Chinese TV shows can be a great tool for improving your Mandarin.
Apart from engaging conversations and cultural insights... TV shows offer visual input that can help you notice how words and body language is used in specific situations.
You’ll see plenty of examples of this in today’s video!
TV Series #1: 安家 ān jiā (I Will Find You a Better Home)
安家 ān jiā (I Will Find You a Better Home) is a feel-good drama. It’s a highly rated show with more than four billion online views.
The story revolves around the lives of real estate agents in Shanghai.
We get to see them deal with quirky clients, love interests, family matters, money issues, and of course, selling houses.
Director: An Jian
Screenwriter: Liu Liu
Genres: Business, Romance, Drama
In summary, this drama is a wonderful watch that gives you a peek into life in Shanghai. It’s packed with natural everyday language, which makes it great for Mandarin learners 🙂
My Rating: 5 of 5
Watch all episodes of 安家 ān jiā (I Will Find You a Better Home) with English subtitles on Youtube.
Useful Chinese Language from this show:
wǒ shì zǒng diàn pài lái de xīn diàn zhǎng.
我是总店派来的新店长。
I am the new branch manager set by the headquarter.
wǒ jiào fáng sì jǐn.
我叫房似锦。
My name is Fang Sijin.
A common way to introduce yourself in Chinese:
wǒ shì + Job Title. wǒ jiào + Your Name.
我是 + Job Title. 我叫 + Your Name.
méi yǒu wǒ mài bù chū qù de fáng zi.
没有我卖不出去的房子。
There is no house I can not sell.
jiù gěi wǒ yī fēn zhōng de shí jiān.
就给我一分钟的时间。
Just give me one minute of your time.
shēn wèi fáng chǎn zhōng jiè，
身为房产中介，
As a real estate agent,
zhǐ yǒu mài chū fáng zi cái shì yìng dào lǐ.
只有卖出房子才是硬道理。
your ultimate goal is to sell the house.
xú gū gu shàng bān shí jiān liù gǒu qù le.
徐姑姑上班时间遛狗去了。
Xu Gugu (Manager Xu) is walking his dog during office hours.
hē bēi kā fēi dìng dìng xīn.
喝杯咖啡定定心。
Have a cup of coffee to calm your nerves.
nín hǎo！ wǒ shì xú wén chāng.
您好！我是徐文昌。
Hello! This is Xu Wenchang.
qǐng wèn nín shì yào mǎi fáng hái shì mài fáng？
请问您是要买房还是卖房？
Are you looking to buy or sell a house?
Useful language for buying (or renting) a home:
xiǎng mǎi yī tào xiǎo gōng yù.
想买一套小公寓。
I want to buy a small condo (apartment).
yǒu xiàn chéng de fáng zi kě yǐ kàn ma？
有现成的房子可以看吗？
Do you have any open houses?
wǒ bù yào mǎi diàn tī fáng.
我不要买电梯房。
I don't want any houses with elevators.
nán běi tōng de fáng zi wǒ bù kǎo lǜ.
南北通的房子我不考虑。
I will not consider any houses facing south or north.
wǒ zhǐ gěi nǐ yī gè yuè shí jiān.
我只给你一个月时间。
I only give you one month.
fáng chǎn yǒu xiá cī de fáng zi wǒ bù huì pèng de.
房产有瑕疵的房子我不会碰的。
I will not buy houses with title deed issues.
yào qiú yào jué duì de ān jìng.
要求要绝对的安静。
I want absolute quietness.
TV Series #2: 穿越火线 chuān yuè huǒ xiàn (Cross Fire)
If you like e-sports and prefer watching bromance over romance, then you will like 穿越火线 chuān yuè huǒ xiàn (Cross Fire).
The show focuses on two young men, 肖枫 xiào fēng and 路小北 lù xiǎo běi. These guys are addicted to the game Cross Fire and fight for their dreams of becoming professional players. The show explores themes like friendship, conflict and working together towards a common goal.
Director: Derek Hui
Screenwriter: Xu Su
Genres: Action, Friendship, Comedy, Youth, Sci-Fi, Sports
Although 穿越火线 chuān yuè huǒ xiàn (Cross Fire) is not exactly my cup of tea, I think it’s well made and suitable for Mandarin learners who are interested in e-sports and action.
My Rating: 3 of 5
Watch all episodes of 穿越火线 chuān yuè huǒ xiàn (Cross Fire) with English subtitles on Youtube.
Useful lines for talking about hopes & dreams:
nǐ nǎo zi lǐ biān xiǎng shén me ne nǐ？
你脑子里边想什么呢你？
lit. "What are you thinking in your head?"
wǒ xiǎng zuò wǒ zì jǐ xǐ huān zuò de shì.
我想做我自己喜欢做的事。
I want to do what I like to do.
nǐ gāng cái shuō shén me？
你刚才说什么？
What did you say?
wǒ shuō wǒ yào cí diào zhè fèn gōng zuò.
我说我要辞掉这份工作。
I said I'm going to quit this job.
zhè yī cì， wǒ yào zuò yī gè gèng dà de mèng.
这一次，我要做一个更大的梦。
This time, I'm going to have a bigger dream.
qīng chūn tè bié bǎo guì,
青春特别宝贵，
Youth is really precious,
suǒ yǐ wǒ yào bǎ wǒ de qīng chūn yòng zài wǒ zuì rè ài de shì qíng shàng.
所以我要把我的青春用在我最热爱的事情上。
so I want to use my youth for the things I love most.
zuò bù xiǎng zuò de shìr， néng gòu rěn yī zhèn zi，
做不想做的事儿，能够忍一阵子，
Doing things you don't want to do can be tolerated for a while,
dàn shì rěn bù le yī bèi zi.
