Lesson 1: Greetings and Introductions

Overview

Every conversation in Chinese starts here. This lesson teaches you the phrases you will use from your very first day: how to say hello, how to introduce yourself by name and nationality, and how to ask someone a simple yes/no question. Master these patterns and you will feel immediately useful whenever you meet a Chinese speaker.

The two grammar points in this lesson, the copula 是 and the question particle 吗, are the backbone of A1-level Chinese. Once you understand how they work, you will recognise them in almost every conversation you encounter going forward.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson you can:

• Greet someone and respond to a greeting appropriately
• Introduce yourself with your name and nationality
• Ask and answer simple yes/no questions using 吗
• Use 是 correctly to say what something or someone is

Vocabulary

Character	Pinyin	Type	Meaning	Example
你好	nǐ hǎo	phrase	hello	你好！
您好	nín hǎo	phrase	hello (polite)	您好，老师。
再见	zàijiàn	phrase	goodbye	再见！明天见。
我	wǒ	pronoun	I, me	我是学生。
你	nǐ	pronoun	you	你叫什么名字？
他	tā	pronoun	he, him	他是我朋友。
她	tā	pronoun	she, her	她叫李梅。
是	shì	verb	to be	我是中国人。
叫	jiào	verb	to be called	我叫大卫。
名字	míngzi	noun	name	你的名字是什么？
哪国人	nǎ guó rén	phrase	citizen of which country	你是哪国人？
中国人	Zhōngguó rén	noun	Chinese person	她是中国人。
谢谢	xièxie	phrase	thank you	谢谢你！
不客气	bù kèqi	phrase	you are welcome	不客气。

Grammar Focus

Pattern 1: 是 as a copula

Structure: Subject + 是 + Noun

In English you can sometimes drop "to be" in casual speech. In Chinese, 是 is always required when linking a subject to a noun that describes what it is. Think of it as a strong equals sign between two nouns.

Example	Pinyin	English
我是学生。	Wǒ shì xuésheng.	I am a student.
她是老师。	Tā shì lǎoshī.	She is a teacher.
他是美国人。	Tā shì Měiguó rén.	He is American.

Common mistake: beginners sometimes say 我很学生 by copying the pattern for adjectives. Use 是 before nouns, not 很.

Pattern 2: 吗 to form yes/no questions

Structure: Statement + 吗？

Chinese does not change word order to ask a yes/no question the way English does. Instead, you take a normal statement and add 吗 at the end. The intonation rises slightly, just as it would in English. This is one of the most useful patterns at this level.

Example	Pinyin	English
你是学生吗？	Nǐ shì xuésheng ma?	Are you a student?
他是中国人吗？	Tā shì Zhōngguó rén ma?	Is he Chinese?
你叫大卫吗？	Nǐ jiào Dàwèi ma?	Are you called David?

Common mistake: adding 吗 to questions that already use a question word like 什么 or 哪. Those questions do not need 吗.

Pattern 3: 叫 for names

Structure: Subject + 叫 + Name

The verb 叫 literally means "to be called." It is the standard way to give your name. You can use 我是 + name, but 我叫 + name sounds more natural in introductions.

Example	Pinyin	English
我叫王芳。	Wǒ jiào Wáng Fāng.	My name is Wang Fang.
你叫什么名字？	Nǐ jiào shénme míngzi?	What is your name?
她叫李梅。	Tā jiào Lǐ Méi.	Her name is Li Mei.

Common mistake: saying 我的名字叫 is grammatically acceptable but redundant. Native speakers simply say 我叫 in everyday introductions.

Dialogue

A first meeting between two university students.

王芳: 你好！我叫王芳。你叫什么名字？ Nǐ hǎo! Wǒ jiào Wáng Fāng. Nǐ jiào shénme míngzi? Hello! My name is Wang Fang. What is your name?

大卫: 你好！我叫大卫。你是中国人吗？ Nǐ hǎo! Wǒ jiào Dàwèi. Nǐ shì Zhōngguó rén ma? Hello! My name is David. Are you Chinese?

王芳: 是的，我是中国人。你是哪国人？ Shì de, wǒ shì Zhōngguó rén. Nǐ shì nǎ guó rén? Yes, I am Chinese. Which country are you from?

大卫: 我是英国人。很高兴认识你！ Wǒ shì Yīngguó rén. Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ! I am British. Very nice to meet you!

王芳: 我也很高兴认识你！再见！ Wǒ yě hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ! Zàijiàn! I am also very glad to meet you! Goodbye!

大卫: 再见！ Zàijiàn! Goodbye!

Practice

Exercise 1: Fill in the blank

1. 你好！我 __ 李明。(is called)
2. 她 __ 老师。(is)
3. 你是中国人 __？(question particle)
4. 他 __ 什么名字？(is called)
5. 我 __ 学生，不是老师。(am)

Exercise 2: Translate to Chinese

1. Hello! My name is Anna.
2. Are you a teacher?
3. He is Japanese.
4. What is her name?
5. I am not Chinese. I am Korean.

Exercise 3: Answer these questions

Answer in Chinese using complete sentences.

1. 你叫什么名字？
2. 你是哪国人？
3. 你是学生吗？

Cultural Note

When Chinese people meet for the first time, 你好 works perfectly in most situations. However, among older generations or in formal settings, you may hear 您好, which is the polite form of 你好. The character 您 combines 你 with the character for heart, and it signals respect. In daily life among peers and students, 你好 is completely natural. One thing you will notice is that Chinese introductions often include asking about your job or country very early in the conversation. This is not considered intrusive; it is simply a way of establishing context. Sharing where you are from and what you do is a normal part of getting to know someone.