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Lesson 2: Introductions in Chinese
Today we'll learn a few of popular introduction expressions. Ni hao,wo jiao Yuanbao,shi jia na da ren. Ni hao, wo shi Yajie,Zhong guo ren.
Y: Perfect Chinese your way, in only five minutes a day. Welcome to Chinese Studio, a brand new Chinese learning program on China Radio International. I'm Yajie.
Cam: Hello, everyone, I'm Cam. It's good to be back. This daily show will teach Chinese at the elementary level, which is perfect for me, because I'm just learning Chinese myself! Now Yajie, last time we learnt greetings. What's today's topic?
Y: After you've greeted someone, you are supposed to introduce yourself, or introduce your friends. This is done in English too, right?
Y: It sure it!. Let's check Key words of the day!
Key words in Pin Yin and Chinese Characters
Today we'll learn a few of popular introduction expressions. Ni hao, wo jiao Yuanbao,shi jia na da ren. Ni hao, wo shi Yajie,zhong guo ren. Zhe wei shi Lucy, lai zhi mei guo.All in today's Chinese Studio.
Y: Introductions happen between two people who meet for the first time. It can also happen among three happen or more.In this case, the person will introduce his or her friends as well. Let's first learn how to introduce yourself. Ni hao, wo shi Yajie,Zhong guo ren.
Cam: ni hao, wo jiao Yuanbao,shi Jianada ren.
Y: First you can say your name, and then your nationality. Wo shi Yajie. Wo shi Yajie. Wo, I. Shi, is. Jianada ren, Canadian. Wo is the same as "wo hen hao"--I'm very good, that we learned last week.Wo is in the third tone. Wo.
Cam: Wo.
Y: shi is equal to the meaning of "be" in English, but there is no change of time. You can just use it. There is no need to consider the time change or the form of the subject, no matter the single or plural, or the first person or the second person.
Cam: Does that mean I can say Ni shi Zhongguo ren ma?
Y: Yes. Of course you can. Now let me explain how to express one's nationality. You can put the name of the country in front of the Chinese character Ren. For instance, you can say Meiguo ren, American. Meiguo, America. Jianada ren, Canadian. Jianada, Canada. Zhongguo ren, Chinese.
Y: There are two ways of expressing the nationality of the person. You can say Wo shi Jianada ren. Or you can say. Wo laizi Jianada. I'm from Canada. Laizi, from.
Cam: (repeat) laizi.Wo shi Jianada ren.Wo laizi Jianada.
Cam: Yajie, do you know how to introduce one to another? For example, suppose you and Lucy are with me. How can I introduce Lucy to you?
Y: Well, you can say "Zhe wei shi lucy, lai zi meiguo". The wei, this one. Zhe wei, or you can say zhei wei.
Cam: It seems easy. How should Lucy continue with the conversation?
Y: Then Lucy can deliver the self-introduction. So does the other person.
Cam: OK. I see.
Key words reminder:
Ni hao, wo jiao Yuanbao,shi jianada ren. Hello, my Chinese name is Yuanbao. I'm from Canada. Ni hao, wo shi Yajie, Zhongguo ren.Hi, I'm Yajie. I'm Chinese. Zhe wei shi Lucy, laizi meiguo. This is Lucy, from America. Laizi is a preposition word, meaning from.
Cam: Yajie, do you know how to introduce my parents to my friends?
Yajie: Well, when you introduce your parents to your friends you can say Zhe shi wo baba he mama. Baba, papa, Mama, mum. he means and. Can you repeat?
Cam: Zhe shi wo baba he mama.
Yajie: Great! Hopefully you'll find this useful! I hear your parents are visiting soon, so maybe you'll be able to practice!
Cam: Yes, thanks for the lesson Yajie! Well, that's it for today. One more important thing, you can win a gift by answering the question of the day: How do you express the nationality of a person in Chinese? You can make a sentence.
Cam: Well, class is over. This is Cam saying goodbye for now!
