Unit One: Let's Get to Know Each Other

Part I: Listen and Learn

1.
N-h3o

Hello.

W# x=ng Xi8. W# ji4o Xi8 D4zh!ng.

My last name is Xie. My name is Xie Dazhong.

W# sh= l3osh9.

I am a teacher.

Z4iji4n.

Good-bye.

2.
N-h3o.

Hello.

T1 x=ng W2ng. T1 ji4o W2ng Xi3ohu2.

His last name is Wang. His name is Wang Xiaohua.

T1 sh= xu6sheng.

He is a student.

Z4iji4n.

Good-bye.

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3.
A: N- x=ng sh6nme?

A: What is your last name?

B: W# x=ng Xi8.

B: My last name is Xie

A: N- ji4o sh6nme?

A: What is your (full) name?

B: W# ji4o Xi8 D4zh!ng. W# sh= l3osh9.

B: My (full) name is Xie Dazhong. I am a teacher.

A: Xi8xie.

A: Thank you.

4.
A: T1 x=ng sh6nme?

A: What's his last name?

B: T1 x=ng W2ng.

B: His last name is Wang.

A: T1 ji4o sh6nme?

A: What is his name?

B: T1 ji4o W2ng Xi3ohu2. T1 sh= xu6sheng.

B: His name is Wang Xiaohua. He is a student.

A: Xi8xi8. Z4iji4n.

A: Thank you. Good-bye.

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Part II: Utterances and notes
Please study the following notes by yourself. Make sure that you understand everything. If you
have any questions, please send an email message to your instructor.
About the sentences in this unit

x=ng in 'W# x=ng...' means 'to be surnamed'. It serves as a verb in Chiense while there is
no such usage in English. Please pay attention to this. How to say: 'My last name is
Smith' in Chinese? It would be: W# x=ng Smith.

ji4o in 'W! ji4o...' means 'to be called'. It also serves as a verb. So 'My name is John.'
would be: 'W# ji4o John.'

'sh6nme' means 'what' or 'which'. The literal translation of 'N- x=ng sh6nme?' is: 'What are
you surnamed?'

'W# sh=...' is similar to English 'I am..'.

'I am a student.'
W# sh= xu6sheng.
'You are a teacher.'
N- sh= l3osh9.

a. 'sh=' in Chinese never changes it's form.

b. There is no article before the noun in Chinese. So 'a student' is just 'xu6sheng', 'a teacher'
is 'l3osh9'.

About the Chinese Pinyin

Chinese P9ny9n (a Romanized spelling system to represent Chinese sounds) uses the
same alphabet as in English with four additional tone markers.

There are four tones in Chinese. Pay particular attention to tone differences when you
listen to recording. Tones make difference in meaning. For example:
1st tone
m1
mother

2nd tone
m2
hemp

3rd tone
m3
horse

4th tone
m4
to scold

The pitch of the first tone is high and long.

The pitch of the second tone is rising and long.
The pitch of the third tone is low and short.
The pitch of the fourth tone is falling and short. See the table below for illustration.

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1 high and long

m1

2 rising and long

m2

3 low and short

m3

4 falling and short

m4

Tones change in connected speech. The actual sound you hear in 'n-h3o' is 'n0h3o'. This
often happens when a third tone syllable follows another.

Most sounds (consonants and vowels) are similar to English sounds, but not exactly
identical.
identical Please pay close attention to each sound when you learn. The following sounds
need particular attention:
j
q
x
zh
ch
sh
z
c

a consonant, as in 'j' in jeep but not aspirated

a consonant, as 'ch' in cheek
a consonant, as 'sh' in she
a consonant, as 'j' in jump with retroflexed tongue
a consomant, as 'ch' in church, strongly aspirated and retroflexed
a consonant, as 'sh' in shore, retroflexed
a consonant, as 'ts' but not aspirated
a consonant, as 'ts' strongly aspirated

a vowel, as 'ir' in shirt, or 'ur' in 'turn', not English 'e'

You don't have to learn these individual sounds now. Listen to the recording carefully and
pay attention to these sounds. Sounds are best learned in a connected speech.

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Part III: New Sentence Modules

1. What's your last name?

NT1

x=ng sh6nme?

W#
T1

x=ng

Xi8
W2ng

2. What's your (full) name?

NT1

ji4o sh6nme?

W#
T1

ji4o

Xi8 D4zh!ng
W2ng Xi3ohu2

3. I am ... , He is ...
W#
T1

sh=

l3osh9
xu6sheng

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Part IV: Practice makes perfect
Can you say the following words in Chinese after learning this unit?
I, you, he, thank you, good-bye, surnamed, called, teacher, student
Please answer the following questions in Chinese. Please speak out. For question c. and e.,
please tell that you are a student and I am a teacher after you have specified your name and my
name.
a. N-h3o.
b. N- x=ng sh6nme?
c. N- ji4o sh6nme?
d. W# x=ng sh6nme?
e. W# ji4o sh6nme?
f. Z4iji4n.

What would you say in the following situations?

Greet a person in Chinese.
Ask what a person's last name is.
Ask what a person's first name (or full name) is.
Say good-bye.

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