Beginner Chinese · Simplified characters · 10 focus words
Introduce yourself
Say who you are, give your name and ask whether someone is a student.
Your goal: Use 我叫… for a name and 是 for an identity, then make a question with 吗.
01 · Read
Get to know the words.
| Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning here |
|---|---|---|
| 你好 | nǐ hǎo | hello |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me |
| 你 | nǐ | you |
| 叫 | jiào | be called |
| 名字 | míngzi | name |
| 是 | shì | be; am; is; are |
| 学生 | xuésheng | student |
| 老师 | lǎoshī | teacher |
| 吗 | ma | yes/no question particle |
| 不 | bù | not |
Supporting words for the sentence exercises (1)
| Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning here |
|---|---|---|
| 小明 | Xiǎomíng | Xiaoming, an example given name |
Use 是 before a noun such as 学生. To give your name, use 我叫… . In speech, 不 before a fourth tone is pronounced bú, as in 不是 (bú shì).
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.
Practise 我、你、叫 first, then write 学生 and 老师 as complete words. Watch the stroke order of each character before trying a row without tracing.
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.
我叫小明。
Wǒ jiào Xiǎomíng.
My name is Xiaoming.
我叫小明 literally says “I am called Xiaoming”. Replace 小明 with the name you use.
我是学生。
Wǒ shì xuésheng.
I am a student.
是 links the person 我 to the identity 学生.
你是老师吗？
Nǐ shì lǎoshī ma?
Are you a teacher?
吗 turns the statement 你是老师 into a yes/no question without moving the other words.
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.
How would you ask “Are you a teacher?”
Show answer
你是老师吗？ Nǐ shì lǎoshī ma?
Change “I am a student” into “I am not a student”.
Show answer
我不是学生。 Wǒ bú shì xuésheng.
05 · Keep practising
Take this lesson to paper.
你好 nǐ hǎo · hello
我 wǒ · I; me
你 nǐ · you
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.