Unit Two: My Family

Objectives: Learn how to introduce your family members

Part I: This is my father…

Listen and Learn

(Listen to the recording or your teacher several times. During the first two times, do not say anything. Just listen attentively and pay attention to pronunciation,  tones and sentence intonation. After the second time, you can follow the model and speak out loudly. Practice several times.)

Zhè shì wǒ bàba.
This is my father.
這是我爸爸。

Zhè shì wǒ māma.
This is my mother.
這是我媽媽。

Zhè shì wǒ dìdi.
This is my younger brother.
這是我弟弟。

Zhè shì wǒ tàitai.
This is my wife.
這是我太太。

Zhè shì wǒ érzi.
This is my son.
這是我兒子。

New Words

bàba	爸爸	a father	
māma	媽媽	a mother	
dìdi	弟弟	a younger brother	
tàitai	太太	a wife	
érzi	兒子	a son	

Notes

1.	The pattern ‘Zhè shì …’ is straightforward. It is as same as English ‘This is …’

2.	‘wǒ bàba’ – ‘my father’. The word ‘wǒ, nǐ and tā’ can be used as ‘my, your and his, her’ to indicate the relationship between you and your family members.

3.	 ‘dìdi’- ‘a younger brother’. In Chinese you can’t just say ‘This is my brother.’ You have to specify if he is your elder brother or younger brother.

Practice

•	Try to say the following words or phrases in Chinese

younger brother	弟弟	________________	
father	爸爸	________________	
mother	媽媽	________________	
son	兒子	________________	
wife	太太	________________	

•	Use the pattern ‘Zhè shì… (This is…)’ to say the following sentences in Chinese:

	This is my mother. _______________________________
	This is my wife. _______________________________
	This is my father. _______________________________
	This is my son. _______________________________
	This is my younger brother. _______________________________
This is my teacher. _______________________________
This is (a) student. _______________________________
	This is Wang Ying. _______________________________

•	Try to introduce your family members or your friends.

Example:

	Níhǎo.
	Wǒ xìng Smith.
Wǒ jiào Bill.
Zhè shì wǒ bàba māma. 
	Wǒ bàba māma shì lǎoshī.
Zhè shì wǒ dìdi John. 
Tā shì xuésheng.
	Xièxie. Zàijiàn.

	Your introduction:

	______ (Hello!)
	__________ (My last name is…)
	_______________ (My first name is …)
	_______________ (This is my….)
	_______________ (He is ….)
	(Add more introductions here)
	___________ (Thank you. Good-bye.)

You may need some additional words to introduce your family members. If you need more words, ask your instructor.

gēge	哥哥	an elder brother	
jiějie	姐姐	an elder sister	
mèimei	妹妹	a younger sister	
xiānsheng	先生	a husband	
nǚér	女兒	a daughter	

Part II: I have a brother…

Listen and Learn

(Listen to the recording or your teacher several times. During the first two times, do not say anything. Just listen attentively and pay attention to pronunciation,  tones and sentence intonation. After the second time, you can follow the model and speak out loudly. Practice several times

Wǒ yǒu yí ge dìdi.
I have a younger brother.
我有一個弟弟。

Wǒ méiyǒu gēge.
I don't have elder brother.
我沒有哥哥。

Wǒ yě méiyǒu jiějie, mèimei.
I don't have elder sister and younger sister, either.
我也沒有姐姐、妹妹。

Wǒ yǒu yí ge érzi.
I have a son.
我有一個兒子。

New Words

yǒu	有	to have	
yī	一	one	
gè	個	a measure word	
méi	沒	not, a negation word	
gēge	哥哥	an elder brother	
yě	也	also, either	
jiějie	姐姐	an elder sister	
mèimei	妹妹	a younger sister	

Notes

1. 'yǒu' means 'to have'. 'méiyǒu' means 'do not have'.

