Mandarin Chinese has lots of words and expressions to show politeness.
We’ve already covered basic phrases like “请问 qǐng wèn” and “谢谢 xiè xie”.
So, today we’ll kick it up a notch to help make your Chinese sound more polite in specific situations!
Summary Of The Polite Chinese Expressions From The Video Above
Part 1: Saying No Politely in Chinese
Example 1:
nǐ yào shì shì zhè kuǎn xié zi ma？
你要试试这款鞋子吗？
Do you want to try these shoes?
bù yòng le， xiè xiè nín！
不用了，谢谢您！
No, thank you!
Example 2:
nǐ yào mǎi zhè kuǎn jí tā ma？
你要买这款吉他吗？
Do you want to buy this guitar?
wǒ bù què dìng， wǒ xū yào zài kǎo lǜ yī xià.
我不确定，我需要再考虑一下。
I'm not sure, I need to think about it.
Example 3:
nǐ shǔ jià yào hé wǒ men yī qǐ qù mǎ lái xī yà ma？
你暑假要和我们一起去马来西亚吗？
Do you want to go to Malaysia with us this summer holiday?
wǒ bù què dìng， wǒ xū yào zài xiǎng yī xià.
我不确定，我需要再想一下。
I'm not sure, I need to think about it.
Example 4:
nǐ míng tiān xiǎng lái wǒ jiā zuò yú jiā ma？
你明天想来我家做瑜伽吗？
Do you want to come to my place and do yoga tomorrow?
Option 1:
bù hǎo yì sī，wǒ yǒu bié de shì qíng xū yào zuò.
不好意思，我有别的事情需要做。
Sorry, I've got something else on.
Option 2:
bào qiàn，wǒ yǐ jīng ān pái le qí tā de shì qíng le.
抱歉，我已经安排了其他的事情了。
Sorry, I've already arranged something else.
Option 3:
zhēn bù qiǎo，wǒ yǒu qí tā de shì qíng. xià cì ba！
真不巧，我有其他的事情。下次吧！
Unfortunately, I've got something else on. Let's do it next time!
Example 5:
nǐ zhè gè zhōu mò kě yǐ bāng wǒ bān jiā ma？
你这个周末可以帮我搬家吗？
Can you help me move this weekend?
Option 1:
zhēn bù hǎo yì sī，wǒ zhōu mò yǒu qí tā de shì qíng.
真不好意思，我周末有其他的事情。
I'm really sorry, I've got something else on this weekend.
Option 2:
fēi cháng bào qiàn，wǒ zhōu mò yǒu bié de shì qíng.
非常抱歉，我周末有别的事情。
I'm really sorry, I've got something else on this weekend.
Option 3:
fēi cháng bù qiǎo，wǒ zhōu mò xū yào chù lǐ bié de shì qíng.
非常不巧，我周末需要处理别的事情。
Unfortunately, I need to deal with something else this weekend.
Part 2: Polite Requests in Chinese
请 qǐng + Your Request
Please ...
Example 1:
qǐng zuò!
请坐!
Sit down, please!
Example 2:
qǐng jìn!
请进!
Come in, please!
Example 3:
qǐng gěi wǒ yī bēi kā fēi.
请给我一杯咖啡。
Please give me a cup of coffee.
请 qǐng + Your Request + 一下 yīxià
Please ... for a bit / a moment
To soften the tone of your request, you can simply add 一下 (yīxià) after the verb.
Example 1:
qǐng nǐ děng yī xià.
请你等一下。
Just (wait) one moment, please.
Example 2:
qǐng nǐ huí fù yī xià.
请你回复一下。
Please reply. ( "yī xià 一下" indicates that it's a brief action that takes little effort )
Example 3:
qǐng nǐ què rèn yī xià.
请你确认一下。
Please confirm. ( "yī xià 一下" indicates that it's a brief action that takes little effort)
Example 4:
qǐng nǐ kàn yī xià.
请你看一下。
Please take a look. ( "yī xià 一下" indicates that it's a brief action that takes little effort).
可以麻烦您 kě yǐ má fán nín + Your Request + 吗 ma？
Could I bother you to...?
Example 1:
kě yǐ má fán nín kāi chuāng ma？
可以麻烦您开窗吗？
Could I bother you to open the window?
Example 2:
kě yǐ má fán nín guān mén ma？
可以麻烦您关门吗？
Could I bother you to close the door?
Example 3:
kě yǐ má fán nín bāng wǒ qiān shōu bāo guǒ ma？
可以麻烦您帮我签收包裹吗？
Could I bother you to get my package?
你介意 nǐ jiè yì + Your Request + 吗 ma？
Would you mind...?
Example 1:
nǐ jiè yì bāng wǒ dào yī bēi kā fēi ma？
你介意帮我倒一杯咖啡吗？
Would you mind getting me a cup of coffee?
Example 2:
nǐ jiè yì wǒ wèn nǐ yī gè sī rén wèn tí ma？
你介意我问你一个私人问题吗？
Would you mind if I ask you a personal question?
