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Mandarin Chinese 2 Unit 10: Shopping, Travel and Daily Life

This unit brings the year's grammar into real situations: paying and bargaining, getting around a city, booking travel and ordering food. Tests often include price and discount calculations.

Covers: Money: 块, 毛, 元 and prices, Discounts with 打折 and bargaining, Measure words for goods, Asking and giving directions, Transportation with 坐, 骑 and 开, Booking tickets and hotels, Ordering at a restaurant

Study guide

Chinese money is the 人民币 (RMB). The written unit is 元, but in speech people say 块. One 块 equals ten 毛 (written 角), and one 毛 equals ten 分. A price like ¥35.50 is said 三十五块五(毛). When the last unit is dropped, it is understood: 两块八 means ¥2.80. Ask the price with 多少钱? or 怎么卖? (How is it sold?), and answers often include a unit: 苹果五块一斤 (apples are 5 yuan per jin; one 斤 is half a kilogram). To bargain, say 太贵了，便宜一点儿吧 or 能不能便宜点儿?

Discounts use 打折. The number tells you what fraction you pay, not what you save: 打八折 means you pay 80% (20% off), and 打七五折 means you pay 75%. So a ¥300 jacket at 打八折 costs ¥240. A sale might be described as 全场五折 (everything half price). Measure words are also tested in shopping: 一件衣服, 一条裤子, 一双鞋, 一斤苹果, 一瓶水, 一张票. Recall comparisons from earlier units: 这双比那双便宜三十块. When paying, you may hear 刷卡还是付现金? or 用手机付 (pay by phone), and 找你二十块 means "here's twenty in change."

To ask directions, use 请问，…怎么走? or …在哪儿? Answers use 往 + direction + 走 (往前走 go straight, 往左拐 turn left, 往右拐 turn right), 一直 (straight on), 过 (cross: 过马路), and 到…就是 (when you reach ..., that's it). Distance uses 离: 我家离学校很近 (My home is close to school), 机场离这儿有二十公里. Transportation verbs depend on the vehicle: 坐 for things you ride as a passenger (坐公共汽车, 坐地铁, 坐飞机, 坐出租车), 骑 for things you straddle (骑自行车, 骑马), and 开 for driving (开车). Say how you travel with 坐地铁去 or 骑车来.

For travel, 订 means to book: 订票, 订房间, 订酒店. Tickets can be 单程 (one way) or 往返 (round trip). Ask 有没有…? to check availability, and use 什么时候出发? for departure time. At a restaurant, the server asks 几位? (how many people?), you 点菜 (order dishes), and at the end you say 服务员，买单 (or 结账) to get the bill. Useful phrases include 来一个… (we'll have a ...), 不要放辣椒 (no chili), 打包 (pack to go) and 我请客 (it's my treat). These patterns draw on 把 (请把菜单给我), comparisons and resultatives (吃饱了, 吃不完).

Key ideas

• 块 is the spoken unit of RMB; 1 块 = 10 毛 = 100 分.
• 打N折 means you pay N tenths of the price.
• Use the right measure word for goods: 件, 条, 双, 斤, 瓶, 张.
• Directions use 往 + direction + 走/拐 and 离 for distance.
• 坐 for riding as a passenger, 骑 for bikes and horses, 开 for driving.
• 订 means book; 单程 is one-way and 往返 is round trip.
• At restaurants: 几位, 点菜, 打包 and 买单.

Formulas and rules

Common mistakes

• Reading 打八折 as 80% off instead of 20% off.
• Using 坐 for bicycles (坐自行车) instead of 骑.
• Using the wrong measure word, such as 一个鞋 instead of 一双鞋.
• Confusing 往返 (round trip) with 单程 (one way).
• Using 从 instead of 离 for distance (我家从学校很近).

Before the test, make sure you can

• Read and say prices in 块 and 毛.
• Calculate sale prices with 打折 and change owed.
• Choose measure words for clothing, shoes, food and tickets.
• Ask for and follow directions with 往, 拐, 一直 and 离.
• Pick 坐, 骑 or 开 for each type of transportation.
• Book tickets and rooms using 订, 单程 and 往返.
• Order food and pay the bill at a restaurant.

Words to know

多少钱

how much money (duōshao qián)

打折

to give a discount (dǎzhé)

便宜

cheap (piányi)

刷卡

to pay by card (shuākǎ)

现金

cash (xiànjīn)

找钱

to give change (zhǎoqián)

往

toward (wǎng)

拐

to turn (guǎi)

一直

straight (yìzhí)

离

away from (lí)

路口

intersection (lùkǒu)

附近

nearby (fùjìn)

地铁

subway (dìtiě)

出租车

taxi (chūzūchē)

骑

to ride (astride) (qí)

订

to book (dìng)

往返

round trip (wǎngfǎn)

出发

to set out (chūfā)

服务员

server (fúwùyuán)

菜单

menu (càidān)

点菜

to order food (diǎncài)

买单

to pay the bill (mǎidān)

打包

to pack to go (dǎbāo)

Sample practice questions

30 more questions like these, from level 1 to 5, are in the practice set.