How to Say ‘May I sit here?’ in Traditional Chinese
我可以坐這裡嗎？
wǒ kě yǐ zuò zhè lǐ ma
[waw kuh yee dzwo juh lee ma]
🇹🇼 In Taiwan: This is polite and low-pressure in a bar if you're checking whether a seat is taken. In Taiwan, asking before sitting reads much better than just pulling up a chair.
Phrase Breakdown
我可以
wǒ kě yǐ
Words in this phrase
我
wǒ
[waw]
I; me
The first-person pronoun used to refer to yourself.
我可以坐這裡嗎？如果你不介意的話。
May I sit here, if you don’t mind?
可以
kě yǐ
[kuh yee]
can; may; be allowed to
Used to ask for permission in a polite way.
我可以坐這裡嗎？我想跟你聊一下。
May I sit here? I’d like to chat with you a bit.
坐
zuò
[dzwo]
sit
Means to take a seat.
我可以坐這裡嗎？旁邊好像還有空位。
May I sit here? It looks like there’s still an empty seat nearby.
這裡
zhè lǐ
[juh lee]
here
Points to this place near the speaker.
我可以坐這裡嗎？這裡看起來比較安靜。
May I sit here? This place looks quieter.
嗎
ma
[ma]
question particle
Placed at the end of a sentence to turn it into a yes-no question.
我可以坐這裡嗎？這樣問很自然。
May I sit here? Asking it this way sounds very natural.
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