Learn the key pattern to introduce yourself
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| Let's take a closer look at Mark's response. |
| Do you remember how Mark Lee introduces himself? |
| "Hello. My name is Mark Lee. Pleased to meet you." |
| 你好。我叫马克李。很高兴认识你。(Mǎkè Lǐ: Nǐhǎo. Wǒ jiào Mǎkè Lǐ. Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ.) |
| First is 你好 (Nǐhǎo), meaning "Hello." 你 好. 你好. |
| This is a commonly used greeting, and is often said when meeting people for the first time. |
| This starts with the word, 你 (Nǐ), "you." 你. 你. |
| Next is the word, 好 (hǎo), "good." 好. 好. |
| Together, it's 你好. |
| This phrase literally means "you good" but translates as "Hello." 你好. |
| Pronunciation note: when there are two third tones in a row, the first one changes to the second tone. Listen to the pronunciation again. 你好 (Nǐhǎo). 你好 (Nǐhǎo). |
| This pronunciation change is not reflected in the pinyin, as you will still see two third tones. |
| Before we look at how Mark introduces his name, let's look at the last part of Mark's response. |
| 很高兴认识你。(Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ.) "Nice to meet you" or "Pleased to meet you." 很高兴认识你。 |
| First is 很 (hěn), "very." 很(enunciated). 很. |
| This is followed by, 高兴 (gāoxìng), translating as "pleased" in this context. 高 兴. 高兴. |
| Next is the word 认识 (rènshi), "to know." 认识. 认识. |
| Last is the word, 你 (nǐ), "you." 你. |
| All together, 很高兴认识你。(Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ.) Literally, "Very pleased to know you," but it translates as "Pleased to meet you." 很高兴认识你。 |
| When meeting someone for the first time, you'll often hear this phrase, but omitting it in favor of a simple 你好 (nǐhǎo) is often enough. |
| Do you remember how Mark Lee says, |
| "My name is Mark Lee." |
| 我叫马克李。(Wǒ jiào Mǎkè Lǐ.) |
| First is 我 (Wǒ), "I." 我. 我. |
| Next is the word, 叫 (jiào), which translates as "to be called." 叫. 叫. |
| Together it's, 我叫 (Wǒ jiào), literally, "I'm called," but it translates as "My name is…" 我叫. |
| This phrase is used to introduce one's own name. |
| Next is Mark Lee's name, 马克李 (Mǎkè Lǐ). |
| Note: there is often a short pause between the first and the last name. For example, 马克 (pause) 李. |
| First is Mark's given name 马克 (Mǎkè), Mark. 马 克. 马克. |
| Followed by his family name, 李 (Lǐ), Lee. 李. 李. |
| All together, 我叫马克李。(Wǒ jiào Mǎkè Lǐ.) "I am called Mark Lee." 我叫马克李。 |
| When giving foreign names in Chinese, the name order follows the order of the original language. For example, Mark Lee translates to 马克李, as the name order in English is given name followed by family name. |
| For Chinese names, the order is family name followed by given names. |
| Zheng Zhu uses this order when he says, 我叫朱正。His family name, 朱 (Zhū), is followed by his given name, 正 (Zhèng). |
| The pattern is |
| 我叫 {NAME}。 |
| "My name is {NAME}." |
| 我叫 {NAME}。 |
| To use this pattern, simply replace the {NAME} placeholder with your name. |
| Imagine you're Karen Lee. In Chinese, 凯伦李 (Kǎilún Lǐ.). 凯伦李. 凯伦李. |
| Say |
| "My name is Karen Lee." |
| Ready? |
| 我叫凯伦李。 (Wǒ jiào Kǎilún Lǐ.) |
| "My name is Karen Lee." |
| 我叫凯伦李。 |
| When introducing yourself as a Chinese learner, you might want to use just your given name. |
| 我叫凯伦。 (Wǒ jiào Kǎilún.) |
| "My name is Karen." |
| 我叫凯伦。 |
| You can feel free to use the name you would like to be called. |
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