Example 3:
nǐ jiè yì wǒ bǎ kōng tiáo guān diào ma？
你介意我把空调关掉吗？
Would you mind if I turn off the air-condtioner?
如果你有空的话 rú guǒ nǐ yǒu kòng de huà + Your Request
If you are free...
Example 1:
rú guǒ nǐ yǒu kòng de huà，nǐ kě yǐ bāng wǒ jì zhè gè bāo guǒ ma？
如果你有空的话，你可以帮我寄这个包裹吗？
If you are free, can you send this package for me?
Example 2:
rú guǒ nǐ yǒu kòng de huà，nǐ kě yǐ lái yī xià wǒ bàn gōng shì ma？
如果你有空的话，你可以来一下我办公室吗？
If you are free, can you come to my office?
如果你方便的话 rú guǒ nǐ fāng biàn de huà + Your Request
If it's convenient for you...
Example 1:
rú guǒ nǐ fāng biàn de huà，wǒ men xiàn zài kě yǐ shì pín ma？
如果你方便的话，我们现在可以视频吗？
If it's convenient for you, can we have a video chat now?
Example 2:
rú guǒ nǐ fāng biàn de huà, nǐ kě yǐ fā yī xià dì zhǐ gěi wǒ ma？
如果你方便的话，你可以发一下地址给我吗？
If it's convenient for you, can you send me the address?
如果您能 rú guǒ nín néng + Your Request, 那就完美了nà jiù wán měi le！
It would be perfect if you could...
Example 1:
rú guǒ nín néng bǎ liàn jiē fā gěi wǒ，nà jiù wán měi le！
如果您能把链接发给我，那就完美了！
It would be perfect if you could send me the link!
Example 2:
rú guǒ nín néng bāng wǒ dìng jī piào，nà jiù wán měi le！
如果您能帮我订机票，那就完美了！
It would be perfect if you could help book a flight ticket for me!
Example 3:
rú guǒ nín néng bāng wǒ liú gǒu，nà jiù wán měi le！
如果您能帮我遛狗，那就完美了！
It would be perfect if you could help walk my dog!
Part 3: Polite Questions in Chinese
请问 qǐng wèn + Your Question
May I ask..? / Excuse me...
Example 1:
qǐng wèn dì tiě zhàn zài nǎ lǐ？
请问地铁站在哪里？
Excuse me, where is the metro station?
Example 2:
qǐng wèn yǒu bīng shuǐ ma？
请问有冰水吗？
May I ask if there is ice water?
不好意思 bù hǎo yì sī / 抱歉 bào qiàn / 打扰一下 dǎ rǎo yī xià + 请问 qǐng wèn + Your Question
Sorry/Excuse me / Sorry / Bother you for a bit...
We can make it even more polite by adding these polite phrases to the beginning.
Example 1:
bù hǎo yì sī，qǐng wèn zhè gè duō shǎo qián？
不好意思，请问这个多少钱？
Excuse me, may I ask you how much this is?
Example 2:
bào qiàn，qǐng wèn zhè kuǎn xié zi yǒu dà yī diǎn de ma？
抱歉，请问这款鞋子有大一点的吗？
Sorry, may I ask you if you have these shoes in a bigger size?
Example 3:
dǎ rǎo yī xià，qǐng wèn fù jìn yǒu kā fēi guǎn ma？
打扰一下，请问附近有咖啡馆吗？
I'm sorry to bother you for a bit, may I ask if there is a cafe nearby?
Part 4: Polite Suggestions in Chinese
Imagine that your friend has bought a new sofa and you want to suggest a place to put it.
Instead of saying: Put the sofa here. 把沙发放在这里。bǎ shā fā fàng zài zhè lǐ.
You could word it as a question:
Your Suggestion + 怎么样 zěn me yàng？
How about..?
Example:
wǒ men bǎ shā fā fàng zài zhè lǐ，zěn me yàng？
我们把沙发放在这里，怎么样？
How about we put the sofa here?
你觉得 nǐ jué de + Your Suggestion + 怎么样 zěn me yàng？
How do you feel about..? / What do you think about..?
Example:
nǐ jué de wǒ men bǎ shā fā fàng zài zhè lǐ，zěn me yàng？
你觉得我们把沙发放在这里，怎么样？
How do you feel about putting the sofa here?
我们要不试试 wǒ men yào bù shì shì + Your Suggestion？
Should we try..?
Example:
wǒ men yào bù shì shì bǎ shā fā fàng zài zhè lǐ？
我们要不试试把沙发放在这里？
Should we try to put the sofa here?
如果我们 rú guǒ wǒ men + Your Suggestion + 可以吗 kě yǐ ma？
What if we..?
Example:
rú guǒ wǒ men bǎ shā fā fàng zài zhè lǐ，kě yǐ ma？
如果我们把沙发放在这里，可以吗？
What if we put the sofa here?