| A: Why can’t I speak Chinese despite living in China…? | A: 为什么我住在中国却不会说中文…? | A: Wèishéme wǒ zhù zài zhōngguó què bú huì shuō zhōngwén…? |
| B: Mostly I only hear noise. | B: 大部分时候我只听到噪音。 | B: Dàbùfèn shíhòu wǒ zhǐ tīngdào zàoyīn. |
| A: Have you tried practicing with locals? | A: 你有试着和当地人练习吗？ | A: Nǐ yǒu shìzhe hé dāngdì rén liànxí ma? |
| B: Yes, but I get nervous, and they speak too fast with too many shortenings. | B: 有啊，但我一紧张，他们就说得太快，还有很多缩略语。 | B: Yǒu a, dàn wǒ yī jǐnzhāng, tāmen jiù shuō de tài kuài, háiyǒu hěn duō suōlüèyǔ. |
| B: Also, I know too few words. | B: 还有，我知道的词太少了。 | B: Hái yǒu, wǒ zhīdào de cí tài shǎole. |
| A: How many words do you think you need to know to speak fluently? | A: 你觉得需要知道多少个词才能流利地说话呢？ | A: Nǐ juéde xūyào zhīdào duōshǎo gè cí cáinéng liúlì de shuōhuà ne? |
| B: I’ve heard you need at least 2,000 to 3,000 words for daily conversations, but I read that for deeper discussions, you need 10,000 to 13,000 words. | B: 我听说日常对话至少需要两到三千个词，但我读到深入讨论需要一万到一万三千个词。 | B: Wǒ tīngshuō rìcháng duìhuà zhìshǎo xūyào liǎng dào sānqiān gè cí, dàn wǒ dú dào shēnrù tǎolùn xūyào yī wàn dào yī wàn sānqiān gè cí. |
| A: That sounds more challenging, but it makes sense for complex topics. | A: 听起来更具挑战性，但对复杂的话题来说是有道理的。 | A: Tīng qǐlái gèng jù tiǎozhàn xìng, dàn duì fùzá de huàtí lái shuō shì yǒu dàolǐ de. |
| B: It’s true. I guess fluency isn’t just about words but also how comfortable you are with the language. | B: 确实如此。我想流利不仅仅是词汇量，还取决于你对语言的熟练程度。 | B: Quèshí rúcǐ. Wǒ xiǎng liúlì bù jǐnjǐn shì cíhuì liàng, hái qǔjué yú nǐ duì yǔyán de shúliàn chéngdù. |
| A: Absolutely. The more you practice, the more comfortable you’ll become, especially in understanding nuances. | A: 没错。练习得越多，你就会越熟练，尤其是在理解细微差别方面。 | A: Méicuò. Liànxí de yuè duō, nǐ jiù huì yuè shúliàn, yóuqí shì zài lǐjiě xìwēi chābié fāngmiàn. |
| B: When I try to speak, they often switch quickly to Chinese or stop speaking with me. | B: 当我尝试说话时，他们常常会快速切换到中文，或者不再和我说话。 | B: Dāng wǒ chángshì shuōhuà shí, tāmen chángcháng huì kuàisù qiēhuàn dào zhōngwén, huòzhě bù zài hé wǒ shuōhuà. |
| A: Maybe start with simple phrases and build up your confidence. | A: 也许可以从简单的短语开始，逐渐建立自信。 | A: Yěxǔ kěyǐ cóng jiǎndān de duǎnyǔ kāishǐ, zhújiàn jiànlì zìxìn. |
| B: That makes sense. I’ll try to be more patient with myself and focus on gradually expanding my vocabulary. | B: 这有道理。我会试着对自己更有耐心，并专注于逐渐扩大词汇量。 | B: Zhè yǒu dàolǐ. Wǒ huì shìzhe duì zìjǐ gèng yǒu nàixīn, bìng zhuānzhù yú zhújiàn kuòdà cíhuì liàng. |
Fluently (流利地 – liúlì de)
- 你什么时候开始流利地说中文？
Nǐ shénme shíhòu kāishǐ liúlì de shuō zhōngwén?
(When did you start speaking Chinese fluently?) - 她流利地讲了整场演讲。
Tā liúlì de jiǎngle zhěng chǎng yǎnjiǎng.
(She gave the entire speech fluently.)
Words (词 – cí)
- 我今天学了五十个新词。
Wǒ jīntiān xuéle wǔshí gè xīn cí.
(I learned fifty new words today.) - 有些词很难发音。
Yǒuxiē cí hěn nán fāyīn.
(Some words are hard to pronounce.)
Conversation (对话 – duìhuà)
- 我们每天都用中文进行对话。
Wǒmen měitiān dū yòng zhōngwén jìnxíng duìhuà.
(We have conversations in Chinese every day.) - 这次对话很有趣。
Zhè cì duìhuà hěn yǒuqù.
(This conversation was interesting.)
Practice (练习 – liànxí)
- 多练习才能提高你的口语。
Duō liànxí cáinéng tígāo nǐ de kǒuyǔ.
(More practice is needed to improve your speaking skills.) - 我每天练习写汉字。
Wǒ měitiān liànxí xiě hànzì.
(I practice writing Chinese characters every day.)
Comfortable (舒服 – shūfu)
- 这个椅子坐起来很舒服。
Zhège yǐzi zuò qǐlái hěn shūfu.
(This chair is very comfortable to sit on.) - 你在那家公司工作感觉舒服吗？
Nǐ zài nà jiā gōngsī gōngzuò gǎnjué shūfu ma?
(Do you feel comfortable working at that company?)
Nuance (细微差别 – xìwēi chābié)
- 你理解这些单词之间的细微差别吗？
Nǐ lǐjiě zhèxiē dāncí zhījiān de xìwēi chābié ma?
(Do you understand the nuances between these words?) - 翻译时很难捕捉到所有的细微差别。
Fānyì shí hěn nán bǔzhuō dào suǒyǒu de xìwēi chābié.
(It’s difficult to capture all the nuances when translating.)
Nervous (紧张 – jǐnzhāng)
- 我每次考试前都很紧张。
Wǒ měi cì kǎoshì qián dōu hěn jǐnzhāng.
(I get nervous before every exam.) - 别紧张，你可以做到的。
Bié jǐnzhāng, nǐ kěyǐ zuò dào de.
(Don’t be nervous; you can do it.)
