Rightly or wrongly, people always judge others by their appearance. Therefore, especially for a company function or for other than a casual occasion it’s best to “dress-up” to make sure you portray the right image. Talking with your work colleagues or friends in Mandarin Chinese about what to wear will be a great help—so make sure you know how to do this appropriately!
In this Podcast, you will learn:
(i) How to discuss suitable attire for a company event
(ii) To take advice from a colleague about what to wear
Dialogue:
Office colleagues are talking about a company event:
（在公司）
(Zài gōng sī)
(at the company)
A:晚上公司活动的着装要求是什么？
A: Wǎn shàng gōng sī huó dòng de zhuó zhuāng yāo qiú shì shén me?
What’s the dress code for the company event this evening?
B:今天晚上是鸡尾酒会，我觉得起码应该是半正式吧。
B: Jīn tiān wǎn shàng shì jī wěi jiǔ huì, wǒ jué dé qǐ mǎ yīng gāi shì bàn zhèng shì ba.
Tonight is a cocktail party; I think it should be semi-formal at least.
A:啊？那我这身儿是不是有点太休闲了？
A: A? Nà wǒ zhè shen er shì bù shì yǒu diǎn tài xiū xián le?
Ah…? So what I’m wearing now is a bit too casual, right?
B:确实有一点儿。好像大家都准备穿小礼服裙呢！
B: Què shí yǒu yī diǎn er. Hǎo xiàng dà jiā dōu zhǔn bèi chuān xiǎo lǐ fú qún ne!
Yes, it is indeed. Looks like everybody is going to wear evening dress.
A:那下班时我早走一会儿，去附近商场买件小黑裙。
A: Nà xià bān shí wǒ zǎo zǒu yī huǐ’er, qù fù jìn shāng chǎng mǎi jiàn xiǎo hēi qún.
Then I will leave early from work to buy a little black dress in the shopping center nearby.
B:好，我陪你一起去。
B: Hǎo, wǒ péi nǐ yī qǐ qù.
Okay, I can go with you.
Chinese words and phrases mentioned in this Podcast:
公司活动：company event
着装要求：dress code
正式：formal
半正式：semi-formal
非正式：informal
商务便装：business casual
商务休闲：casual
正式服装：formal outfit
西装：suit
晚礼服：evening gown
休闲装：casual outfit
牛仔裤：jeans
T恤衫：T-shirt
鸡尾酒会：cocktail party
起码／至少：at least
应该：should be
这身儿：the outfit that I’m wearing
休闲：casual
确实有点儿：yes indeed
准备：be going to
礼服裙：evening dress
小礼服裙：less formal than evening dress
下班：after work
早走：leave early
附近：nearby
商场：mall
小黑裙：a little black dress
陪你：go with you
Cultural/Grammar note:
Every girl should keep a little black dress in her wardrobe, because when you don’t know what to wear, wearing a little black dress is always likely to be right.
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