星期

xīngqī

今年

jīnnián

多大

duō dà

你今年几岁?

Nǐ jīnnián jǐ suì?

How old are you (this year)?

"You this-year how-many-years-old?"

您多大年纪了?

Nín duō dà niánjì le?

"You (respectful), how great in age?"

您 Formal "you" (showing respect)

多大 "How old" (lit. "how big")

年纪 "Age" (emphasizes life experience, often for adults)

了 Softens the tone, making it more conversational

"You (respectful), how many years (of age)?"

您 Formal "you" (showing respect)

多大 "How old" (lit. "how big")

岁数 "Age" (neutral term for years lived)

了 Softens the tone, making it conversational

to like, to love

喜 "joy," "happiness," or "delight"

欢 "cheerful," "merry," or "enthusiastic"

喜 alone can mean "joy" but lacks the active connotation, 欢 alone implies outward cheerfulness but not sustained affection

How about it?

What do you think?

怎么 how

样 appearance, type, kind

再见!

zàijiàn

Goodbye!

literally “See you again!”

Thank you!

谢 to thank

我们

wǒmen

we, us

我 I / me

们 a plural marker for people or pronouns

晚上

wǎnshang

evening, night

晚 "late" or "night"

上 "up" or "above"

Together, they literally mean "the late-up" → referring to the early part of the nighttime period (i.e., evening)

早上

zǎoshang

morning

"Early-up"

下午

xiàwǔ

afternoon

"Down-noon"

现在

xiànzài

now

现 "to appear," "to manifest" (from 见 jiàn "to

     see" + 王/玉 yù "jade" → "jade's visible glow")

在 "to exist at a location" (depicts a plant growing

     from soil 土, emphasizing concrete presence)

现在 isn’t just "now"—it’s the manifested, ongoing present, blending visibility (现) with grounded existence (在).

thing, matter

事 "matter," "affair," or "business"

儿 literally means "child" but functions as a diminutive/noun suffix in Northern dialects (especially Beijing Mandarin)

 啥事儿

Shá shìr?

昨天 zuótiān

今天 jīntiān

明天 míngtiān

yesterday

today

tomorrow

How about...?

What do you think?

怎 how, in what way

么 a suffix for question words

怎么 = how / in what way

样 appearance, type, manner

一样 yíyàng

这样 zhèyàng

那样 nàyàng

same

this way

that way

why

"for (为)+ what (什么)"

那太好了

nà tài hǎole

to know

认 to recognize, to admit, to acknowledge

识 to know, knowledge, understanding

认识 rènshi

知识 zhīshi

常识 chángshí

to know

knowledge

common sense

朋友

péngyǒu

很忙 hěn máng

我很忙  Wǒ hěn máng
我非常忙 Wǒ fēicháng máng.

very busy

I am busy

I am very busy

我忙。  Sounds unnatural (like saying "I busy")! Mandarin adjectives require a degree adverb (很, 太, 非常) to function as predicates!

新年

xīnnián

New Year

情人节

qíngrén jié

母亲节

mǔqīn jié