2. Tone change: In the sentence ‘Wǒ yǒu yí ge dìdi.’ there are two cases of tone changes: ‘Wǒ yǒu…’ changed to ‘Wó yǒu…’, ‘yī ge dìdi’ changed to ‘yí ge dìdi’. The first case was discussed before. The tone change of the word ‘yī’ is more complicated and it will be discussed later.

3. ‘gè’ is a measure word. It is placed before a noun and it functions in the similar way as in English ‘a piece of news’, ‘a lump of sugar’. ‘gè’ is pronounced as ‘ge’, in a low pitch in this context.

4. 'yě' means 'too, also, either' 'Wǒ yě méiyǒu jiějie, mèimei.' means 'I don't have sisters, either.' Pay particular attention to the position of 'yě': it is right before 'měiyǒu', not at the end of the sentence. 

Practice

•	Try to say the following words or phrases in Chinese

to have	有	________________	
one	一	________________	
a measure word	個	________________	
not, a negation word	沒	________________	
an elder brother	哥哥	________________	
also, either	也	________________	
an elder sister	姐姐	________________	
a younger sister	妹妹	________________	

•	Use the word ‘yǒu’ (to have) or ‘méiyǒu’ (do not have)’ to say the following sentences in Chinese:

	I have an elder brother. _______________________________
	I do not have elder sisters. _______________________________
	I do not have younger sisters, either. _______________________________
	He has a younger brother. _______________________________
	He has a son. _______________________________
	She does not have daughters. _______________________________
	He has a younger brother. He also has a younger sister. ________________
	_____________________________________________________________

•	Try to tell your class about your family.

Example:

	Níhǎo.
	Wǒ xìng Wáng.
Wǒ jiào Xiǎohuá.
Zhè shì wǒ bàba māma. 
	Wǒ bàba māma shì lǎoshī.
Wǒ yǒu yí ge dìdi.
Tā jiào Xiǎoyīng.
Tā shì xuésheng.
Wǒ méiyou gēge, yě méiyou jiějie mèimei.
	Xièxie. Zàijiàn.

Your narration:

	______ (Hello!)
	_______________ (My first name is …)
	_______________ (I have a….)
	_______________ (He/she is called …)
	_______________ (I do not have …)
	(Add anything appropriate here.)
	___________ (Thank you. Good-bye.)

Part III: Dialogue – Do you have brothers or sisters?

Listen and Learn

(Listen to the recording or your teacher several times. During the first two times, do not say anything. Just listen attentively and pay attention to pronunciation,  tones and sentence intonation. After the second time, you can follow the model and speak out loudly. Practice several times.)

A: Ní yǒu gēge ma?
A: Do you have elder brothers?
A:你有哥哥嗎？

B: Wǒ méiyǒu gēge.
B: I don't have elder brothers.
B:我沒有哥哥。

A: Ní yǒu mèimei ma?
A: Do you have younger siters?
A:你有妹妹嗎？

B: Wó yě méiyǒu mèimei.
B: I don't have younger sister, either.
B:我也沒有妹妹。

A: Xièxie.
A: Thank you.
A:謝謝。

B: Búxiè.
B: You're welcome.
B:不謝。

A: Zàijiàn.
A: Bye.
A:再見。

B: Zàijiàn.
B: Bye.
B:再見。

New Words

ma	嗎	a question marker	
búxiè	不謝	no thanks, you’re welcome 	

Notes

1. 'ma' is a question marker. The Chinese yes/no questions are formed by adding the question marker ‘ma’ to the end of a statement. 
Example:  ‘Nǐ yǒu mèimei ma?’ - Do you have younger sisters?

