{"id":9815,"date":"2014-03-06T08:00:02","date_gmt":"2014-03-06T12:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/?p=9815"},"modified":"2017-08-08T15:35:56","modified_gmt":"2017-08-08T19:35:56","slug":"how-to-shop-for-clothes-in-mandarin-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/how-to-shop-for-clothes-in-mandarin-one\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Shop for Clothes in Mandarin (Part One)"},"content":{"rendered":"

In our last post, we taught you 20 useful Mandarin Chinese words for clothing<\/a>. These words will help you get started in your quest to do your clothes shopping yourself in China, but you’ve still got a long way to go. While the vocabulary is useful, you need to be able to ask and answer questions as well, which involves learning a bit of Chinese grammar.<\/p>\n

When you enter a shop, you’ll usually be greeted with this phrase:<\/p>\n

Welcome! (\u6b22\u8fce\u5149\u4e34 – hu\u0101n y\u00edng gu\u0101ng l\u00edn)<\/h3>\n

After the pleasantries, you can expect to be asked a question. Here are a few examples:<\/p>\n

What do you want? (\u4f60\u8981\u4ec0\u4e48\uff1f- n\u01d0 y\u00e0o sh\u00e9n me)<\/h3>\n

What are you looking for? (\u4f60\u5728\u627e\u4ec0\u4e48? – n\u01d0 z\u00e0i zh\u01ceo sh\u00e9n me)<\/h3>\n

For some, the idea that a shopkeeper might outright ask you “What do you want?” may seem a bit rude, but this is just the way things are done in China. It’s not rude at all – it’s just a direct language!<\/p>\n

\"Perhaps<\/a>

Perhaps you want an awesome Chinglish t-shirt?<\/p><\/div>\n

Sometimes you know exactly what you’re looking for, while other times you may have no idea. Here are some useful phrases for those situations:<\/p>\n

I’m just looking. (\u6211\u968f\u4fbf\u770b\u770b – w\u01d2 su\u00ed bi\u00e0n k\u00e0n k\u00e0n)<\/h3>\n

I just want to have a look. (\u6211\u53ea\u8981\u770b\u4e00\u4e0b – w\u01d2 zh\u01d0 y\u00e0o k\u00e0n y\u012b xi\u00e0)<\/h3>\n

I’m looking for… (\u6211\u5728\u627e… – w\u01d2 z\u00e0i zh\u01ceo…)<\/h3>\n

I’m looking for a pair of pants. (\u6211\u5728\u627e\u4e00\u6761\u88e4\u5b50 – w\u01d2 z\u00e0i zh\u01ceo y\u012b ti\u00e1o k\u00f9 zi)<\/h3>\n

Remember your measure words when shopping for clothes! If you need to brush up on those, we recently posted 10 Must Know Chinese Measure Words<\/a>, so go back and check it out. As a little helper, here are a few of those measure words that you’ll probably use:<\/p>\n

\u4e2a – g\u00e8 (generic catch-all measure word)
\n\u4ef6 – ji\u00e0n (for articles of clothing, i.e. shirt, coat, etc.)
\n\u53cc – shu\u0101ng (for pairs, i.e. shoes, boots, socks)
\n\u6761 – ti\u00e1o (for long things, like pants or jeans)<\/h3>\n
\"Inside<\/a>

Inside one of many clothing markets in China.<\/p><\/div>\n

Of course, you’ll also need to know your colors. Watch this video and practice a bit:<\/p>\n