The 3rd lesson is about the plural in Chinese and how to create it from the singular form. In addition, I will include a list of vocabulary about languages, nationalities, and countries. Finally, you will find some common everyday sentences. I will try to give examples using both vocabulary and grammar. That way it will be easy for you to see the words when they are separate and when they are in a sentence. Going through the whole page should take about 30 min. Make sure to read the pronunciation and hear the audio as well. If you have any question about this course, please email me directly at Chinese Classes.
Plural
Knowing how to create the plural from the singular word can double the vocabulary you already know. It can make it easy to have a conversation about different topics by simply knowing some grammatical rules. For example how to change the word "book" to "books" or "woman" to "women".
Below is a list of singular words and their plural equivalent. I included examples about nature as well as about humans. The table contains 3 columns (English, Chinese, and Audio). Make sure you repeat each word after hearing it by either clicking on the audio button or by reading the pronunciation. That should help with memorization as well as improving your pronunciation.
Singular vs. Plural in Chinese
English
Chinese
Audio
Country
国家 guójiā
Countries
Lake
湖 hú
Lakes
湖 hú
Language
语言 yǔyán
Languages
Woman
女人 nǚrén
Women
女人 nǚrén
Man
男人 nánrén
Men
男人 nánrén
Boy
男孩 nánhái
Boys
男孩们 nánháimen
Girl
女孩 nǚhái
Girls
女孩 nǚhái
Now we will try to implement some of the words above into full Chinese sentences. That way you will be able to see how both forms are used when embedded in a structure.
Singular vs. Plural in a Sentence
English
Chinese
Audio
We speak two languages
我们说两种语言 wǒmen shuō liǎng zhǒng yǔyán
They speak four languages
他们说四种语言 tāmen shuō sì zhǒng yǔyán
I visited one country
我去过一个国家 wǒ qùguò yīgè guójiā
She visited three countries
她去过3个国家 tā qùguò 3 gè guójiā
She has one sister
她有一个妹妹 tā yǒuyīgè mèimei
He has two sisters
他有两个妹妹 tā yǒu liǎng gè mèimei
Questions?
If you have any questions, please contact me using the Chinese contact form on the header above.
Vocabulary List about Languages, Nationalities, and Countries
Below is a list of 50 words related to languages, nationalities, and countries. If you can memorize them by heart, you will be able to have a good conversation about how many languages you speak or where you came from.
Languages Nationalities and Countries List in Chinese
English
Chinese
Audio
Arabic (language)
阿拉伯语 ālābó yǔ
Moroccan (nationality)
摩洛哥人 móluògē rén
Morocco (country)
摩洛哥 móluògē
Brazilian (language)
巴西语 bāxī yǔ
Brazilian (nationality)
巴西人 bāxī rén
Brazil (country)
巴西 bāxī
Chinese (language)
中文 zhōngwén
Chinese (nationality)
中国人 zhōngguó rén
China (country)
中国 zhōngguó
English (language)
Chinese Chinese
British (nationality)
英国人 yīngguó rén
Britain (country)
英国 yīngguó
American (nationality)
美国人 měiguó rén
America (country)
美国 měiguó
French (language)
法语 fǎyǔ
French (nationality)
法国人 fàguó rén
France (country)
法国 fàguó
German (language)
德语 déyǔ
German (nationality)
德国人 déguó rén
Germany (country)
德国 déguó
Greek (language)
希腊语 xīlà yǔ
Greek (nationality)
希腊人 xīlà rén
Greece (country)
希腊 xīlà
Hindi (language)
印地语 yìn dì yǔ
Indian (nationality)
印度人 yìn duó rén
India (country)
印度 yìndù
Irish (language)
爱尔兰语 ài'ěrlán yǔ
Irish (nationality)
爱尔兰人 ài'ěrlán rén
Ireland (country)
爱尔兰 ài'ěrlán
Italian (language)
意大利语 yìdàlì yǔ
Italian (nationality)
意大利人 yìdàlì rén
Italy (country)
意大利 yìdàlì
Japanese (language)
日语 rìyǔ
Japanese (nationality)
日本人 rìběn rén
Japan (country)
日本 rìběn
Korean (language)
韩语 hányǔ
Korean (nationality)
韩国人 hánguó rén
Korea (country)
韩国 hánguó
Persian (language)
波斯语 bōsī yǔ
Iranian (nationality)
伊朗人 yīlǎng rén
Iran (country)
伊朗 yīlǎng
Portuguese (language)
葡萄牙语 pútáoyá yǔ
Portuguese (nationality)
葡萄牙人 pútáoyá rén
Portugal (country)
葡萄牙 pútáoyá
Russian (language)
俄语 èyǔ
Russian (nationality)
俄国人 éguó rén
Russia (country)
俄罗斯 èluósī
Spanish (language)
西班牙语 xībānyá yǔ
Spanish (nationality)
西班牙人 xībānyá rén
Spain (country)
西班牙 xībānyá
Daily Conversation in Chinese
Finally, a list of sentences about languages, nationalities, and countries plus some bonus phrases. For a complete list of commonly used sentences, please visit our Chinese Phrases page. Enjoy!
Common Expressions in Chinese
English
Chinese
Audio
Languages
I don't speak Korean
我不会说韩国语 wǒ bù huì shuō hánguó yǔ
I love the Japanese language
我喜欢日文 wǒ xǐhuān rìwén
I speak Italian
我说意大利语 wǒ shuō yìdàlì yǔ
I want to learn Spanish
我要学西班牙语 wǒ yào xué xībānyá yǔ
My mother tongue is German
我的母语是德文 wǒ de mǔyǔ shì dé wén
Spanish is easy to learn
Origins
He has a Moroccan rug
他有个摩洛哥杯子 tā yǒu gè móluògē bēizi
I have an American car
我有一辆美国车。 wǒ yǒu yī liàng měiguó chē.
I love French cheese
我爱吃法国起司。 Wǒ ài chī fàguó qǐ sī.
I'm Italian
我是意大利人。 Wǒ shì yìdàlì rén.
My father is Greek
我父亲是。。。 Wǒ fùqīn shì...
My wife is Korean
我老婆/太太是韩国人。 Wǒ lǎopó/tàitài shì hánguó rén.
Countries
Have you ever been to India?
你去过印度吗？ Nǐ qùguò yìndù ma?
I came from Spain
我来自西班牙 Wǒ láizì xībānyá
I live in America
我住在美国。 wǒ zhù zài měiguó.
I want to go to Germany
我要去德国。 Wǒ yào qù déguó.
I was born in Italy
我在意大利书生。 Wǒ zài yìdàlì shūshēng.
Japan is a beautiful country
日本是一个很漂亮的国家。 Rìběn shì yīgè hěn piàoliang de guójiā.
Phrases
Long time no see
好久不见 Hǎojiǔ bùjiàn
I missed you
很想念你 hěn xiǎngniàn nǐ
What's new?
最近好吗？ zuìjìn hǎo ma?
Nothing new
跟平常一样 Gēn píngcháng yīyàng
Make yourself at home!
进来坐 jìnlái zuò
Have a good trip
一路平安 yīlù píng'ān
Fun Facts
Language Quote that by simply knowing how to form the plural, you can double the number of nouns in your vocabulary, without having to memorize all the plural form.
Congratulations! You finished your third lesson in Chinese about singular, plural, languages, nationalities, and countries. Are you ready for the next lesson? We recommend Chinese Lesson 4. You can also simply click on one of the links below or go back to our Learn Chinese homepage.
