Lesson 4 – Getting Around
Directions, Taxis & the Subway
S
你要去哪里？
Where do you want to go?
S
我要去地铁站。
I want to go to the subway station.
S
往左走，然后往右拐。
Go left, then turn right.
S
远不远？
Is it far?
S
不远，走路五分钟。
Not far, five minutes walking.
S
谢谢你！
Thank you!
1
去
To go
4th tone
2
哪里
Where
Question word for places
3
地铁
Subway / Metro
Literally "earth iron"
4
左
Left
3rd tone
5
右
Right
4th tone
6
走
To walk / to go
3rd tone
7
远
Far
3rd tone
8
近
Near / close
4th tone
9
出租车
Taxi
Literally "rent-out car"
Click the card to flip it
往 (wǎng) + direction + verb
Use 往 to indicate direction of movement: 往 + direction + action verb.
往左走
wǎng zuǒ zǒu
Go (towards) left
往右拐
wǎng yòu guǎi
Turn (towards) right
A-not-A questions
Repeat the adjective or verb with 不 (bù) in between to form a yes/no question without 吗.
远不远？
yuǎn bù yuǎn?
Far or not far? (Is it far?)
好不好？
hǎo bù hǎo?
Good or not good? (Is it OK?)
你去不去？
nǐ qù bù qù?
You go or not go? (Are you going?)
The A-not-A question pattern
Instead of using 吗, Chinese has another way to ask yes/no questions: repeat the adjective/verb with 不 in between. "远不远？" (far-not-far?) means "Is it far?" This pattern is very natural and common in daily speech — arguably more conversational than the 吗 pattern.
Getting around Chinese cities
China's major cities have world-class subway systems — clean, cheap, and efficient. In Beijing and Shanghai, you can get almost anywhere by metro. For taxis, apps like DiDi (China's Uber) are standard. Always have your destination written in Chinese characters to show the driver, as many taxi drivers don't speak English.
translate #1
How do you say "Where do you want to go?"
translate #2
What does 地铁站 mean?
fill #3
往___走。(Go left)
translate #4
How do you ask "Is it far?"
order #5
Put in order: 走路 / 五 / 分钟