Lesson 16
Today we will be discussing the things you enjoy doing in your free time. In Chinese, hobbies are expressed as verb phrases (verb + noun). To deepen your understanding, let’s first look at the verbs and nouns individually before putting them together.
New vocabulary
| 词性 | 词 | 拼音 | 英文 |
| v | 有空 | yǒukòng | to have free time |
| v | 做 | zuò | to do, to make |
| v | 唱 | chàng | to sing |
| v | 看 | kàn | to look, to see |
| v | 听 | tīng | to listen |
| v | 玩儿 | wánr | to play |
| v | 跑 | pǎo | to run |
| v | 学习 | xuéxí | to learn, to study |
| v | 出去 | chūqù | to go out |
| v | 画 | huà | to draw/paint |
| n | 画 | huà | drawing/painting |
| n | 歌 | gē | song |
| n | 音乐 | yīnyuè | music |
| n | 汉语 | Hànyǔ | Chinese |
| n | 电影 | diànyǐng | movie |
| n | 电视 | diànshì | tv |
| n | 电脑 | diànnǎo | computer |
| n | 电话 | diànhuà | phone |
| n | 手机 | shǒujī | cellphone |
| adj | 好玩儿 | hǎowánr | fun |
Now let us pair various nouns and verbs together to form different hobbies.
Hobbies
| 爱好 | àihào | hobby |
| 上网 | shàngwǎng | surf the internet |
| 看书 | kàn shū | read |
| 出去玩儿 | chūqù wánr | go out |
| 和朋友一起玩儿 | hé péng you yìqǐ wánr | hang out with friends |
| 听音乐 | tīng yīnyuè | listen to music |
| 打电话 | dǎdiànhuà | talk on the phone |
| 唱歌 | chànggē | sing |
| 玩儿电脑 | wánr diànnǎo | play(games) on the computer |
| 玩儿手机 | wánr shǒujī | play on the phone |
| 看电视 | kàn diànshì | watch tv |
| 看电影 | kàn diànyǐng | watch movies |
| 打球 | dǎqiú | play ball |
| 学习汉语 | xuéxí hànyǔ | learn Chinese |
| 画画 | huàhuà | draw/paint |
| 跑步 | pǎobù | run |
Additional vocabulary
| 还有 | háiyǒu | and also |
Notes
和 vs 还有
If you want to list multiple hobbies in English, you might say something like “My hobbies are listening to music, watching TV and learning Chinese.” Note that in Chinese the word for “and” in this situation is not “和” (hé) . You may remember that though “和” is the primary way to say “and”, it’s only used to list two or more nouns. We do not use “和” to connect verbs or whole sentences. Instead we can use “还有” (háiyǒu), which means “in addition” or “and also.” We use “还有” to begin new sentences or clauses: verb phrase 1 + 还有 + verb phrase. “还有” brings up supplementary information related to the ongoing conversation.
Language in action
Take note of the different options you have to express “and” in the following sentences. Practice your pronunciation by repeating the sentences aloud.
1. 你的爱好是什么？ (Nǐ de àihào shì shénme? )
What are your hobbies?
2. 我的爱好是跑步、唱歌、还有打球。 (Wǒ de àihào shì pǎobù, chànggē, háiyǒu dǎqiú.)
My hobbies are running, singing, and playing sports.
3. 你有空的时候喜欢做什么？ (Nǐ yǒu kòng de shíhòu xǐhuān zuò shénme?)
What do you like to do when you have free time?
4. 我有空的时候喜欢玩儿电脑、和朋友一起玩、还有上网。 (Wǒ yǒu kòng de shíhòu xǐhuān wánr diànnǎo, hé péngyǒu yīqǐ wán, háiyǒu shàngwǎng.)
When I have free time, I like to play computer games, hang out with friends, and go online.
5. 我最喜欢的爱好是看电影、打球。 (Wǒ zuì xǐhuān de àihào shì kàn diànyǐng, dǎqiú.)
My favorite hobbies are watching movies and playing sports.
6. 她喜欢听音乐，也喜欢看书。（Tā xǐhuān tīng yīnyuè, yě xǐhuān kàn shū.)
She likes listening to music and also enjoys reading books.
What you’ve learnt
You’ve just learnt 15 different hobbies and some common verbs that will be handy in many other contexts. Practice forming sentences about your hobbies and those of your family members and practice them orally.
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