Asking about someones family: Asking about someone's kids and their ages
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Key Phrases
詢問對方是否有小孩及年齡
xún wèn duì fāng shì fǒu yǒu xiǎo hái jí nián líng
Asking if someone has kids and their ages
描述小孩的年級
miáo shù xiǎo hái de nián jí
Describing children's school grade level
約定下次見面／結束對話
yuē dìng xià cì jiàn miàn jié shù duì huà
Making plans to meet again / closing a conversation
Skills You'll Learn
Ask and answer questions about family members using 有 (to have)
用「有」詢問並回答家庭成員的問題
yòng yǒu xún wèn bìng huí dá jiā tíng chéng yuán de wèn tí
State ages and school grades for children
說出小孩的年齡與就讀的年級
shuō chū xiǎo hái de nián líng yǔ jiù dú de nián jí
Use polite closing expressions to end a casual conversation
使用禮貌的結尾用語結束輕鬆的對話
shǐ yòng lǐ mào de jié wěi yòng yǔ jié shù qīng sōng de duì huà
Lesson Roleplay
Imagine you're out on a weekday morning in your Taiwanese neighborhood when you bump into Sister Lin (林姐), a friendly acquaintance you haven't seen in a while. After greeting her warmly, you start chatting about family, asking whether she has kids, how old they are, and whether her son has started elementary school. She asks about your family too, and you share that you have a three-year-old daughter. Practice this casual, friendly small talk, and remember how to wrap up politely and say goodbye like a local!
林姐，早安！好久不見。
lín jiě zǎo ān hǎo jiǔ bù jiàn
Morning, Sister Lin! Long time no see.
早安！最近好嗎？
zǎo ān zuì jìn hǎo ma
Good morning! How have you been?
還不錯。對了，妳有小孩嗎？
hái bù cuò duì le nǐ yǒu xiǎo hái ma
Pretty good. By the way, do you have kids?
有啊，我有兩個小孩。
yǒu a wǒ yǒu liǎng gè xiǎo hái
Yes, I have two kids.
真好！他們幾歲了？
zhēn hǎo tā men jǐ suì le
That's great! How old are they?
Lesson Vocabulary & Phrases
好久不見。
hǎo jiǔ bù jiàn
Long time no see.
林姐
lín jiě
Sister Lin
🇹🇼 In Taiwan, a surname plus 姐 (jiě) is a warm, respectful way to address a woman a bit older than you, like a friendly neighbor or coworker. It works for men too: 林哥 (Lín gē).
See breakdown →最近好嗎？
zuì jìn hǎo ma
How have you been lately?
還不錯。
hái bù cuò
Pretty good.
💬 還 here is (hái) and softens the praise to 'not bad', the usual modest answer to 'how are you'. You'll often hear 還好 (hái hǎo) "okay, so-so" the same way.
See breakdown →對了
duì le
By the way
💬 對了 (duì le) is what you say when something suddenly comes to mind, a handy way to switch to a new topic like family.
See breakdown →妳有小孩嗎？
nǐ yǒu xiǎo hái ma
Do you have kids?
💬 妳 (nǐ) is the 'you' used for women in Taiwan; it sounds exactly like 你. Adding 嗎 to the end turns any statement into a yes-or-no question.
🇹🇼 Asking about kids is a normal, friendly question in Taiwan, even among casual acquaintances.
See breakdown →有啊
yǒu a
Yes, I do
💬 Chinese has no single word for 'yes' — you answer by repeating the verb from the question, so 有嗎？ gets 有. The 啊 makes it sound relaxed and friendly.
See breakdown →我有兩個小孩。
wǒ yǒu liǎng gè xiǎo hái
I have two kids.
💬 Before a counting word, 'two' is 兩 (liǎng), not 二 (èr): 兩個人 "two people". 個 connects the number to the noun: 三個小孩 "three kids".
See breakdown →有啊，我有兩個小孩。
yǒu a wǒ yǒu liǎng gè xiǎo hái
Yes, I have two kids.
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