How to Say ‘I'm going to the south gate.’ in Simplified Chinese
我要去的是南门。
wǒ yào qù de shì nán mén
[wo yaow qù de shì nánmén]
💬 Usage Tip: The pattern "我要去的是 + place" means "the place I'm going to is…". It puts the stress on the place, so it works well for correcting a mistake.
Phrase Breakdown
我要去的
wǒ yào qù de
the place I want to go
Adding 的 (de) turns 'I want to go' into a noun phrase: 'where I'm going'.
我要去的地方很远。
The place I'm going is far.
Words in this phrase
我
wǒ
[wo]
I
The speaker referring to themselves.
我明天有空。
I am free tomorrow.
要
yào
[yaow]
want; need
要 means to want or need. It is very common when ordering food and drinks.
我还要一个蛋糕。
I also want a cake.
去
qù
[qù]
to go
Indicates movement or travel from one place to another.
你想去逛逛街吗?
Do you want to go shopping?
的
de
[de]
nominalizing particle
Turns a verb phrase into a noun phrase meaning 'the one/place that...'.
我买的是这个。
What I bought is this one.
是南门。
shì nán mén
is the south gate.
南门 (nán mén) means 'south gate'. Both syllables are second tone, so both rise.
出口是南门。
The exit is the south gate.
Words in this phrase
是
shì
[shì]
is
Used to connect the subject with a predicate.
他是老师。
He is a teacher.
南门
nán mén
[nánmén]
south gate
The south entrance of a place such as a campus, park or compound.
南门离地铁站很近。
The south gate is close to the subway station.
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