Learning some travel-related Mandarin phrases will make your trip much smoother, both first timers and returning visitors alike. Plus, they make greeting friends and colleagues wishing you safe journey easier!
Mandarin is a tonal language, so getting its tones right is absolutely vital!
1. Getting There
If you’re visiting an unfamiliar locale, learning some basic travel phrases will help ease your way around. Knowing how to ask where the men’s room or do you speak English (ni hua han shuo jie qing wen ta) are useful phrases when asking for directions. Also consider downloading an app or eBook that includes common travel words and phrases so you have something handy if you forget how to say things when something arises that requires instant response.
Keep in mind that Mandarin is a tonal language, so getting your tones correct when speaking can be challenging. If this is proving challenging for you, listen to some audio clips of people speaking Mandarin and mimic their intonation mistakes – this should help give your brain time to process the rhythmic language better, leading to gradual improvements. In addition, familiarizing yourself with pinyin will make reading Chinese much simpler: this system used for romanizing Chinese includes tone markers at every syllable to ensure proper pronunication!
2. Getting Around
But once you step outside of major cities such as Beijing or Shanghai, getting around can become increasingly complicated. Taxi drivers usually speak English and most restaurants provide menus written in both languages. As soon as you step outside the urban environment into rural regions or more remote parts of China, communication may become much harder.
Therefore, it’s advisable to learn some essential travel phrases in mandarin before embarking on your trip. If possible, find an app which can teach vocabulary and pronunciation through audio clips of native speakers; this will give an accurate representation of how it sounds when spoken naturally; it also reduces any risks of saying something out-of-character!
Another excellent way to learn Chinese is with a phrasebook. These pocket-sized books cover social and emergency scenarios alike. Lonely Planet Mandarin Phrasebook features over 150 of the most useful travel phrases with accompanying audio files so that you can practice pronouncing them before venturing out into real life.
3. Getting Food
The term mandarin originally referred to Chinese officials, and was coined from Sanskrit mntrin, meaning counselor in Sanskrit. Mandarins became promoted through successfully passing imperial China’s extensive examination system; eventually it spread into English literature around 1600.
Even if you aren’t traveling to China, honing your newfound mandarin skills is still worthwhile. Ordering at local Chinese restaurants provides the ideal chance for practice.
Assuming you know the words for chopsticks (kuaizi/ku zi), spoon (shaozi/shaozi), and fork/fork (dao/dao), asking for these items should be straightforward. If you are allergic to peanuts, for example, simply saying: “Wo dui huasheng guomin/Wo du hu chng gu min” will convey that information effectively – the same principle holds true if allergic to seafood products as well.
4. Getting Help
Reaching out in an emergency situation is vitally important. A common way to request assistance in these instances is with the phrase Jiu Ming A! (jiuming a). This phrase should only be used for life-threatening situations such as someone needing directions to the hospital.
Mandarin is the most widely spoken dialect of Chinese, used as the standard language across mainland China and widely by its speakers in Hong Kong, Macau, and Singapore. Some linguists refer to Mandarin as being part of premodern Chinese.
The term mandarin comes from Portuguese mandarim, which in turn comes from Malay menteri and Sanskrit mntrin meaning counselor in each language. A mandarin is typically an official working for government who passes an imperial examination system to advance in their position; this term can also refer to certain kinds of orange and birds like Mandarin Blackbirds.