HSK 3 · Lesson 3这双鞋挺合适的 These shoes fit well

Shopping: measure words 双, 张, 种, 把; weight and length — 斤, 公斤, 米; money — 毛 / 角; 只 zhǐ “only”; 挺…的 “quite”; 不大不小 “just right”; approximate numbers: 十几, 二十多, 三四个.

Speed:Male voice:

Dialogues

Buying shoes

A
这双鞋多少钱？
Zhè shuāng xié duōshao qián?
How much are these shoes?
B
三百五。你试试吧。
Sānbǎi wǔ. Nǐ shìshi ba.
Three hundred and fifty. Try them on.
A
有点儿小，有大一点儿的吗？
Yǒudiǎnr xiǎo, yǒu dà yìdiǎnr de ma?
They’re a bit small. Do you have a bigger pair?
B
你换这双吧，不大不小，挺合适的。
Nǐ huàn zhè shuāng ba, bú dà bù xiǎo, tǐng héshì de.
Try this pair instead — just the right size.
A
好。我还要这件蓝衬衫和那条黄色的裙子。
Hǎo. Wǒ hái yào zhè jiàn lán chènshān hé nà tiáo huángsè de qúnzi.
OK. I’ll also take this blue shirt and that yellow skirt.
B
一共七百八十块。
Yígòng qībǎi bāshí kuài.
That’s seven hundred and eighty in total.
A
可以用信用卡吗？
Kěyǐ yòng xìnyòngkǎ ma?
Can I pay by credit card?
B
对不起，只能用手机。
Duìbuqǐ, zhǐ néng yòng shǒujī.
Sorry, only by phone.

At the market

A
苹果怎么卖？
Píngguǒ zěnme mài?
How much are the apples?
B
六块钱一斤。
Liù kuài qián yì jīn.
Six yuan a jin.
A
一斤是多少？
Yì jīn shì duōshao?
How much is a jin?
B
一斤是半公斤。
Yì jīn shì bàn gōngjīn.
A jin is half a kilo.
A
我买两斤，给你一百。
Wǒ mǎi liǎng jīn, gěi nǐ yìbǎi.
I’ll take two jin. Here’s a hundred.
B
一共十二块，找你八十八。
Yígòng shí’èr kuài, zhǎo nǐ bāshíbā.
That’s twelve in total — eighty-eight change.

New words

📝 Worksheet for this lesson

Grammar

1. Measure words 双, 张, 种, 把

双 is a pair: 一双鞋 “a pair of shoes”, 一双筷子 “a pair of chopsticks”. 张 is for flat things: 一张纸, 一张票, 一张照片, 一张桌子. 种 is a kind: 三种颜色 “three colours”, 这种衬衫 “this kind of shirt”. 把 is for things with a handle: 一把伞, 一把椅子, 一把勺子.

我买了一双鞋。
Wǒ mǎile yì shuāng xié.
I bought a pair of shoes.
这种衬衫有三种颜色。
Zhè zhǒng chènshān yǒu sān zhǒng yánsè.
This kind of shirt comes in three colours.

2. Weight, length, money: 斤, 公斤, 米, 毛 / 角

Markets weigh in 斤 jīn: 1 斤 = 500 g, 1 公斤 = 1 kg. 米 is a metre: 他一米八 “he’s 1.80 m tall”. Money: 1 块 (written 元) = 10 毛 (written 角). A unit price is amount + 一斤 / 一个: 六块钱一斤 “six yuan a jin”.

一斤是半公斤。
Yì jīn shì bàn gōngjīn.
A jin is half a kilo.
这个三块五毛。
Zhège sān kuài wǔ máo.
This costs three yuan fifty.

3. 只 zhǐ — “only”

只 zhǐ before a verb means “only”: 我只有一百块 “I only have a hundred yuan”, 只能用手机 “you can only use a phone”. Don’t confuse it with 只 zhī, the measure word for animals (一只猫): same character, different reading.

我只有一百块。
Wǒ zhǐ yǒu yìbǎi kuài.
I only have a hundred yuan.
他只喝茶，不喝咖啡。
Tā zhǐ hē chá, bù hē kāfēi.
He only drinks tea, not coffee.