2. When someone says ‘xièxie’ (thanks) to you, the appropriate response is ‘búxiè’ (no thanks, you’re welcome.)

Practice

•	Say the following phrases in Chinese;

a younger brother ______________________
a younger sister ______________________
an elder brother ______________________
an elder sister ______________________
to not have ______________________
to have ______________________
thanks ______________________
you’re welcome ______________________

•	Say the following sentences in Chinese:

I have a younger brother. __________________________________
I don’t have elder brothers. __________________________________
He has a younger sister. __________________________________
He doesn’t have elder sisters. __________________________________
He doesn’t have older sisters, either. __________________________________
Do you have brothers? __________________________________
Do you have sisters? __________________________________
Thank you. __________________________________
You’re welcome. __________________________________

•	Form questions following the example.

Example:

	Wǒ yǒu yí ge gēge. => Ní yǒu gēge ma?

Wó yǒu yí ge jiějie. => _________________________________
Ní yǒu yí gēge. => _________________________________
Tā yǒu jiějie mèimei. => _________________________________
Wó  yǒu yí ge dìdi. => _________________________________
Tā yé yǒu yí ge dìdi. =>_________________________________

•	Answer the following questions based on your own situation:

Ní yǒu gēge ma? ____________________________________
Ní yǒu dìdi ma? ____________________________________
Ní yǒu jiějie ma? ____________________________________
Ní yǒu mèimei ma? ____________________________________

Part IV: Dialogue – Who is this?
 
Listen and learn

(Listen to the recording or your teacher several times. During the first two times, do not say anything. Just listen attentively and pay attention to pronunciation,  tones and sentence intonation. After the second time, you can follow the model and speak out loudly. Practice several times.)

A: Zhè shì shéi?
A: Who is this?
A:這是誰？

B: Zhè shì Wáng Xiǎohuá. Tā shì wǒ péngyou.
B: This is Wang Xiaohua. He is my friend.
B:這是王小華。他是我朋友。

A: Zhè shì tā bàba māma ma?
A: Are these his father and mother?
A:這是他爸爸媽媽嗎？

B: Shì, zhè shì tā bàba māma.
B: Yes, these are his father and mother.
B:是，這是他爸爸媽媽。

A: Tā yǒu méiyǒu gēge, jiějie, dìdi, mèimei?
A: Does he have elder brothers, elder sisters, younger brothers and younger 
     sisters?
A:他有沒有哥哥、姐姐、弟弟、妹妹？

B: Tā yǒu yí ge dìdi, liǎngge mèimei. Tā méiyǒu gēge.
B: He has a younger brother, two younger sisters. He doesn't have elder 
     brothers.
B:他有一個弟弟，兩個妹妹。他沒有哥哥。

B: Tā jiéhūn le, yǒu tàitai, yǒu érzi, méiyǒu nǚér. Nǐ jiéhūn le méiyǒu?
B: He is married. He has a wife and a son. He doesn't have a daughter. Are 
     you married?
B:他結婚了,有太太,有兒子,沒有女兒。你結婚了沒有？

A: Méiyǒu. Xièxiè. Zàijiàn.
A: No, (I am not married.) Thank you. Bye.
A:沒有。謝謝。再見。

B: Búxiè. Zàijiàn.
B: You're welcome, bye.
B:不謝。再見。

New Words

shéi	誰	who	
péngyou	朋友	a friend 	
jiéhūn le	結婚了	to be married	
liǎng	兩	two	

Notes

1. There are two ways to form questions with the verb ‘yǒu’ (to have). You can use the question marker ‘ma’ or repeat the verb ‘yǒu’ and insert ‘méi’, a negation word. For example:

Ní yǒu mèimei ma? (Do you have younger sisters?)
Ní yǒu méiyǒu mèimei? (Do you have younger sisters?)

These two questions mean the same thing, but they are in different forms. You can use them alternatively. 'Bù' negates 'shì' (to be) as in 'bú shì' (am not, are not, is not), while 'méi' negates 'yǒu' as in 'méiyǒu' (do not have).

