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Giving a suggestion and asking for an opinion

Yajie: 大家好, 我是 YJ. 欢迎收听 Chinese Studio。

Cam: It’s time to perfect Chinese your way in only 5 minutes a day. Welcome to Chinese
Studio. 我是元宝.
Yajie: We have a lot to cover today – we are going to learn some expressions used to make
a suggestion or ask for an opinion. Cam: Perfect!

Key Words of the Day

好吗, 行吗, 可以吗. all mean ‘Is it ok?’,我请你吃饭,好吗？Let me treat you to dinner, ok? 吃饭,
have dinner. 坐, take a seat. 一起, together. 看电影, go to the cinema. 泡吧, go to a pub. All
in today’s Chinese Studio.

Cam: So Yajie, if I want to take a girl to dinner, what should I say?

Yajie: In Chinese, it’s 我请你吃饭 -吃饭, to have a dinner.
Cam: So 请你吃饭 (qing ni chi fan)means ‘to treat you to dinner’. 请, we’ve learned one of its
meanings as ‘please’. Here it means ‘to invite’.
Yajie: 我请你吃饭 is a declarative sentence ,but when we put a phrase like 好吗 after 我请你
吃饭, it turns to a question. 我请你吃饭, 好吗? Let me treat you to dinner, OK?
Cam: 好吗 (hao ma) means ‘is it OK’ or ‘how is it?’ It can be replaced by quite a few phrases.
Yajie: 行吗? 行, x-ing, second rising tone. 行. 我请你吃饭, 行吗?
Cam: And 可以吗 (ke yi ma) also works. 可以吗?

Conversation 1:

Cam: Yajie, you told me earlier this show would help me start dating in China… I need to know
how to ask a girl out!
Yajie: Well the sentence patterns we’ve learned just now are very polite. Now it’s time for
something practical. If you meet a girl in the canteen, you can sit beside her. That will help
you get to know her. But don’t forget to ask permission first: 我坐这儿，行吗？
Cam: (wo zuo zher xing ma) It means ‘Could I take this seat?’
Yajie: 坐, z-u-o, the forth falling tone, 坐, means ‘to sit’.
Cam: 我坐这儿，行吗？(wo zuo zher xing ma)
Yajie: Wonderful. Then you should pay attention to the reply. If she agrees, her answer may
be 行. In addition, 好的, 可以 are all appropriate to express the same positive meaning.
Cam: So a positive reply can be: 行, (xing) , 好的,(hao de) 可以. (ke yi). These answers all

  Coryright 2007 cchello.com 
                                                                                   www.cchello.com
mean ‘Fine’. So what if she says no?
Yajie: Well, she might say 抱歉 or 对不起。We learned those last time. 抱歉, it’s occupied. 对
不起, it’s my friend’s seat.
Cam: Well… I don’t plan on being rejected! But what if I want to take a girl to the cinema?
Yajie: 一起去看电影，好吗? 一起, together. 起, q-i, third tone, 起. 电影, film. 电, d-i-an, forth
tone, 电. 影, y-ing, third tone, 影. 电影, film. 看电影, watch a film.
Cam: So Let’s go to cinema together, OK? 一起去看电影，好吗? (yi qi qu kan dian ying hao ma)
Is it a good idea?
Yajie: I don’t think so. It may be the most boring way to have a first date because there won’t
be any chance to talk.
Cam: We can definitely talk over a pi jiu. How do I ask a girl to the pub?
Yajie: 晚上去泡吧，怎么样? 泡吧, go to pub. 泡吧. Let’s go to a pub tonight, is it OK?
Cam: (wan shang qu pao ba zen me yang)

Conversation 2:

Key words Reminder:

好吗, 行吗, 可以吗. all mean ‘Is it ok?’,我请你吃饭,好吗？Let me treat you to dinner, ok? 吃饭,
have dinner. 坐, take a seat. 一起, together. 看电影, go to the cinema. 泡吧, go to a pub. All
in today’s Chinese Studio.

Cam: OK. We’ve come to the end of today’s lesson. And the question of the day is to come up
with a sentence and add 好吗 at the end.

  Coryright 2007 cchello.com