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Vocabulary
| Character |
Pinyin |
English |
| 官话 |
Guānhuà |
Mandarin (PN) |
| 普通话 |
Pǔtōnghuà |
Mandarin (PN) |
| 国语 |
Guóyǔ |
Mandarin (PN) |
| 语言 |
yǔyán |
language (N) |
| 通用语 |
tōngyòngyǔ |
common language/lingua franca (N) |
| 现代 |
xiàndài |
modern (Adj.) |
| 华语 |
Huáyǔ |
Chinese language (PN) |
| 方言 |
fāngyán |
dialect (N) |
| 声调 |
shēngdiào |
tone (N) |
| 一声 |
yīshēng |
first tone (N) |
| 二声 |
èrshēng |
second tone (N) |
| 三声 |
sānshēng |
third tone (N) |
| 四声 |
sìshēng |
fourth tone (N) |
| 语言学 |
yǔyánxué |
linguistics (N) |
| 语言学家 |
yǔyánxuéjiā |
linguist (N) |
| 北京话 |
Běijīnghuà |
Beijing Dialect (PN) |
| 白话 |
báihuà |
vernacular (N) |
| 汉藏语系 |
Hàn Zàng yǔxì |
Sino-Tibetan Language Family (PN) |
Study Questions
- Consider the different terms used to refer to Mandarin or Chinese language in general. Can you think of reasons that different terms might be used in different contexts or locations?
- Mandarin is the national language of a country with a great deal of linguistic diversity. Do you think that a country such as China could succeed without a unifying standard language? Why or why not?
