This set covers the five lessons in Mandarin communication foundations: polite questions, preferences with reasons, time expressions, repair moves and the swap test. All names and situations are invented for this page. Chinese stays in Simplified characters with pinyin.
Say each question aloud, answer in a full sentence, then open the explanation. Questions rise from easy to harder.
Practice questions
1. Make this polite and correct: 图书馆开门几点？
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请问，图书馆几点开门？ (Qǐngwèn, túshūguǎn jǐ diǎn kāimén?) The opener 请问 is added and the time word 几点 moves before the verb 开门.
2. Which sentence is correct? (a) 你有笔吗吗？ (b) 你有笔吗？ (c) 你有笔几吗？
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(b) 你有笔吗？ (Nǐ yǒu bǐ ma?) Only one 吗 is needed to make a yes or no question.
3. Ask where the school canteen is, politely.
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请问，学校的食堂在哪里？ (Qǐngwèn, xuéxiào de shítáng zài nǎlǐ?) The question word 哪里 stands where the answer would go.
4. Answer: 你想看电影还是打球？ Choose one and give a reason.
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Example: 我比较喜欢看电影，因为可以休息。 (Wǒ bǐjiào xǐhuan kàn diànyǐng, yīnwèi kěyǐ xiūxi.) Choice first, reason second, joined with 因为.
5. Correct this: 我喜欢猫比狗。
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Two fixes. Safer: 我比较喜欢猫，不太喜欢狗。 (Wǒ bǐjiào xǐhuan māo, bú tài xǐhuan gǒu.) With 比: 猫比狗安静。 (Māo bǐ gǒu ānjìng.) The pattern is A 比 B + adjective.
6. Say in Mandarin: “Next Sunday at 2 pm we have a football match.”
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下个星期天下午两点我们有足球比赛。 (Xià ge xīngqītiān xiàwǔ liǎng diǎn wǒmen yǒu zúqiú bǐsài.) Note 两点 (liǎng diǎn) for 2 o’clock, not 二点. Day, then time, then subject and verb.
7. Link three steps with 先, 然后, 最后: 买票, 进场, 看比赛 (buy a ticket, enter, watch the match).
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我们先买票，然后进场，最后看比赛。 (Wǒmen xiān mǎi piào, ránhòu jìnchǎng, zuìhòu kàn bǐsài.) The three links show the order of events.
8. You did not catch the teacher’s question because she spoke fast. What do you say?
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对不起，请说慢一点，再说一遍。 (Duìbuqǐ, qǐng shuō màn yìdiǎn, zài shuō yí biàn.) Two repair moves in one short sentence.
9. You forgot the word for “scissors” (剪刀, jiǎndāo). Describe it so that the listener can help.
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Example: 就是用来剪纸的东西。用中文怎么说？ (Jiù shì yòng lái jiǎn zhǐ de dōngxi. Yòng Zhōngwén zěnme shuō?) A short description plus a request for the word.
10. You have memorised 我星期六去图书馆 (I go to the library on Saturday). Test it: swap in a new day and place, then answer 你什么时候去图书馆？
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Swap: 我星期天去公园。 (Wǒ xīngqītiān qù gōngyuán.) The frame holds. The question 什么时候 (shénme shíhou, when) needs a time, so answer 星期六。 or 我星期六去。 If you can do both, the phrase is understood.
If you got these wrong
- Questions 1 to 3: the word order or 吗 is the problem. Review asking for a practical detail politely.
- Questions 4 and 5: the choice, the reason or 比 is wrong. Go to explaining a preference with a reason.
- Questions 6 and 7: the time word is misplaced or the links are missing. Review time expressions to organise an event.
- Questions 8 and 9: you stayed silent or switched to English. Practise keeping an exchange going after a missing word.
- Question 10: the phrase breaks when the question changes. Use the swap test in telling memorised phrases from understood meaning.
What should you do next?
Record each missed question in the mistake log and retest queue with the lesson tag. Write a corrected second version of any written answer and compare it using the writing revision compare view.
If you would like a teacher to listen to your spoken answers and set the next questions, see our online one-to-one Chinese tuition.