Beginner Chinese · Simplified characters · 10 focus words
A day of Chinese
Place activities in time: today, tomorrow, morning and afternoon.
Your goal: Put a time expression before the action when describing a simple daily plan.
01 · Read
Get to know the words.
| Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning here |
|---|---|---|
| 今天 | jīntiān | today |
| 明天 | míngtiān | tomorrow |
| 上午 | shàngwǔ | morning; before noon |
| 下午 | xiàwǔ | afternoon |
| 去 | qù | go |
| 学校 | xuéxiào | school |
| 学习 | xuéxí | study; learn |
| 汉语 | Hànyǔ | Chinese language |
| 看书 | kàn shū | read a book; read books |
| 家 | jiā | home; family |
Supporting words for the sentence exercises (2)
| Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning here |
|---|---|---|
| 我 | wǒ | I; me |
| 在 | zài | at; in |
A time expression can come after the subject or at the start: 我明天去学校 and 明天我去学校 both work. A place phrase such as 在家 normally comes before the action.
Pinyin in the word list shows the reading used here. Neutral syllables have no tone mark. Spoken tone changes can differ from dictionary tones; these activities do not include audio.
02 · Write
Watch a stroke. Try it yourself.
Compare 今天 and 明天: both contain 天. Then compare 上午 and 下午: both contain 午. Practise the shared character once on screen, then write each complete word on paper.
Start with the guides visible. Replay any character you need, then try with less help. Writing practice works through the characters in your focus vocabulary.
03 · Build
Put the words to work.
Read the examples, then arrange the same words in the guided sentence tool. Supporting words are listed above.
我明天去学校。
Wǒ míngtiān qù xuéxiào.
I will go to school tomorrow.
我明天去学校 and 明天我去学校 are both accepted. 明天 supplies the future time.
我上午学习汉语。
Wǒ shàngwǔ xuéxí Hànyǔ.
I study Chinese in the morning.
The time phrase 上午 comes before 学习. It can also go at the start of the sentence.
我在家看书。
Wǒ zài jiā kàn shū.
I read at home.
在家 tells you where the reading happens. Put this place phrase before 看书.
Opens this lesson’s guided set. Your solved exercises are kept; the current exercise starts at the beginning of this set.
04 · Remember
Try without the model.
Answer on paper or aloud before opening each answer.
Put these blocks in order: 去学校 / 我 / 明天.
Show answer
我明天去学校。 or 明天我去学校。 Both mean “I will go to school tomorrow”.
Say “I read at home”.
Show answer
我在家看书。 Wǒ zài jiā kàn shū.
05 · Keep practising
Take this lesson to paper.
今天 jīntiān · today
明天 míngtiān · tomorrow
上午 shàngwǔ · morning; before noon
Studio opens with the 10 focus words and this lesson’s title. Choose your tracing and repetition settings, then print or save as PDF from your browser. Supporting sentence words can be added in Settings.
Choose your next lesson.
Introduce yourself
Say who you are, give your name and ask whether someone is a student.
Open lesson →