1. 现在我们听写。 (現在我們聽寫。)
Xiànzài wŏmen tīngxiĕ.
Now we have a dictation quiz.
2. 请你念课文。 (請你念課文。)
Qĭng nĭ niàn kèwén.
Please read the text out loud.
3. 请你再念一遍。 (請你再念一遍。)
Qĭng nĭ zài niàn yíbiàn.
Please read it again.
4. 这个字怎么念？(這個字怎麼念？)
Zhèige zì zĕnme niàn?
How do you pronounce this character?
5. 这个字怎么写？(這個字怎麼寫？)
Zhèige zì zĕnme xiĕ?
How do you write this character?
6. 请你再写一遍。 (請你再寫一遍。)
Qĭng nĭ zài xiĕ yíbiàn.
Please write it again.
7. 请注意笔顺。 (請注意筆順。)
Qĭng zhùyì bĭshùn.
Please pay attention to stroke order.
8. 这个字的部首是什么？(這個字的部首是什麼？)
Zhèige zìde bùshŏu shi shénme?
What is this character’s radical?
9. 这个字的声符是什么？(這個字的聲符是什麼？)
Zhèige zìde shēngfú shi shénme?
What is this character’s phonetic?
10. 这是简体字﹐那是繁体字。 (這是簡體字，那是繁體字。)
Zhè shi jiăntĭzì, nà shi fántĭzì.
These are simplified characters, those are traditional characters.
11. 请你翻译。 (請你翻譯。)
Qĭng nĭ fānyì.
Please translate.
12. 请你们把练习给我。 (請你們把練習給我。)
Qĭng nĭmen bă liànxí gĕi wŏ.
Please you all give me the exercise.
UNIT A
Numbers, Surnames, Personal Names, and Place Names
COMMUNICATIVE OBJECTIVES
Once you’ve mastered this unit, you’ll be able to use Chinese to read and write:
1. The basic numbers from 1 to 10.
2. Telephonenumbers.
3. Several common surnames: “He,” “Li,” “Lin,” “Wang,” and “Wen.”
4. Common personal names like “Daming,” “Dashan,” “Jingsheng,” “Mingming,” “Taisheng,” “Xiaoming,” “Xiaowen,” etc.
5. Some common place names in mainland China and Taiwan: “Beijing,” “Taichung,” “Taipei,” “Taishan.”
6. The special Chinese punctuation mark called the dùnhào that looks like this:、
PART 1
Numbers from 1 to 5 and the Surname Wáng
Study the six characters below and the common words written with them, paying careful attention to each character’s pronunciation, meaning, and structure, as well as similar-looking characters. After you’ve studied a character, turn to the Practice Essentials volume and practice writing it on the practice sheet, making sure to follow the correct stroke order and direction as you pronounce it out loud and think of its meaning.
1 一 yī one
一 is itself a radical. One line represents “one.”
一 yī one [NU]
2 二 èr two
二 is itself a radical. Two lines represent “two.” Notice that the top line is shorter than the bottom one.
二 èr two [NU]
3 三 sān three
Radical is 一 yī (1). Three lines represent “three.” Notice that the middle line is the shortest, that the top line is a little longer than the middle line, and that the bottom line is the longest of the three strokes. Notice also that the Chinese numbers 一二三 are simple ideographs, being symbolic representations of the concepts “one, two, three,” much like the Roman numerals I II III turned on their sides. Contrast 三 and 二 èr (2).
三 sān three [NU]
4 四 sì four
Radical is 囗 wéi “enclose” [BF]. This radical is referred to colloquially as 围字框 (圍字框) wéizìkuàng “frame of the character 围 (圍) .”
四 sì four [NU]
5 五 wŭ five
Radical is 二 èr (2).
五 wŭ five [NU]
6 王 wáng king
Radical is 玉 yù “jade.” Contrast 王 and 五 wŭ (5).
王 Wáng Wang, Wong, Ong [SN]
Now practice reading the new characters and words for this lesson in context. Be sure to refer to the Notes at the end of this lesson, and make use of the accompanying audio disc to hear and practice correct pronunciation, phrasing, and intonation.
A. SINGLE DIGITS
Read out loud each of the following numbers.
1. 三
2. 一
3. 五
4. 二
5. 四
6. 一
7. 三
8. 二
9. 四
10. 五
B. TELEPHONE NUMBERS
Read out loud each of the following telephone numbers.
1. 三 二 一 二 五
2. 一 一 四 二
3. 三 五 一 三 四
4. 五 二 一 一 一
5.