但是忍不了一辈子。
but not for a lifetime.
rè ài shì cáng bù zhù de.
热爱是藏不住的。
Love cannot be hidden.
Useful Lines for talking about friendship, teamwork & conflicts:
nǐ shì gè duì zhǎng， méi yǒu lǐng pǎo de rén，
你是个队长，没有领跑的人，
You're a captain, you don't have a leader,
nǐ de zhàn duì yǒng yuǎn zǒu bù yuǎn.
你的战队永远走不远。
your team is never far away.
nǐ gè rén néng zǒu duō yuǎn, qǔ jué yú gēn shéi tóng xíng.
你个人能走多远，取决于跟谁同行。
How far you can go personally depends on who you're with.
jiā yóu！ jiā yóu！ jiā yóu！
加油！加油！加油！
Come on! Come on! Come on!
kǎo lǜ yī xià， lái wǒ zhàn duì.
考虑一下，来我战队。
Think about it, come to my team.
wǒ jiù bù míng bái， wǒ bǎ wǒ zì jǐ de ài hào，
我就不明白，我把我自己的爱好，
I don't understand, I take my own hobby,
dāng chéng zhí yè，dāng chéng lǐ xiǎng.
当成职业，当成理想。
treat is as a career, treat it as a dream.
wǒ nǎr zuò cuò le？
我哪儿做错了？
Where did I go wrong?
wǒ fǎn fù tí xǐng guò nǐ，
我反复提醒过你，
I have reminded you repeatedly that
wǒ fǎn fù tí xǐng guò nǐ，
我反复提醒过你，
I have reminded you repeatedly that
xiàn zài jiù kàn shéi néng bǎ wò zhù jī huì.
现在就看谁能把握住机会。
Now let's just see who can seize the opportunity.
wǒ xiāng xìn， jiù suàn shì shū dé pì gǔn niào liú，
我相信，就算是输得屁滚尿流，
I believe that even if I lose,
wǒ yě yǒu wú shù cì zhòng lái de jī huì.
我也有无数次重来的机会。
I will have countless chances to come back.
TV Series #3: 离婚律师 lí hūn lǜ shī (Divorce Lawyers)
离婚律师 lí hūn lǜ shī (Divorce Lawyers) is a romantic comedy show about two divorce lawyers.
罗鹂 luó lí，believes in love and marriage, while 池海东 chí hǎi dōng，thinks that love is a lie and marriage is hell.
The two lawyers get entangled with each other when 罗鹂 luó lí represents 池海东 chí hǎi dōng's ex-wife in his divorce case.
Director: Vincent Yang
Screenwriter: Chen Tong
Genres: Comedy, Law, Romance
Overall, I think 离婚律师 lí hūn lǜ shī (Divorce Lawyers) is quite entertaining, and for language learners, the dialogue has many great examples of how to argue your point in clear and correct Mandarin.
My Rating: 4 of 5
Watch all episodes of 离婚律师 lí hūn lǜ shī (Divorce Lawyers) with English subtitles on Youtube.
Useful Chinese Language from this show:
hūn yīn duì wǒ lái shuō zhǐ shì gè xíng shì.
婚姻对我来说只是个形式。
Marriage is just a formality to me.
wǒ zuì tòng hèn de jiù shì
我最痛恨的就是
What I hate most is
nèi xiē pò huài bié rén jiā tíng de nǚ rén.
那些破坏别人家庭的女人。
those women who destroy other people's families.
Useful Lines for talking about relationships:
zhēn méi xiǎng dào，
真没想到，
I really didn't think that
yuán lái wǒ zì jǐ jiù shì yī gè kě chǐ de dì sān zhě.
原来我自己就是一个可耻的第三者。
I would be a shameful "third one". (Somebody who is romantically involved with
somebody who is already in a relationship.)
nǐ jué de wǒ gēn chí hǎi dōng...？
你觉得我跟池海东...？
Do you think I and chí hǎi dōng...?
méi xì！
没戏！
(coll.) Not a chance.
zán liǎ suàn shén me guān xì a？
咱俩算什么关系啊？
What's the relationship between us?
zán liǎ shì chún yǒu yì guān xì a.
咱俩是纯友谊关系啊。
The relationship between us is pure friendship.
zán liǎ jiù néng zhèng shì de zhù zài yī qǐ le.
咱俩就能正式地住在一起了。
We can live together officially.
nǐ men liǎ cái shì zhēn zhèng de gǒu nán nǚ.
你们俩才是真正的狗男女。
You two are the real cheating couple. (lit. dog male & female)
wǒ duì nǐ shì zhēn xīn xǐ huān.
我对你是真心喜欢。
I really like you.
zhēn zhèng de ài qíng hé hūn yīn wú guān.
真正的爱情和婚姻无关。
True love has nothing to do with marriage.
wǒ yī zhí yǐ wéi nǐ xǐ huān wǒ，
我一直以为你喜欢我，
I always thought you liked me
xiǎng hé wǒ gòng dù yú shēng.
想和我共度余生。
and wanted to spend the rest of your life with me.
xiè xiè nǐ duì wǒ de ài，nǐ kě yǐ bǎ tā shōu huí le.
谢谢你对我的爱，你可以把它收回了。
Thank you for your love for me, you can take it back.
wǒ lí hūn le.
我离婚了。
I am divorced.
lí lí， jià gěi wǒ ba!
鹂鹂，嫁给我吧!
Lili, marry me!
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