Collins Mandarin Chinese Visual Dictionary

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

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

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