2. ‘Nǐ jiéhūn le méiyǒu?' and 'Nǐ jiéhūn le ma?' are the same questions in different forms. It is worth noting that English questions “Aren’t you married?” or “Are you married?” sound accusatory, challenging or rude, these questions in Chinese are completely neutral, having no psychological implications.

3. ‘yí ge' means 'one', 'liǎng ge' means 'two'. 'ge' is a measure word in Chinese. 'ge' can be used for persons and many other items. 

4. Chinese is a discourse oriented language. There may be more than one clause in one long 'sentence'. You don't have to repeat the same subject in later clauses. 

		Tā jiéhūn le, yǒu tàitai, yǒu érzi, méiyǒu nǚér.
	He is married, (he) has a wife, (he) has a son, (and he) doesn't have daughters.

Practice

•	Say the following words and phrases in Chinese:

father and mother ___________________________
elder brother and younger brother ___________________________
elder sister and younger sister ___________________________
my friend ___________________________
to have a friend ___________________________
to be married ___________________________
to have a son ___________________________
to have two daughters ___________________________
do not have sisters ___________________________
do not have brothers ___________________________
•	Answer the questions using given words or phrases:

Example:

Zhè shì shéi?
Zhè shì wǒ bàba.

Zhè shì shéi?
____________________________ (This is my father.)
____________________________ (This is my mother.)
____________________________ (This is my friend.)
____________________________ (This is my son.)
____________________________ (This is my daughter.)
____________________________ (This is my elder sister.)
____________________________ (This is my teacher.)

•	
Ask and answer the questions using the given words and ‘you…ma?’ or ‘you meiyou  …?’ pattern.

	Question	Answer	
Example:
gēge 	
Nǐ yǒu gēge ma?             
or: Nǐ yǒu méiyou gēge?                            	
Wǒ (méi)you gēge.          	

mèimei	
____________________	
____________________	

jiějie	
____________________	
____________________	

dìdi	
____________________	
____________________	

tàitài	
____________________	
____________________	

érzi	
____________________	
____________________	

nǚér	
____________________	
____________________	

Part V: Self-Test

•	Please say the following sentences in Chinese. 

This is my father.
This is my mother.
This is my younger brother, elder brother, younger sister, elder sister.
I have two younger sisters. I don't have brothers.
He has a brother.
This is my friend.
He has a brother, too.
He doesn't have sister, either.
My friend is married.
He has a daughter.
Are you married?
No, I am not married.
 
•	Please answer the following questions in Chinese. 

Zhè shì shéi? Zhè shì nǐ bàba māma ma?
Nǐ yǒu gēge ma? 
Nǐ yǒu méiyǒu dìdi?
Nǐ yǒu jiějie mèimei ma?
Nǐ jiéhūn le méiyǒu?
Nǐ yǒu tàitai ma?
Nǐ péngyou jiéhūn le méiyǒu?
Nǐ pényou yǒu méiyou dìdi, mèimei?
Xièxie.

•	Communicative Tasks

1. Now please say something about yourself. What is your name? Are you a student or a teacher? Do you have brothers or sisters? Are you married? Or you can use your family photo to briefly describe your family members. 

2. Ask one or two of your classmates or friends the questions related to himself/herself or his/her family members.

Vocabulary List of Unit Two

bàba	爸爸	a father	
búxiè	不謝	no thanks, you’re welcome 	
dìdi	弟弟	a younger brother	
érzi	兒子	a son	
ge	個	a measure word	
gēge	哥哥	an elder brother	
jiéhūn le	結婚了	to be married	
jiějie	姐姐	an elder sister	
liǎng	兩	two	
ma	嗎	a question marker	
māma	媽媽	mother	
méi	沒	not, a negation word	
mèimei	妹妹	a younger sister	
nǚér	女兒	a daughter	
péngyou	朋友	a friend 	
shéi	誰	who	
tàitai	太太	a wife	
xiānsheng	先生	a husband	
yě	也	also, either	
yī	一	one	
yǒu	有	to have