In any crowded city, good manners are often in short supply. Most people are tense and stressed. Yet, there is always a place for courtesy and good behavior and it will be helpful if you can learn to speak with your colleagues and friend, even strangers, about good and bad manners!
In this Podcast, you will learn:
(i) To demonstrate that you have good manners
(ii)How to insist upon doing something which someone politely rejects the first time
Dialogue:
A pregnant woman is standing on the underground train:
（在地铁上）
(zài dì tiě shàng)
(on the underground)
A:女士，您坐这儿吧。
Nǚ shì, nín zuò zhè er ba.
Ma’am, you can sit here.
B:啊，不用啦。我就两站就下。
À, bù yòng la. Wǒ jiù lǐang zhàn jiù xià.
Oh, it’s okay. I only have two stops to go.
A:坐吧，坐吧。不要客气。
Zuò ba, zuò ba, bù yào kè qi.
Please sit, you’re so welcome to.
B:好，谢谢你。
Hǎo, xiè xie nǐ.
Okay, thank you.
（在电影院）
(zài diàn yǐng yuàn)
(at the cinema)
A:哎，先生，你怎么加塞儿啊？
Āi, xiān sheng, nín zěn me jiā sāi er a?
Hey sir, how can you cut in line?
B:啊，对不起，对不起。我太着急了，没看见队。
A, duì bù qǐ, duì bù qǐ, wǒ tài zhāo jí le, méi kàn jiàn duì.
Oh, sorry, sorry. I was in such a hurry that I didn’t see the line.
A:你得去后面儿排队。
Nǐ děi qù hòu mian er pái duì.
You need to line up at the back.
Chinese words and phrases mentioned in this Podcast:
给孕妇让座：giving up your seat to a pregnant lady
让：give away
地铁：underground
坐：sit
两站：two stops
下：get off the train
不要客气：don’t be too polite
电影院：cinema
加塞儿／插队：cut in line (加塞儿is more casual)
太……：too much
着急：hurry
队：line
排队：line up
得：need to
后面：at the back
Cultural/Grammar note:
Chinese people are indirect and sometimes they are overly polite. Even though the lady would like to sit in this conversation, she would still say ‘不用了’, so don’t give up when you hear that. If you offer it to her again, she will probably take the seat.
‘让座’ is courtesy and ‘插队’ is really rude.
Mandarin Chinese learning resources we recommend:
