Chinese for English speakers Supermarket · Lesson 6

I don't want to be a bother

Chinese 麻烦 for politeness — 会不会打扰你呢? (Am I not bothering you?) — extra polite question form.

Conversation

  1. Rocky Rocky

    会不会打扰你呢？

    huì bú buì dǎ rǎo nǐ ne?

    Am I not bothering you?

    Tip: 打扰 <dǎrǎo> = to disturb, to annoy

  2. Shelladonna Shelladonna

    你说什么？我们不是朋友吗？

    nǐ shuō shén me? wǒ men bú shì péng you ma?

    Why do you say so? Aren't we friends?

    Tip: 说 <shuō> = to say

  3. Rocky Rocky

    好吧！那我应该几号到你那里呢？

    hǎo ba! nà wǒ yīng gāi jǐ hào dào nǐ nà lǐ ne?

    Fine! Which day shall I get to your place than?

    Tip: 几号 <jǐhào> = which day of the month? what date?

  4. Shelladonna Shelladonna

    七月二十一号怎么样？

    qī yuè èr shí yī hào zěn me yàng?

    What about July 21st?

Common questions

Quick answers about this lesson's grammar and vocabulary.

What does 打扰 mean?

'Bother / disturb / interrupt'. 打扰 (verb). 不好意思打扰你 = 'sorry to bother you'.

Chinese politeness phrases?

麻烦你 (sorry to trouble you), 打扰一下 (excuse me), 不好意思 (excuse me/sorry), 请问 (may I ask).

What does 你说什么 mean?

Two uses: 1) 'What did you say?' (couldn't hear). 2) 'How can you say that?' (mild protest).

Test yourself

Pick the English translation for each line from this lesson. Wrong answers are pulled from other Chinese lessons.

4 quick questions on what you just heard.

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