Little words in Chinese 小词
xiǎo cí
The tiny words that hold sentences together. 15 essential little words words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 的 | de | (possessive) 's |
| 了 | le | (change or completed action) |
| 吗 | ma | (yes/no question) |
| 呢 | ne | and you?; (ongoing) |
| 吧 | ba | (suggestion) |
| 啊 | a | (exclamation; softening) |
| 过 | guò | (have done before) |
| 着 | zhe | (ongoing state) |
| 得 | de | (how something is done) |
| 地 | de | -ly (adverb marker) |
| 们 | men | (plural for people) |
| 把 | bǎ | (moves the object before the verb) |
| 被 | bèi | (passive) by |
| 跟 | gēn | with |
| 从 | cóng | from |
Example sentences
- 这是我的书。This is my book.
- 我吃饭了。I've eaten.
- 你是老师吗？Are you a teacher?
- 我很好，你呢？I'm fine, and you?
- 我们走吧！Let's go!
- 好啊！Sure!
- 我去过中国。I've been to China.
- 门开着。The door is open.
- 她唱得很好。She sings very well.
- 他慢慢地走过来。He walked over slowly.
- 同学们好！Hello, everyone!
- 请把门关上。Please close the door.
- 我的蛋糕被吃了！My cake has been eaten!
- 我跟朋友去看电影。I'm going to the cinema with a friend.
- 我从英国来。I'm from the UK.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Little words speaking island has 8 everyday questions about little words to prepare your own answers to.