Top 50 phrases to get by China: Getting around and shopping

💬 [这] means [this], and [哪里] means [where], so Chinese often says literally [this is where?] for "where is this?". You can reuse the pattern with other places: [厕所在哪里？] or [地铁站在哪里？].

💬 [在哪里] is a very common way to ask where something is: noun + [在哪里？]. Swap in another place the same way, like [商店在哪里？] or [出口在哪里？].

💬 [地铁站] is a compound: [地铁] "subway" + [站] "station." You can use [站] with other transport too, like [火车站] for "train station."

🇨🇳 People also often say [打车] for "take/get a taxi," especially when arranging a ride. In many Chinese cities, app-based rides are even more common than street-hailed taxis.

💬 [走] literally means "walk/go," so [直走] is "go straight" rather than just the direction itself. You'll hear the same pattern in directions like [往前走] "go forward."

💬 [想] before a verb is a handy way to say what you want to do: [我想去…] "I want to go to…", [我想买这个] "I want to buy this." The [去] stays before the destination.

💬 [这个] goes before a noun: [这个地址] "this address," [这个地方] "this place," [这个车站] "this station." On its own, [这个] can also just mean "this one."