You think it means:“I don‘t need help, thanks.“
? What Chinese people hear:
“I don‘t need you.” This sounds cold, rejecting, even hurtful.
? Why it’s dangerous:Chinese is sensitive to who is being rejected.…
Bù hǎo yì si. 不好意思。 Excuse me.
Zěn me le? 怎么了？ What’s wrong?
Wǒ mí lù le. 我迷路了。 I’m lost.
Nǐ yào qù nǎr? 你要去哪儿？ Where are you going?
Wǒ yào qù dì tiě zhàn. 我要去地铁站。 I want to go to the subway station.
Wǒ …
Nǐ dào nǎr le? 你到哪儿了？ Where are you now?
Wǒ zài lù shang. 我在路上。 I’m on the way.
Hái yào duō jiǔ? 还要多久？ How long will it take?
Dà gài shí fēn zhōng. 大概十分钟。 About ten minutes.
Méi guān xi, wǒ děng nǐ. 没关系，我等你。 No …
Nǐ zěn me le? 你怎么了？ What’s wrong?
Wǒ yǒu diǎn bù shū fu. 我有点不舒服。 I don’t feel very well.
Nǎ lǐ bù shū fu? 哪里不舒服？ Where does it hurt?
Tóu yǒu diǎn téng. 头有点疼。 My head hurts a bit.
Nà nǐ xiān xiū xi yī …
Fú wù yuán, mǎi dān. 服务员，买单。 Check, please.
Hǎo de, shāo děng. 好的，稍等。 Okay, one moment.
Qǐng wèn Xiàn jīn hái shì shuā kǎ? 请问现金还是刷卡？ Cash or card?
Shuā kǎ ba. 刷卡吧。 Card, please.
Hǎo de, Yào fā piào ma? 好的，要发票吗？ Do you need a …
Nǐ qù nǎ lǐ? 你去哪里？ Where are you going?
Wǒ yào qù shāng diàn. 我要去商店。 I’m going to the store.
Nǐ qù gàn má? 你去干嘛？ What are you going to do?
Wǒ yào qù mǎi dōng xī. 我要去买东西。 I’m going to buy something.
Mǎi shén …
Zhēn yí hàn 真遗憾 What a pity / That’s unfortunate
Tài kě xī le 太可惜了 What a shame / Too bad
Yǒu diǎn yí hàn 有点遗憾 A bit disappointing
Bù yào tài nán guò 不要太难过 Don’t be too sad
Nǐ yǐ jīng hěn bàng le …
Hái hǎo 还好 It’s okay / Not bad (neutral, emotionally reserved)
Zuì jìn máng ma? 最近忙吗？ Have you been busy lately?
Hái hǎo. 还好。 It’s okay.
Méi shén me 没什么 It’s nothing / Nothing much (often means “I don’t want to talk about it”)
Nǐ …
Wǒ jǐn kuài chǔ lǐ. 我尽快处理。 I’ll handle it as soon as possible.
Shāo hòu huí fù. 稍后回复。 I’ll reply later.
Zàn shí yǒu diǎn máng. 暂时有点忙。 I’m a bit busy for now.
Gǎi tiān zài chǔ lǐ. 改天再处理。 I’ll handle it another day.
Wǒ …
Nà jiù suàn le 那就算了 Forget it then / Let it go
Hái kěyǐ 还可以 Not bad / It’s okay
Zhēn de ma 真的吗 Really? / Is that true?
Duì a 对啊 Yeah / That’s right
Zhēn yǒu yì si 真有意思 Really interesting / Fun…
Kě yǐ kě yǐ 可以可以 Okay, okay / Sounds good
Hái xíng ba 还行吧 It’s okay / Not bad
Kàn yuán fèn 看缘分 Depends on fate / Let’s see how it goes
Mǎ mǎ hū hū 马马虎虎 So-so / Not great but acceptable
Nà jiù …
Shuō de hěn duì, xià cì bié shuō le. 说得很对，下次别说了。 You’re absolutely right—don’t say it again. Meaning: Love you, but please stop talking.
Wǒ jiù xǐ huan nǐ zhè fù jiāo ào de yàng zi. 我就喜欢你这副骄傲的样子。 I just love how proud you are. Meaning: …
Nǐ fǎn yìng bié tài guò jī le. 你反应别太过激了。 Don’t overreact. (Stay calm)
Lěng jìng yī diǎn. 冷静一点。 Calm down a bit.
Fàng qīng sōng yī diǎn. 放轻松一点。 Relax a little.
Wěn zhù, bié zhà！ 稳住，别炸！ Chill, don’t blow up!
Bié pò fáng le！ 别破防了！ …
Wǒ de shǒu jī méi yǒu diàn le, wǒ yào chōng diàn. 我的手机没有电了，我要充电。 My phone is out of battery, I need to charge it.
Wǒ shǒu jī yào chōng diàn le. 我手机要充电了。 I need to charge my phone.
Qǐng wèn, wǒ kě yǐ zài zhè …
Kāi dēng 开灯 Turn on the light.
Qǐng kāi dēng, wǒ kàn bù qīng chǔ. 请开灯，我看不清楚。 Please turn on the light, I can’t see clearly.
Wèi shén me bù kāi dēng? 为什么不开灯？ Why aren’t the lights on?
Guān dēng 关灯 Turn off the light.
Má …
Méi nà me zhòng yào. 没那么重要。 It’s not that important.
Méi shì, bú yào zháo jí. 没事，不要着急。 It’s fine, no need to worry.
Méi nà me yán zhòng. 没那么严重。 It’s not that serious / don’t overreact.
Xiǎo shì er! 小事儿！ Small thing! / No big …
Guǎn hǎo nǐ zìjǐ ba！ 管好你自己吧！ Mind your own business！
Shǎo guǎn xián shì！ 少管闲事！ Stop managing other people’s business！
Bù guān nǐ de shì！ 不关你的事！ It’s none of your business！
Gēn nǐ méi guān xi. 跟你没关系。 It has nothing to do with you.
Bié …
Zhā xīn le lǎo tiě！ 扎心了老铁！ That hits me right in the heart, bro!
Tài zhā xīn le ba！ 太扎心了吧！ Ouch… that really hit hard！
Bèi shuō zhòng le. 被说中了。 You got me there.
Wǒ xīn dōu suì le. 我心都碎了。 That broke my heart a …
Xiǎng duō le！ 想多了！ You’re overthinking it.
Nǐ xiǎng tài duō le！ 你想太多了！ You’re thinking way too much.
Bié xiǎng le！ 别想了！ Stop overthinking.
Nǐ zhè shì zài huàn xiǎng. 你这是在幻想。 You’re imagining things.
Bié huàn xiǎng le. 别幻想了。 Stop imagining stuff.
Bié gěi zì …
