Hearing the many interjections Chinese speakers use at the end of sentence interjections is easy: they pepper the language so much, once you start hearing them, you hear them all the time! It’s useful to figure out how to use which in specific contexts. Most likely, no one taught you about those. So today we are going to show you some funny Chinese interjections.

The first thing we should figure out is that: why the Chinese like to pepper their language so much? Actually, you can not only hear them talking with interjections but also you can see them in written Chinese, online, in a text message, etc. This is a way to show their personalities. By using these interjections, you can show your attitude too. Especially when it comes to send a message, you can’t judge the tone people speaking to you because you can’t see their face, but using the interjections, you can easily tell that one is happy or angry. Kind of like sound emojis.

Showing that you are happy

哈哈 ha-ha is the way how Chinese people are laughing. Use it when something is funny, and you are laughing loudly. We say 哈哈大笑 hā-hā-dà-xiào as a Chinese idiom. And nowadays, people like to chat with each other at the end of each sentence to show that the speaker is in a good mood or to make the talking environment more relaxed.

For example:

我一会儿去你家哈。
Wǒ yì huí qù ní jiā ha.
I’ll go visiting you later.

Other interjections can also indicate that you are happy:

• 嘻嘻 xī-xī a witty laugh always following an act of twinkle;
• 嘿嘿 hēi-hēi, a sly grin;
• 呵呵 he-he. Pay particular attention to this word 呵呵. 呵 is variant of 啊 a, to express yelling, laughing or surprising. But now, the sense various: with the overuse of the netizen chatting online, it gradually becomes a perfunctory, sarcasm word to show that you’re speechless.

Sometimes it even has an abusive meaning.

For example:

呵呵，你真有意思。
Hē hē nǐ zhēn yǒu yì si.
He-he, you’re so funny. (in fact what the speaker means “you’re so boring”)

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Showing that you are surprised

哎呀 āi yā is an interjection to indicate surprise or shock.
If one day you run into a friend that you haven’t met in a long time.

You can say:

哎呀，怎么是你！
āi yā zěn me shì nǐ.
A-ya, it’s you!

It can also be used merely for saluting people you are familiar with :

For example:

哎，明天早点儿来啊！
Āi, míng tiān zǎo diǎn r lái a!
Hey, come earlier tomorrow!

You can also use 哎呀 to show your pain. Like “ouch/ow-witch” in English.

You can also say 哎哟/哎唷 āi-yo when something hurts or is hard to do, so pick the one you like or use both!

chinese aya

Other words to show your surprise:

• 哇 wa wow, holy cow;
• 呀 ya,
• 咦 yí gee, a rising tone to show your doubt or surprise with a question mark. You can always hear these in a  Taiwanese or Hongkongese drama.

Showing  negative emotions

• 呸 pēi ill: To express something is disgusting or yucky, you can use 呸 pēi ill to say “bah!” or “pooh”.
  

  For example:

  呸! 胡说八道!
  Pēi! Húshuō bādào!
  Bah! That’s nonsense!

• 唉 ài : to sigh or show that you are disappointed, you can use 唉ài

For example:

唉， 真可惜！
Āi, zhēn kěxí!
What a pity!

• 哼 hèng with the falling tone is to show that you’re angry.

For example:

哼，我不想理你了。
Hèng, wǒ bù xiǎng lǐ nǐ le.
Hein, I don’t want to talk to you anymore.

Interjections in an affirmative sentence

• If you want to show you realize or understand something, you can use 哦 o and 噢 o mean “Oh, I see.”

For example:

哦/噢我懂了。
Ò, wǒ dǒng le.
Oh! I see./ Oh! Now I understand.

• 嗯 ēn is used when you give an affirmative answer like “OK” in English, it sounds like “huh/hum.”
  

  For example:
  他嗯了一声， 就走了。
  tā èn le yī shēng ， jiù zǒu le 。
  He merely said,“H’m”, and went away.

• You can also use 呃 ē to show that you are thinking about something, similar to “uh…” in English.

For example:

呃…我没听懂。
Ē, wǒ méi tīng dǒng
Eh, I don’t understand.

Questioning with interjections

Usually, the Chinese like to add interjections after the end of a sentence to signify a question tag. To show that you are asking something. There are:

呢 ne

For example:

你们在说什么呢？
Nǐ men zài shuō shén me one?
What are you talking about?

嘛 ma

再分辩了，有错误就承认嘛！
zài fēn biàn le, yǒu cuò wù jiù chéng rèn ma ！
Don‘t try to explain away the situation. If you have made mistakes, just admit them.

吗 and 啊a are also two other interjections you can use to ask questions.

In Chinese, you don’t want to be too direct or upfront, to avoid placing the other in an uncomfortable situation, where they might risk losing face. Using 吧 ba to give a suggestion or want to ask the permission is a good way to make your question softer. All these interjections are in a neutral tone.

For example:

我们走路去吧？
Wǒ men zǒu lù qù ba?
Shall we walk there?

你们在说什么呢？
Nǐ men zài shuō shén me one?
What are you talking about?
Here’s a funny story to finish this

A funny story to end this journey into Chinese exclamative particles, or interjections.

Have you heard of the show 爸爸回来了(bà bà huí lái le /“Dad is coming)? It’s a super popular reality TV show about the daily life of famous Chinese stars, especially the relationships between fathers and their kids. In the second season of “Dad is coming,” there is a very cute boy, guess what his name is? 嗯哼 ēn-héng Uh-huh! Isn’t it a funny name, made only of interjections? His parents must have had their reasons to name their kid like that, and anyway, we bet it won’t stop you from thinking that he is adorable!

chinese cute

Learn all these expressions on Ninchanese, the gamified Chinese learning app.

