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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'.

Example

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.

Example

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.

Example

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.

Example

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...'.

Example

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.

Example

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.

Example

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.

Example

南门离地铁站很近。

The south gate is close to the subway station.

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