年画 (niánhuà) New Year Picture (Intermediate)
The character “年 (nián)” means year and “画 (huà)” means painting.
Example:
jīn nián guānyú hǔ de niánhuà hěnduō. 今 年 关于 虎 的 年画 很多。 There are many New Year paintings of tiger on this year’s spring festival.
…
灯笼 (dēnglong) Lantern (Intermediate)
The character “灯 (dēng)” means lamp or light and “笼 (lóng)” means cage.
Example:
Wǒmen jiā měi nián chūnjié shí dōu huì zài jiāménkǒu guàshàng yí gè dàdà de hóng dēnglong. 我们 家 每 年 春节 时 都 会 在 家门口 挂 上一个 大大 的 红 灯笼。
Every Spring Festival, our family hangs a big and red lantern on the doorway.…
Did you get it? When Yao Ming asked Tracy Mcgrady what the hosts on the TV show were talking about, Tracy said he would put Yao out. What happened between these two friends?
In fact, what Tracy said was “我不知道”. “Well, put u out” has a similar sound as the Chinese phrase “我不知道,” which means “I don’t know,” or “I have no idea.”…
年货 (niánhuò) Goods Bought for the Spring Festival Holiday (Intermediate)
The character “年 (nián)” means year and “货 (huò)” means goods.
Example:
Kuài guò chūnjié le, jiājiā dōu zài máng zhe zhìbàn niánhuò. 快 过 春节 了，家家 都 在 忙 着 置办 年货。
Spring Festival is coming up, and every family has been busy buying goods for the holiday.…
烟花 (yānhuā) Fireworks (Intermediate)
type=”audio/mpeg”>
The character “烟 (yān)” means smoke and “花 (huā)” means flower.
Example:
Chúxī yè, wǒ hé bàba māma yìqǐ fàng yānhuā. 除夕夜，我和爸爸妈妈一起放烟花。 I set off the fireworks with my parents on New Year’s Eve.
type=”audio/mpeg”>
Chinese Popular Words (Fun Stuff) HSK Test General Chinese (Beginner Level) General Chinese (Intermediate Level) …
年夜饭 (niányèfàn ) Dinner on Chinese New Year’s Eve (Intermediate)
The character “年 (nián)” means year; “夜 (yè)” means night and “饭 (fàn)”
means meal. Example:
Jīnnián chūnjié, wǒmen yào qù nǎinai jiā chī niányèfàn. 今年春节，我们要去奶奶家吃年夜饭。
We will go to my grandparents’ place to have the New Year’ eve dinner for this year’s spring festival.…
红红火火 (hónghónghuǒhuǒ) Flourishing (Advanced)
The character “红 (hóng)” means red and “火 (huǒ)” means fire.
Example:
Chūnjié dào le, dàjiā dōu hónghónghuǒhuǒ guò xīnnián. 春节到了，大家都红红火火过新年。
Spring festival is coming; people are celebrating the New Year with excitement.…
The character “压 (yā )” means to press; “岁 (suì)” means age and “钱 (qián)” means money. Example:
Měi nián guònián wǒ dōu néng shōu dào hǎo duō yāsuìqián. 每年过年我都能收到好多压岁钱。
I receive much pocket money for Lunar New Year’s day every year.…
饺子 (jiǎozi) Dumpling (Beginner)
The character “饺 (jiǎo)” means dumpling and here, “子 (zi)” is a suffix.
Wǒ hé māma xué bāo jiǎozi. 我和妈妈学包饺子。
I learned how to make dumplings from my mother.
…
// // …
不错 (búcuò) Pretty Good/Not Bad (Beginner)
The character “不 (bú)” means not and “错 (cuò)” means bad.
Example:
Nǐ zhè cì wénzhāng xiě de búcuò, jiāyóu! 你这次文章写得不错，加油！
The article you’re writing this time is pretty good. Let’s continue to make greater effort! // // …
开玩笑 (kāi wánxiào) To Make a Joke (Intermediate)
The character “开 (kāi)” literally means to open but here means to make; “玩
(wán)” means to play and “笑 (xiào)” means laugh or smile.
A: Gēmenr, wàimiàn yǒu gè měinǚ zhǎo nǐ ne! 哥们儿，外面有个美女找你呢！ Brother, there is a beautiful girl looking for you outside!…
生活 (shēnghuó) Life/Living (Beginner)
The character “生 (shēng)” means life and “活 (huó)” means living. Example:
Nǐ xiǎng yào huó de kuàilè, jiù yào rè’ài shēnghuó. 你想要活得快乐，就要热爱生活。
If you want to be happy, you need to love life itself. …
加班 (jiābān) Work Overtime (Beginner)
The character “加 (jiā)” means to add or increase and “班 (bān)” means work
here. Example:
Jīntiān wǒ gōngzuò hěn duō, kàn lái yòu děi jiābān le. 今天我工作很多，看来又得加班了。
I have a lot of work today, and it appears I have to work overtime.…
发火 (fāhuǒ) To Get Angry (Intermediate)
The character “发 (fā)” means to show (one’s feeling) here and “火 (huǒ)”
literally means fire but here, means temper or anger. Example:
Gōngsī xiàoyì bù hǎo de shíhou, lǎobǎn jiù hěn ài fāhuǒ. 公司效益不好的时候，老板就很爱发火。
When a company is not doing well, its boss gets angry easily.…
发短信 (fāduǎnxìn) Send a Text Message
“发 (fā)” means to send; “短 (duǎn)” means short and “信 (xìn)” means message.
Example:
Míngtiān shì wǒ hǎopéngyou de shēngrì; gěi tā fāduǎnxìn sòng shàng wǒ de shēngrì zhùfú. 明天是我好朋友的生日，给她发短信送上我的生日祝福。
Tomorrow is my friend’s birthday; I’ ll send a text message to wish her a happy birthday.…
