Lesson 6: Studying a Foreign Language at School

外语

Learn 是 + 学生/大学生 and 没有 + … through Studying a Foreign Language at School.

14 words2 grammar points1 dialogues~12 min

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Vocabulary14 words

外语wàiyǔNoun

foreign languagerefers to a foreign language being learned or used

Examples

我喜欢学外语。

wǒxǐhuanxuéwàiyǔ。

I like studying foreign languages.

她会三种外语。

tāhuìsānzhǒngwàiyǔ。

She knows three foreign languages.

大学生dàxuéshēngNoun

university studentused for someone studying at university

Examples

我是大学生。

wǒshìdàxuéshēng。

I am a university student.

他是一名大学生。

tāshìyìmíngdàxuéshēng。

He is a university student.

小学生xiǎoxuéshēngNoun

1.primary school student
2.a pupil at a primary school

Examples

我妹妹是小学生。

wǒmèimeishìxiǎoxuéshēng。

My younger sister is a primary school student.

小学生们在学校学习。

xiǎoxuéshēngmenzàixuéxiàoxuéxí。

The primary school students study at school.

教学楼jiàoxuélóuNoun

1.classroom building; teaching building
2.academic buildingCommonly used at schools.

Examples

教学楼里有很多教室。

jiàoxuélóuliyǒuhěnduōjiàoshì。

There are many classrooms in the teaching building.

我们去教学楼上中文课。

wǒmenqùjiàoxuélóushàngzhōngwénkè。

We go to the teaching building for Chinese class.

班bānNoun

1.class (in school)
2.shift (at work)
3.team, group
4.scheduled trip (measure word for a bus, train, or flight run)e.g. 下一班车 (the next bus), 这班飞机 (this flight)

Examples

我在二班学习中文。

wǒzàièrbānxuéxízhōngwén。

I study Chinese in Class Two.

他上夜班。

tāshàngyèbān。

He works the night shift.

考kǎoVerb

1.to take an exam; to test
2.to examine; to investigate

Examples

明天我要考试。

míngtiānwǒyàokǎoshì。

I have an exam tomorrow.

试shìVerb

1.to try, to test
2.to examine, to take a test

Examples

我想试一下这件衣服。

wǒxiǎngshìyíxiàzhèjiànyīfu。

I want to try on this piece of clothing.

下周有一个考试。

xiàzhōuyǒuyígèkǎoshì。

There is a test next week.

课文kèwénNoun

1.text (in a textbook)Used for reading passages in Chinese-learning or literature textbooks.
2.reading passageUsually a passage used for study.

Examples

今天我们学习第三课课文。

jīntiānwǒmenxuéxídìsānkèkèwén。

Today we study the text of Lesson 3.

这篇课文很难。

zhèpiānkèwénhěnnán。

This text is very difficult.

页yèMeasure word

1.page (of a book)
2.sheet (of paper)

Examples

这本书有很多页。

zhèběnshūyǒuhěnduōyè。

This book has many pages.

请翻到第五十页。

qǐngfāndàodìwǔshíyè。

Please turn to page 50.

生气shēngqìVerb

1.to be angry
2.vitality, life energya classical/literary meaning, rarely used in modern spoken Chinese

Examples

她因为小事生气了。

tāyīnwèixiǎoshìshēngqìle。

She got angry over a small matter.

不要生气，开心一点。

búyàoshēngqì，kāixīnyìdiǎn。

Don't be angry, cheer up a little.

电影院diànyǐngyuànNoun

cinema, movie theatera place to watch movies

Examples

我们在电影院。

wǒmenzàidiànyǐngyuàn。

We are at the cinema.

女孩儿nǚháirNoun

1.girlCommonly used in everyday conversation.
2.young girl

Examples

那个女孩儿是我的朋友。

nàgenǚháirshìwǒdepéngyou。

That girl is my friend.

女朋友nǚpéngyouNoun

girlfriend

Examples

他女朋友是老师。

tānǚpéngyoushìlǎoshī。

His girlfriend is a teacher.

女生nǚshēngNoun

1.female student, girlUsually used in a school setting or to refer to females.
2.young woman, girlA general context.

Examples

她是女生。

tāshìnǚshēng。

She is a girl.

这个女生很可爱。

zhègenǚshēnghěnkěài。

This girl is very cute.

Grammar

Introducing yourself or others as a student

S + 是 + 学生/大学生

Use this pattern to talk about your own or someone else's status as a student. The verb '是' (to be) is used to affirm it. You can add information such as the school or the type of student.

我是大学生。

wǒshìdàxuéshēng。

I am a university student.

她是小学生。

tāshìxiǎoxuéshēng。

She is an elementary school student.

Negating possession or existence (using '没有')

S + 没有 + …

Use '没有' to negate having something or the existence of a person/thing. This is the way to negate the verb '有' (to have).

我没有女朋友。

wǒméiyǒunǚpéngyou。

I don't have a girlfriend.

这本书没有新课文。

zhèběnshūméiyǒuxīnkèwén。

This book doesn't have any new texts.

Dialogues

Studying a Foreign Language at School

Two students, Xiao Lin and Xiao Nan, talk about studying.

小林

小南，你是大学生吗？

xiǎonán，nǐshìdàxuéshēngma？

Xiao Nan, are you a university student?

小南

是，我是大学生。你呢？

shì，wǒshìdàxuéshēng。nǐne？

Yes, I'm a university student. How about you?

小林

我也是大学生。我们班有很多学生。

wǒyěshìdàxuéshēng。wǒmenbānyǒuhěnduōxuéshēng。

I'm a university student too. Our class has a lot of students.

小南

你的课文难吗？

nǐdekèwénnánma？

Is your text hard?

小林

课文不难，考试很难。

kèwénbùnán，kǎoshìhěnnán。

The text isn’t hard, but the exam is.

小南

我不想考试。我有点儿生气。

wǒbùxiǎngkǎoshì。wǒyǒudiǎnrshēngqì。

I don't want to take the exam. I'm a bit annoyed.

小林

不要生气。外语课文有两页，不多。

búyàoshēngqì。wàiyǔkèwényǒuliǎngyè，bùduō。

Don’t be upset. The foreign-language text is only two pages, that’s not much.

小南

是吗？我们在哪个教学楼上外语课？

shìma？wǒmenzàinǎgejiàoxuélóushàngwàiyǔkè？

Really? Which teaching building do we have the language class in?

小林

在东边的教学楼。我们班的女生多，男生少。

zàidōngbiandejiàoxuélóu。wǒmenbāndenǚshēngduō，nánshēngshǎo。

In the east teaching building. Our class has a lot of girls and few boys.

小南

我的女朋友也在这个班。放学后我们想去电影院。

wǒdenǚpéngyouyězàizhègebān。fàngxuéhòuwǒmenxiǎngqùdiànyǐngyuàn。

My girlfriend is in this class too. After school we want to go to the cinema.

小林

好啊！我妹妹也想去电影院，我们一起去吧。

hǎoa！wǒmèimeiyěxiǎngqùdiànyǐngyuàn，wǒmenyìqǐqùba。

Nice! My little sister wants to go to the cinema too — let's all go together.