Level 1 Lesson 19.1 – Where Are You Having Dinner?

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How to Ask Where in Chinese | Phrase 哪里哪里 in Chinese

In this video lesson we'll learn how to ask where in Chinese and also the usage of the phrase 哪里哪里 in Chinese.

  • How to ask where in Chinese: 哪儿/哪里
  • Female and male in Chinese: 男/女
  • Boyfriend and girlfriend in Chinese: 男朋友/女朋友
  • Pretty, beautiful and handsome in Chinese: 漂亮/帅
  • Phrase 哪里哪里 in Chinese: you're flattering me

VOCABULARY


GRAMMAR


Grammar 1: How to Ask Where in Chinese: 哪儿/哪里 · HSK 1

There are two ways of how to ask where in Chinese: 哪儿/哪里 nǎr/nǎlǐ. If we have to say their difference, 哪儿 is slightly more common in spoken Chinese.

Most commonly, we use 哪儿/哪里 to ask "where is something?" With questions like this, we use the word zài 在 (①v. to be in/on/at + somewhere ②prep. in/on/at + somewhere), following this structure:

Subject + 在 + 哪儿/哪里

For example:

  • nǐde nánpéngyou zài nǎr 
    你的男朋友在哪儿?
    where is your boyfriend
  • nà jiā cháyè diàn zài nǎlǐ 
    那家茶叶店在哪里?
    where is that "jia" (of) tea-leaf shop

 

Be careful that the position of nǎr/nǎlǐ 哪儿/哪里 differs depending on which member of sentence it functions as - whether it is the Subject, the Object or some other member.

 

哪儿/哪里 as the Subject

  • nǎr yǒu Píngguǒ shāngdiàn
    哪儿有苹果商店?
    where exist (an) Apple Store

哪儿/哪里 as the Object

  • nǐ nǚpéngyou jīntiān qù nǎr
    你女朋友今天去哪儿?
    your girlfriend today go (to) where

哪儿/哪里 as the Attribute

  • nǎlǐ de fēijīpiào piányi
    哪里的飞机票便宜?
    where's plane tickets (are) cheap

哪儿/哪里 as the Adverbial

  • nǐmen zài nǎlǐ chīfàn
    你们在哪里吃饭?
    where do you guys eat at

 

Grammar 2: Phrase 哪里哪里 in Chinese · HSK 1

In traditional Chinese culture, being modest is considered a virtue. So instead of "xièxie 谢谢 thank you" as a response to a compliment,  we can say "nǎli nǎli 哪里哪里".

The phrase 哪里哪里 literally means "where-where", basically saying "I don't see where the compliment is coming from." The reason behind it is that traditionally, "refusing" someone's compliment is considered an act of being modest.

For example:

A: nǐde nǚ péngyou tài piàoliang le
      你的女朋友太漂亮了!
      your girlfriend (is) so pretty
B: nǎlǐ nǎlǐ
      哪里哪里!
      where-where

A: nǐde nán péngyou fēicháng shuài
      你的男朋友非常帅!
      your boyfriend  (is) very handsome
B: nǎlǐ nǎlǐ
      哪里哪里!
      where-where

 

Grammar 3: Pretty, Beautiful and Handsome in Chinese · HSK 1

The most common words for pretty, beautiful and handsome in Chinese are: piàoliang 漂亮 and shuài 帅.

帅 is used for boys and men as to describe "good-looking" or "handsome".

Compared with 帅, 漂亮 has a broader meaning in Chinese. It is used for girls and women to describe "pretty" or "beautiful" in Chinese.

Apart from that, 漂亮 can also be used to describe a lot of other things, such as rooms, clothing, hair, paintings and scenery. Just like in English "beautiful" can be used to describe people and also a lot of other things.

For example, with words that we've learned before:

  • piàoliang de nǚ péngyou
    漂亮的女朋友
    beautiful  girlfriend
  • piàoliang de fángjiān
    漂亮的房间
    beautiful room
  • piàoliang de fángzi
    漂亮的房子
    beautiful house
  • piàoliang de xuéxiào
    漂亮的学校
    beautiful school
  • piàoliang de yīfu
    漂亮的衣服
    beautiful clothes

Or with words that we haven't learned before:

  • piàoliang de huà
    漂亮的画
    beautiful painting
  • piàoliang de chéngshì
    漂亮的城市
    beautiful city
  • piàoliang de yánsè
    漂亮的颜色
    beautiful color
  • piàoliang de fēngjǐng
    漂亮的风景
    beautiful scenery
4 Comments
Collapse Comments
Ekaphong Rusmintratip Premium Student September 6, 2022 at 8:27 am

我:喂喂!
高飞:喂,智強。
我:你在哪儿?你有时间吗?
高飞:我在家吃饭呢。你想做什么?
我:我开车接你,我请你吃晚饭看电影,你说怎么样?
高飞:行,那么四点半见!
我:你想在哪里吃饭。
高飞:我想在ABC吃面条呢。好吗?
我:好的。我们在哪里买电影票?
高飞:我们在AAA 买电影票。
我:很好,当我在你的家,我给你打电话,再见。

Roxanne Cu Premium Student September 7, 2021 at 4:07 pm

老师, 我有一个问题。What’s the difference among these words:
一。好看
二。漂亮
三。美丽
谢谢您。

vmaier3000 Premium Student April 27, 2018 at 3:35 pm

Hi there,
I looked for some HSK1 tests simulations and I was surprised to see that they were using many more words than the 150 official list of words.

Do you think this is going to happen in real life as well?

Thanks,

Valentin

I wouldn’t be surprised that not every word in the exam is among the 150 list. It is highly possible. But it’s going to be limited to a very low percentage and normally we can guess the meanings from the context.

The HSK tests now put more emphasis on conversational skills, especially the lower levels. And in real life conversations, it is most definitely that we’re going to hear words that we haven’t learned, but we might be able to guess through context.

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