Language/Mandarin-chinese/Vocabulary/location-in-Chinese
In this Chinese audio lesson, we will learn to ask and say where something is.
Vocabulary
Please learn the following Chinese vocabulary by pronouncing the words and writing the new characters several times.
| Word | Pinyin | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 在 | zài | to be situated); be located |
| 这儿 | zhèr | right here |
| 那 | nà | this; this; this |
| 哪儿 | nǎr | or |
| 边 | bian | (rental suffix that can be translated as "towards" or "side ...") |
| 东 | dōng | is (n.) |
| 南 | nán | South |
| 西 | xī | Where is |
| 北 | běi | North |
| 右 | yòu | right |
| 左 | zuǒ | left |
| 前 | qián | in front of; before |
| 后 | hòu | back; behind |
| 旁 | páng | side |
| 地方 | dìfāng | in law |
| 厕所 | cèsuǒ | bathroom |
| 银行 | yínháng | bank |
| 学校 | xuéxiào | school (buildings) |
| 书店 | shūdiàn | bookstore |
| 餐馆 | cānguǎn | restaurant |
| 不客气 | bùkèqì | You're welcome |
| 楼 | lóu | building |
| 对 | duì | exact; that's it |
| 它 | tā | he or "him" for a sth (not a person) |
| 大 | dà | large (especially: surface / area or age) |
Classifiers
| Word | Pinyin | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 家 | jiā | (classifier for miscellaneous establishments) |
| 座 | zuò | (classifier for high buildings and mountains) |
Grammar
Ask and express the location / situation
In Chinese, to express the position of someone or something, we use the verb "在 <zài>".
When a locative (adverb of place) is used as an object, it is placed after this last verb.
A locative ends with a locative suffix. Here we will use 边 <bian>. We will use "右边 <yòubian>" ("on the right") and not just "右 <yòu>" ("right") or we will use "北边 <běibian>" ("at the north") and not "北 ‹ běi › ("north"). Subject + 在 + complement
- 厕所 在 右边。 ‹ cèsuǒ zài yòubian. ›
The toilets are on the right.
- 餐馆 在 北边。 ‹ cānguǎn zài běibian. ›
The restaurant is in the north. To ask the question "Where is ...", here is the structure of the standard sentence:
Subject + 在 哪儿?
Rental as an attribute
When a rental is used as an attribute, the possessive particle of <de> is optional.
Locative + (的) + Object
- 旁边 (的) 那个人 ‹ pángbiān (de) nà gè rén ›
This person next to me
- 前边 (的) 那座楼 ‹ qiánmiàn (de) nà zuò lóu. ›
This building in front
Difference between 这 <zhè> and 那 <nà>
In Chinese 这 <zhè> and 那 <nà> both serve to say "ce; ce; ce; ce" but there is a difference. We use indeed 这 <zhè> when the object is close (in distance) from the speaker and 那 <nà> when it is farther away. For simplicity, we could translate 那 <nà> by "this ... there (down)".
The demonstrative pronouns 这 <zhè> and 那 <nà> are both in front of a classifier.
Dialogues
First, read these texts in Chinese until you understand them before reading their translation.
- 请问，这是什么地方？ ‹ Qǐngwèn, zhè shì shénme dìfāng? ›
- 这是书店。‹ Zhè shì shūdiàn. ›
- 银行在哪儿？‹ Yínháng zài nǎr ? ›
- 后边的那座楼是银行。 ‹ Hòumian de nà zuò lóu shì yínháng. ›
- 谢谢！‹ Xièxie! ›
- 不客气！‹ Bù kèqì! ›
Translation
- Please, what is this place? - This is the bookstore. - Where is the bank ? - The bank is behind this building. - Thank you ! - You're welcome !
Text
这是我们的学校。它很大。 这是我们上课的地方。 1号楼，2号楼在前边。 3号楼，4号楼在后边。 4号楼的后边有一家书店。 ‹ Zhè shì wǒmen de xuéxiào. Tā hěn dà. Zhè shì wǒmen shàngkè de dìfāng. 1 hào lóu,2 hào lóu zài qiánbian. 3 hào lóu,4 hào lóu zài hòubian. 4 hào lóu de hòubian yǒu yī jiā shūdiàn. ›
Translation
This is our school. She is tall. This is where our classes take place. Building No. 1 and Building No. 2 are in front. Building No. 3 and Building No. 4 are behind. Behind the building N ° 4 there is a bookstore.