4. 挺…的 “quite” and 不大不小 “just right”

挺 + adjective (+ 的) is a colloquial “quite, pretty”: 挺合适的 “fits quite well”, 挺好的. 不 A 不 B with opposites means “neither…nor…, just right”: 不大不小, 不多不少, 不冷不热.

这件衬衫挺好看的。
Zhè jiàn chènshān tǐng hǎokàn de.
This shirt looks pretty nice.
这双鞋不大不小。
Zhè shuāng xié bú dà bù xiǎo.
These shoes are just the right size.

5. About: 十几, 二十多, 三四个

Approximate numbers: 几 for a digit — 十几个 “a dozen or so (11–19)”, 几十个 “several dozen”; 多 after a round number — 二十多块 “twenty-odd yuan”, 一百多个; two neighbouring numbers — 三四个 “three or four”, 七八天. With units 多 can follow the measure word: 两斤多 “a bit over two jin”.

一共二十多块。
Yígòng èrshí duō kuài.
Twenty-something yuan in all.
我买了三四件衣服。
Wǒ mǎile sān sì jiàn yīfu.
I bought three or four clothes.

Exercises

1. Listen and choose the translation

  1. Answer
    这双鞋多少钱？ Zhè shuāng xié duōshao qián? — How much are these shoes?

  2. Answer
    六块钱一斤。 Liù kuài qián yì jīn. — Six yuan a jin.

  3. Answer
    只能用手机。 Zhǐ néng yòng shǒujī. — You can only use a phone.

  4. Answer
    一共二十多块。 Yígòng èrshí duō kuài. — Twenty-something yuan in all.

2. Choose the measure word

  1. 一___鞋

    Answer
    双
  2. 一___伞

    Answer
    把
  3. 一___票

    Answer
    张
  4. “Three colours”: 三___颜色

    Answer
    种

3. Build the sentence

  1. These shoes fit well.

    Answer
    这双鞋挺合适的。 Zhè shuāng xié tǐng héshì de.
  2. I only have a hundred yuan.

    Answer
    我只有一百块。 Wǒ zhǐ yǒu yìbǎi kuài.
  3. A jin is half a kilo.

    Answer
    一斤是半公斤。 Yì jīn shì bàn gōngjīn.
  4. Can I pay by credit card?

    Answer
    可以用信用卡吗？ Kěyǐ yòng xìnyòngkǎ ma?

4. Dialogue: you are the customer

You are speaker A. Pick the right reply and the conversation goes on.

B
你好，你想买什么？
Nǐ hǎo, nǐ xiǎng mǎi shénme?
Hello, what would you like to buy?
A
我想买一双鞋。
Wǒ xiǎng mǎi yì shuāng xié.
I’d like a pair of shoes.
B
这双怎么样？你试试。
Zhè shuāng zěnmeyàng? Nǐ shìshi.
How about these? Try them on.
A
有点儿大，有小一点儿的吗？
Yǒudiǎnr dà, yǒu xiǎo yìdiǎnr de ma?
They’re a bit big. Do you have a smaller pair?
B
有，这双不大不小。
Yǒu, zhè shuāng bú dà bù xiǎo.
Yes, this pair is just right.
A
挺合适的，我买了。
Tǐng héshì de, wǒ mǎi le.
They fit well — I’ll take them.

5. Translate into Chinese

  1. Two jin of apples, please.
    Answer
    给我两斤苹果。Gěi wǒ liǎng jīn píngguǒ.
  2. He only drinks water.
    Answer
    他只喝水。Tā zhǐ hē shuǐ.
  3. This skirt is quite pretty.
    Answer
    这条裙子挺漂亮的。

💡 Did you know?: Singles’ Day, 11.11

November 11 (11.11 — four “ones”, like four single people) was once jokingly called “Singles’ Day”, 光棍节. Now it is the world’s biggest shopping day — 双十一, “Double Eleven”: China’s online shops sell enormous amounts in 24 hours.

Phrase audio — Microsoft speech synthesis (voices Xiaoxiao, Yunyang, Yunxi); syllables and some words — native recordings (audio-cmn, CC BY-SA).