng qī tiān
January
一月
yī yuè
February
二月
èr yuè
March
三月
sān yuè
April
四月
sì yuè
May
五月
wǔ yuè
June
六月
liù yuè
July
七月
qī yuè
August
八月
bā yuè
September
九月
jiǔ yuè
October
十月
shí yuè
November
十一月
shí yī yuè
December
十二月
shí èr yuè
day
白天
bái tiān
weekend
周末
zhōu mò
week
星期
xīng qī
fortnight
两星期
liǎng xīng qī
month
月
yuè
year
年
nián
decade
十年
shí nián
daily
每天的
měi tiān de
weekly
一周一次的
yī zhōu yī cì de
fortnightly
每两周的
měi liǎng zhōu de
monthly
每月的
měi yuè de
yearly
每年的
měi nián de
today
今天
jīn tiān
tonight
今晚
jīn wǎn
tomorrow
明天
míng tiān
yesterday
昨天
zuó tiān
the day after tomorrow
后天
hòu tiān
the day before yesterday
前天
qián tiān
on Mondays
在每周一
zài měi zhōu yī
every Sunday
每周天
měi zhōu tiān
last Thursday
上周四
shàng zhōu sì
next Friday
下周五
xià zhōu wǔ
the week before
上一周
shàng yī zhōu
the week after
下一周
xià yī zhōu
in February
在二月
zài èr yuè
in 2018
在2018年
zài èr líng yī bā nián
in the ’80s
在80年代
zài bā shí nián dài
What day is it?
今天星期几？
jīn tiān xīng qī jǐ
What is today’s date?
今天几号？
jīn tiān jǐ hào
spring
春天
chūn tiān
summer
夏天
xià tiān
autumn
秋天
qiū tiān
winter
冬天
dōng tiān
in spring
在春季
zài chūn jì
in winter
在冬季
zài dōng jì
WEATHER | 天气
How’s the weather?
今天天气怎么样？
jīn tiān tiān qì zěn me yàng
What’s the forecast for today/tomorrow?
天气预报说今／明天天气怎么样？
tiān qì yù bào shuō jīn/míng tiān tiān qì zěn me yàng
Is it going to rain?
会下雨吗？
huì xià yǔ ma
What a lovely day!
天气真好啊！
tiān qì zhēn hǎo a
What awful weather!
天气真糟糕啊！
tiān qì zhēn zāo gāo a
It’s sunny.
今天有太阳。
jīn tiān yǒu tài yáng
It’s cloudy.
今天多云。
jīn tiān duō yún
It’s misty.
今天雾蒙蒙的。
jīn tiān wù méng méng de
It’s foggy/stormy.
今天有雾／风暴。
jīn tiān yǒu wù/fēng bào
It’s freezing.
今天特别冷。
jīn tiān tè bié lěng
It’s raining/snowing.
今天下雨／雪。
jīn tiān xià yǔ/xuě
It’s windy.
今天刮风。
jīn tiān guā fēng
It is…
天气…。
tiān qì
nice
好的
hǎo de
horrible
不好的
bù hǎo de
hot
热的
rè de
warm
温暖的
wēn nuǎn de
cool
凉爽的
liáng shuǎng de
wet
潮湿的
cháo shī de
humid
潮湿的
cháo shī de
mild
温和的
wēn hé de
hail
冰雹
bīng báo
ice
冰
bīng
gale
大风
dà fēng
thunder
雷
léi
lightning
闪电
shǎn diàn
NUMBERS | 数字
1一yī
2二èr
3三sān
4四sì
5五wǔ
6六liù
7七qī
8八bā
9九jiǔ
10十shí
11十一shí yī
12十二shí èr
13十三shí sān
14十四shí sì
15十五shí wǔ
16十六shí liù
17十七shí qī
18十八shí bā
19十九shí jiǔ
20二十èr shí
30三十sān shí
40四十sì shí
50五十wǔ shí
60六十liù shí
70七十qī shí
80八十bā shí
90九十jiǔ shí
100一百yī bǎi
1000一干yī qiān
1000000 一百万 yī bǎi wàn
TRANSPORT | 交通
Travelling in China has never been easier and faster. There are over 2 million domestic flights taking off from its 158 airports every year. China also has the longest high-speed railways in the world, totalling over 25,000 kilometres. Cities like Beijing and Shanghai have good, modern underground systems, and other cities are catching up. However, growing car ownership can sometimes mean traffic problems in Chinese cities.
helicopter
直升飞机
zhí shēng fēi jī
1. rotor
旋翼
xuán yì
2. blade
螺旋桨叶片
luó xuán jiǎng yè piàn
3. cockpit
驾驶舱
jià shǐ cāng
4. nose
机头
jī tóu
5. tail
机尾
jī wěi
THE BASICS | 基础句型和词汇
YOU MIGHT SAY…
Excuse me…
请问…
qǐng wèn
Where is…?
…在哪儿？
… zài nǎr
What’s the quickest way to…?
到…最快的路是？
dào … zuì kuài de lù shì
Is it far from here?
离这儿远吗？
lí zhèr yuǎn ma
I’m lost.
我迷路了。
wǒ mí lù le
Can I walk there?
走路能到吗？
zǒu lù néng dào ma
Is there a bus/train to…?
有去…的公共汽车／火车吗？
yǒu qù … de gōng gòng qì chē/huǒ chē ma
A single/return ticket, please.
请给我一张单程／往返票。
qǐng gěi wǒ yī zhāng dān chéng/wǎng fǎn piào
YOU MIGHT HEAR…
It’s over there.
在那边。
zài nà biān
It’s in the other direction.
在那个方向。
zài nà gè fāng xiàng
It’s … minutes away.
离这里…分钟。
lí zhè lǐ … fēn zhōng
Go straight ahead.
往前直走。
wǎng qián zhí zǒu
Turn left/right.
左／右转。
zuǒ/yòu zhuǎn
It’s next to/near to…
在…旁边／附近。
zài … páng biān/fù jìn
It’s opposite…
在…对面。
zài … duì miàn
Follow the signs for…
跟着去…的标志牌。
gēn zhe qù … de biāo zhì pái
VOCABULARY
street
街
jiē
commuter
乘车上下班的人
chéng chē shàng xià bān de rén
driver
司机
sī jī
passenger
乘客
chéng kè
pedestrian
行人
xíng rén
traffic
交通
jiāo tōng
traffic jam
交通堵塞
jiāo tōng dǔ sè
rush hour
高峰时间
gāo fēng shí jiān
public transport
公共交通
gōng gòng jiāo tōng
taxi
出租车
chū zū chē
taxi rank
出租车搭乘点
chū zū chē dā chéng diǎn
directions
说明
shuō míng
route
路线
lù xiàn
to walk
走
zǒu
to drive
驾驶
jià shǐ
to turn
转弯
zhuǎn wān
to commute
乘车上下班
chéng chē shàng xià bān
to take a taxi
打车
dǎ chē
YOU SHOULD KNOW…
At pedestrian crossings, be aware that traffic lights will go straight from red to green. Also, in many Chinese cities, cars turning right don’t stop at red lights!