Giving Directions in Chinese

Some of the most important vocabulary to prepare before going to a Mandarin-speaking country is phrases and words for asking directions. Especially when traveling through a Mandarin-speaking country, you will need to be able to ask for and understand directions. Here is a quick crash-course in understanding directions in Chinese including a vocabulary list and sample practice dialogues. This Mandarin Chinese lesson comes complete with audio files to help you with your pronunciation.  Audio files are marked with ââ€" º Turn è ½â€° (traditional form) / è ½ ¬ (simplified form) ââ€" º zhuÇŽn: turnÃ¥ ¾â‚¬ ââ€" ºwà ¡ng:  toward Right / Left / Straight Ã¥  ³Ã‚  Ã¢â€" ºyà ²u: rightÃ¥ · ¦ ââ€" ºzuÇ’: leftÃ¥ ¾â‚¬Ã¥  ³Ã¨ ½â€° / Ã¥ ¾â‚¬Ã¥  ³Ã¨ ½ ¬Ã‚  Ã¢â€" ºwà ¡ng yà ²u zhuà  n: turn rightÃ¥ ¾â‚¬Ã¥ · ¦Ã¨ ½â€° / Ã¥ ¾â‚¬Ã¥ · ¦Ã‚  Ã¨ ½ ¬ ââ€" ºwà ¡ng zuÇ’ zhuà  n: turn left ä ¸â‚¬Ã§â€º ´ ââ€" ºyÄ « zhà ­: straight aheadç› ´ ââ€" ºzhà ­: continuouslyä ¸â‚¬Ã§â€º ´Ã¨ µ ° ââ€" ºyÄ « zhà ­ zÇ’u: go straight aheadç› ´Ã¨ µ ° ââ€" ºzhà ­ zÇ’u: go straight ahead Status åˆ ° ââ€" ºdà  o: go to / reachedÃ¥ ¿ «Ã¥Ë† °Ã¤ ºâ€  ââ€" ºkuà  i dà  o le: almost arrivedÃ¥ Å" ââ€" ºtà ­ng: stopåˆ °Ã¤ ºâ€  ââ€" ºdà  o le: have arrivedÃ¥ ¥ ½ ââ€" ºhÇŽo: okayÃ¥ ¥ ½Ã§Å¡â€ž ââ€" ºhÇŽo de: okay Landmarks ç ´â€¦Ã§ ¶  Ã§â€¡Ë† / ç º ¢Ã§ » ¿Ã§  ¯ ââ€" ºhà ³ng lÇÅ" dÄ“ng: traffic lightè · ¯Ã¥  £ ââ€" ºlà ¹ kÇ’u: intersectionå… ¬Ã¥Å"’ / å… ¬Ã¥â€º ­ ââ€" ºgÃ… ng yuà ¡n: public parkç  «Ã¨ »Å Ã§ «â„¢ / ç  «Ã¨ ½ ¦Ã§ «â„¢Ã‚  Ã¢â€" ºhuÇ’ chÄ“ zhà  n: train stationè »Å Ã§ «â„¢ / è ½ ¦Ã§ «â„¢ ââ€" ºchÄ“ zhà  n: bus stationæâ€"…é ¤ ¨ ââ€" ºlÇš guÇŽn: hotel Example Dialogue 1 è «â€¹Ã¥â€¢ Ã¤ ½  Ã§Å¸ ¥Ã© â€œÃ§  «Ã¨ »Å Ã§ «â„¢Ã¥Å" ¨Ã¥â€œ ªÃ¥â€¦â€™(traditional form)è ¯ ·Ã©â€" ®Ã¤ ½  Ã§Å¸ ¥Ã© â€œÃ§  «Ã¨ ½ ¦Ã§ «â„¢Ã¥Å" ¨Ã¥â€œ ªÃ¥â€ž ¿(simplified form)QÇ ng wà ¨n, nÇ  zhÄ « dà  o huÇ’ chÄ“ zhà  n  zà  i nÇŽer?Excuse me, do you know where the train station is? çŸ ¥Ã© â€œÃ£â‚¬â€šÃ¤ ¸â‚¬Ã§â€º ´Ã¨ µ °Ã¥Ë† °Ã¤ ºâ€ Ã¨ · ¯Ã¥  £Ã¥ ¾â‚¬Ã¥  ³Ã¨ ½â€°Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ§â€º ´Ã¨ µ °Ã§ ¶â€œÃ© Å½Ã¥â€¦ ¬Ã¥Å"’ç„ ¶Ã¥ ¾Å'Ã¥ ¾â‚¬Ã¥ · ¦Ã¨ ½â€°Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ§  «Ã¨ »Å Ã§ «â„¢Ã¥ ° ±Ã¥Å" ¨Ã©â€š £Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ§Å¸ ¥Ã© â€œÃ£â‚¬â€šÃ¤ ¸â‚¬Ã§â€º ´Ã¨ µ °Ã¥Ë† °Ã¤ ºâ€ Ã¨ · ¯Ã¥  £Ã¥ ¾â‚¬Ã¥  ³Ã¨ ½ ¬Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ§â€º ´Ã¨ µ °Ã§ » Ã¨ ¿â€¡Ã¥â€¦ ¬Ã¥â€º ­Ã§â€ž ¶Ã¥ Å½Ã¥ ¾â‚¬Ã¥ · ¦Ã¨ ½ ¬Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ§  «Ã¨ ½ ¦Ã§ «â„¢Ã¥ ° ±Ã¥Å" ¨Ã©â€š £Ã£â‚¬â€šZhÄ « dà  o. YÄ « zhà ­ zÇ’u, dà  o le là ¹ kÇ’u wÇŽng yà ²u zhuÇŽn. Zhà ­ zÇ’u jÄ «ng guà ² gÃ… ng yuà ¡n, rà ¡n hà ²u wÇŽng zuÇ’ zhuÇŽn. HuÇ’ chÄ“ zhà  n jià ¹ zà  i nà  .I know. Go straight and turn right at the junction. Go straight through the park and turn left. The train station is right there. Example Dialogue 2 我å · ²Ã§ ¶â€œÃ¥Å" ¨Ã¦â€"…é ¤ ¨Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ¤ ½  Ã¥Å" ¨Ã¥â€œ ªÃ¨ £ ¡Ã¥â€¢Å Ã¦Ë†â€˜Ã¥ · ²Ã§ » Ã¥Å" ¨Ã¦â€"…é ¦â€ Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ¤ ½  Ã¥Å" ¨Ã¥â€œ ªÃ©â€¡Å'å•ŠWÇ’ yÇ  jÄ «ng zà  i lÇš guÇŽn. NÇ  zà  i nÇŽ lÇ  a?Im already at the hotel. Where are you? 我åÅ" ¨Ã§ ´â€¦Ã§ ¶  Ã§â€¡Ë†Ã¥ Å"ä ºâ€ Ã¥ ¾Ë†Ã¤ ¹â€¦Ã¥ ¿ «Ã¨ ¦ Ã¥Ë† °Ã¤ ºâ€ Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ¦Ë†â€˜Ã¥Å" ¨Ã§ º ¢Ã§ » ¿Ã§  ¯Ã¥ Å"ä ºâ€ Ã¥ ¾Ë†Ã¤ ¹â€¦Ã¥ ¿ «Ã¨ ¦ Ã¥Ë† °Ã¤ ºâ€ Ã£â‚¬â€šWÇ’ zà  i hà ³ng lÇÅ" dÄ“ng tà ­ng le hÄ›n jiÇ”, kuà  i yà  o dà  o le.I have been waiting for the traffic light for a long time, almost there. Ã¥ ¥ ½Ã£â‚¬â€šHÇŽo.Okay.