Lesson 4: Talking About Hobbies and Plans

学中文

Learn 很 + 形容词/心理动词 and 想/要 + 动词 through Hobbies and Plans.

3 words2 grammar points1 dialogues~12 min

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Vocabulary3 words

爱àiVerb

1.to loveexpresses deep affection
2.to likecan be translated as 'to like' when talking about preferences (e.g. to like singing)

Examples

我爱你。

wǒàinǐ。

I love you.

我爱唱歌。

wǒàichànggē。

I like singing.

学xuéVerb

1.to study; to learn
2.to imitate; to mimicColloquial sense, used when copying someone's actions or speech (e.g. 你别学我 - Don't imitate me).

Examples

学中文。

xuézhōngwén。

to study Chinese

中文zhōngwénNoun

Chinese (language)

Examples

我学中文。

wǒxuézhōngwén。

I study Chinese.

中文很难。

zhōngwénhěnnán。

Chinese is very hard.

Grammar

Using 很 to Express Degree

S + 很 + 形容词/心理动词

In Chinese, when talking about a state or emotion, 很 (very) is usually placed before an adjective or a verb describing a mental state to make the sentence sound natural. 很 does not strongly emphasize the meaning of "very" but often just serves as a connector.

我很高兴。

wǒhěngāoxìng。

I'm very happy.

我很喜欢学习。

wǒhěnxǐhuanxuéxí。

I really like studying.

Expressing a Wish or Intention

S + 想/要 + 动词

想 (to want) and 要 (to need, to want) are placed before a verb to express a desire or the necessity of doing something. 想 usually carries a sense of thinking or wishing, while 要 emphasizes determination or necessity more.

我想学习中文。

wǒxiǎngxuéxízhōngwén。

I want to study Chinese.

我要好好工作。

wǒyàohǎohǎogōngzuò。

I need to work hard.

Dialogues

Talking About Hobbies and Plans

Xiao Lin and Xiao Nan chat about studying and feelings.

小林

你今天怎么样？

nǐjīntiānzěnmeyàng？

How are you today?

小南

我很高兴！我喜欢学习中文。

wǒhěngāoxìng！wǒxǐhuanxuéxízhōngwén。

I’m happy! I like studying Chinese.

小林

我也喜欢中文。你想学习什么？

wǒyěxǐhuanzhōngwén。nǐxiǎngxuéxíshénme？

I like Chinese too. What do you want to study?

小南

我想学工作上要用的中文。

wǒxiǎngxuégōngzuòshàngyàoyòngdezhōngwén。

I want to learn the Chinese I need for work.

小林

你能学好！我也要好好学习。

nǐnéngxuéhǎo！wǒyěyàohǎohǎoxuéxí。

You can do it! I’ll study hard too.

小南

好！我们一起学习吧！

hǎo！wǒmenyìqǐxuéxíba！

Great! Let's study together!

小林

我爱中文，也爱中国的电影。

wǒàizhōngwén，yěàizhōngguódediànyǐng。

I love Chinese, and I love Chinese films too.

小南

我也爱看中国电影。

wǒyěàikànzhōngguódiànyǐng。

I love watching Chinese films too.