GCSE Mandarin: School and Education Revision Guide

Key vocabulary

• 学校 (xuéxiào) — school
• 老师 (lǎoshī) — teacher
• 学生 (xuésheng) — student
• 教室 (jiàoshì) — classroom
• 数学 (shùxué) — maths
• 英语 (Yīngyǔ) — English
• 科学 (kēxué) — science
• 历史 (lìshǐ) — history
• 体育 (tǐyù) — PE
• 中文 (Zhōngwén) — Chinese (the subject/language)
• 书 (shū) — book
• 铅笔 (qiānbǐ) — pencil

Describing subjects

• 容易 (róngyì) — easy
• 难 (nán) — difficult
• 有意思 (yǒu yìsi) — interesting
• 无聊 (wúliáo) — boring

Grammar point: adjectives as predicates with 很

In Mandarin, adjectives can act as the predicate of a sentence without needing the verb 'to be'. A word such as 很 (hěn, 'very') is usually placed before the adjective, even when the meaning is not strongly 'very' — it simply links the subject to the adjective. For example: 数学很难 (shùxué hěn nán) — 'Maths is difficult'. Do not add 是 before the adjective (数学是难 is incorrect).

Grammar point: giving opinions with 因为

To explain why you like or dislike a subject, use 因为 (yīnwèi, 'because') after stating your opinion with 喜欢 (xǐhuan, 'to like'). For example: 我喜欢科学，因为很有意思 (wǒ xǐhuan kēxué, yīnwèi hěn yǒu yìsi) — 'I like science because it's interesting'. For a negative opinion, add 不 before 喜欢: 我不喜欢历史，因为很难 (wǒ bù xǐhuan lìshǐ, yīnwèi hěn nán) — 'I don't like history because it's difficult'.

Common mistakes

• Adding 是 before an adjective (数学是很难) — this is not needed in Mandarin.
• Forgetting that 不 (not) goes directly before 喜欢, not before the subject.
• Confusing 历史 (lìshǐ, history) with 化学 (huàxué, chemistry) — the characters and sounds look similar to beginners.