Top 50 phrases to get by China (Advanced): Getting around and shopping

💬 Put any place before 在哪里 to ask where it is: 医院在哪里？ "Where is the hospital?".

🇨🇳 厕所 is the plain everyday word. The more delicate 洗手间 "washroom" is common in restaurants and malls.

🇨🇳 Public toilets are often squat style and may not have paper, so locals carry tissues.

🇨🇳 In everyday speech people often say 打车 (dǎ chē) "grab a cab". Most locals call one through the 滴滴 (dī dī) "DiDi" app rather than waving one down.

💬 站 (zhàn) means "station" or "stop", and you add it to the end of a transport word: 火车站 for trains, 地铁站 "subway station", 公交车站 "bus stop".

💬 酒店 (jiǔ diàn) looks like "wine shop" letter by letter, but it simply means "hotel". Don't go looking for a bar.

💬 一 is normally (yī), but before a rising-tone word like 直 (zhí) it shifts to a falling tone: 一直走 (yì zhí zǒu).

💬 The direction comes before the verb 转 (zhuǎn) "turn". Swap the direction to get 右转 or 往前走 "go forward".

💬 Describing words like this work on their own, with no 是 "is" needed: 很近 (hěn jìn) means "it's close". Here the 很 doesn't really mean "very"; it just completes the sentence.

💬 Adjectives like 远 can be the whole sentence by themselves, so 远吗？ is a complete "Is it far?" with no extra word for "is." The same works with 近吗？ and 贵吗？.

💬 我要去 + a place covers almost every taxi ride: 我要去火车站 means "I want to go to the train station". Just swap in a new destination.

💬 Chinese puts a counting word between 这 "this" and the thing itself, and 个 (gè) is the all-purpose one. Use the same pattern for 这个酒店 "this hotel".

🇨🇳 Saying this while showing the address in Chinese characters on your phone is the most reliable way to take a taxi. Many drivers can't read English or pinyin addresses.

💬 In Chinese, the place comes before the action: 在这里停 is literally "at here stop". The same order works elsewhere, e.g. 在这里等 "wait here".

🇨🇳 Taxi drivers commonly hear the shorter 这里停就行 "stopping here is fine".

💬 多少 is the common "how much / how many," so 多少钱？ is literally "how much money?" The same pattern works in 多少人？ "how many people?"

💬 太……了 is a common way to say "too…" or "so…!" with an adjective: 太贵了 "too expensive," 太好了 "great!" Swap in other adjectives to reuse it easily.

🇨🇳 At markets, 便宜一点 (pián yi yì diǎn) "a bit cheaper?" is the standard opener for bargaining. Don't use it in malls or chain stores, where prices are fixed.

🇨🇳 Haggling is normal at markets and small stalls, but not in malls, chain stores or supermarkets.

💬 不要 is a very common way to say "don't want" or "don't need." You can use it broadly in real situations: 我不要这个 "I don't want this," 不要辣 "not spicy."

💬 Putting the yes form and the no form side by side makes a question: 有没有 means "have or not have?". The same trick works with other verbs, e.g. 要不要 "want it or not?".

🇨🇳 In shops you can point at something or name it first, e.g. 水有没有？.

💬 Put 一点 (yì diǎn) "a bit" after a describing word to say "a bit more ___". For example, 便宜一点 means "a bit cheaper".

💬 可以 can be both the question and the answer: say 可以吗？ to ask "is it OK?", and 可以 to reply "yes, fine".

💬 Adding 一下 (yí xià) after a verb softens it to "give it a quick try". You'll also hear 看一下 "take a quick look". Putting 吗 (ma) at the end turns any statement into a yes/no question.

🇨🇳 Cash is legal tender, but many small vendors rarely handle it now and may not have change. Carry some anyway as a backup.

🇨🇳 Mobile payment is the default almost everywhere. You either scan the shop's QR code or let them scan yours, and both apps now let foreigners link overseas cards.

💬 刷卡 (shuā kǎ) literally means "swipe card", and it covers paying by any card.

💬 用 "use" + a tool + an action is how to say "do something with something". For example, 用支付宝付 "pay with Alipay".

🇨🇳 Mobile payment by QR code is the default almost everywhere, and some small vendors barely handle cash. Visitors can link a foreign card to WeChat Pay or Alipay.

🇨🇳 A 发票 (fā piào) is an official tax invoice, often needed for business expense claims. It's not just a till slip, so ask for one specifically if you need it for work.

🇨🇳 Shops usually charge a small fee for plastic bags, so expect to pay a little or bring your own.