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I’ve used Ninchanese daily, and it has helped me a lot!  “

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3 main expressions to say sorry in Chinese: 

对不起, 抱歉 and 不好意思

#1. 对不起 (Pinyin：duì bù qǐ)

对不起 is a simple and straightforward word that people use to say sorry in Chinese.  As it can immediately defuse a situation, this is a great word to know! 对不起 means “unworthy”, and conveys a meaning of “I owe you”. As such, when you’re saying 对不起, you’re pretty much admitting your mistake directly and apologizing for it. So, in English, it is translated as ‘‘sorry”.

对不起，我踩到你的脚了。

Duìbùqǐ,   wǒ cǎi dào nǐ de jiǎole.

Sorry I stepped on your foot.

That person replies:

没关系。

Méiguānxì.

It’s all right.

Example 2: Your friend yelled at you because you dared to laugh when he walked straight into a glass door. Once the pain has subsided, your friend says:

对不起，我不该对你发脾气。

Duìbùqǐ,  wǒ bù gāi duì nǐ fā píqì.

I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have blown up at you.

You reply:

就是嘛，你不应该对我发脾气，这根本不是我的错。

Jiùshì ma,   nǐ bù yìng gāi duì wǒ fā píqì,  zhè gēnběn bùshì wǒ de cuò.

Damn right, you shouldn’t have! It’s not even my fault.

Example 3: You bump into a table and your colleague’s brand new cup she brought back from New York crashes on the floor. You say:

对不起，我打碎了你的杯子。

 Duìbùqǐ,  wǒ dǎ suìle nǐ de bēizi.

I’m sorry that I broke your cup.

Your colleague says:

没关系，别担心。

Méiguānxì, bié dānxīn.

It’s all right. Don’t worry about it.

Example 4: The person you’re speaking to must hold the world record for fastest speech. You need him or her to repeat. You say:

对不起，请再说一遍好吗？

Duìbùqǐ, qǐng zàishuō yībiàn hǎo ma?

I beg your pardon, could you repeat what you said?

 #2. 抱歉 (pinyin：bào qiàn)

抱歉 (bào qiàn) is another way to say sorry in Chinese. 抱 (bào) means hold, 歉 (qiàn) means regret. There are two ways to translate 抱歉 in English. It can first mean: feeling sorry and guilty for an inconvenience that you caused. It can also mean regretting something that happened to someone.

真抱歉给你添了这么多麻烦。

Zhēn bàoqiàn gěi nǐ tiānle zhème duō máfan.

I am so sorry to be bringing you so much trouble.

Example 2: Your neighbor’s pesky little dog that loved barking all night long just died. You still feel bad for your neighbor:

对于你的狗去世我感到很抱歉.

Duìyú nǐ de gǒu qùshì wǒ gǎndào hěn bàoqiàn.

I’m sorry your dog passed away.

#3. 不好意思 (Pinyin：bù hǎo yì si)

Originally, the word 不好意思 (bù hǎo yì si) didn’t mean sorry, and just meant “embarrassed and shy”. As in:

Xiǎo gūniáng jiàn dào mòshēng rén gǎndào hěn bù hǎoyìsi.

小姑娘见到陌生人感到很不好意思。

The little girl feels so shy when she meets strangers.

Now, however 不好意思 (bù hǎo yì si) is very often used as a more polite way to apologize. As a form of apology, it has 2 meanings. You can use it to say sorry in Chinese about things or situations that are not too important, but you still feel embarrassed about, such as being late or rejecting an invitation. Example 1: It took you forever to get to work because it was raining and all the taxis were full, and you had to take the metro instead (seriously this happens all the time in Shanghai). You say:

不好意思，我迟到了。

Bù hǎoyìsi, wǒ chídàole.

Sorry I’m late.

Another meaning of不好意思 (bù hǎo yì si) in English is “excuse me”. It’s a formal phrase that can be used to get someone’s attention when you need to ask something. Example 2: To make matters worse, you didn’t know where the subway station was. You ask:

不好意思，请问一下地铁站在哪里。

Bù hǎoyìsi, qǐngwèn yīxià dìtiě zhàn zài nǎlǐ.

Excuse me, could you tell me where the subway station is?

To sum up

• 对不起 may be how you first learn to say Sorry in Chinese when you learn Chinese but do know it carries a strong meaning.

Use it for: Situations where you need to admit your mistake and move on. Add 请原谅我 (Qǐng yuánliàng wǒ) when you really slipped up and need to beg for forgiveness.

• 不好意思 is awesome when you’ve done something minor but you feel embarrassed about it or want to get someone’s attention.

Use it for: situations where you’re running late, can’t make it, need to apologize because it’s polite but you don’t really mean it (i.e when you’re trying to get someone’s attention…) and so on. Add 打扰了 (dǎrǎole) or 麻烦了 (máfanle)  to your 不好意思  when you’re trying to politely get someone’s attention.   Last but not least,

• 抱歉 is close in meaning to 不好意思 . You can especially use it when you feel bad about something you’ve done or something that happened to someone.

Use it when: you were a pain and you regret it; a service is temporarily out of order; something failed to do what it was supposed to; someone or an animal passed away, and many more situations.

So there you go! With these three magic words, you’re now all set to say sorry in Chinese if something occurs! Just don’t go getting into too much trouble on purpose to practice these new expressions! 🙂

UPDATE: Need more expressions to sound polite in Chinese, especially when you’re being a bother? Then check out part 2: Become an expert apologizer!

Miaw! Yuqi and 

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The post Sorry in Chinese – 3 Magic Words to apologize appeared first on Ninchanese.