HSK 3 · Lesson 4又好吃又新鲜 Tasty and fresh

Food: 一碗, 一盘, 一瓶; 又…又… “both… and…”; 一边…一边… “while”; 先…再 / 然后… “first…, then…”; 尝一口 “have a taste”; 吃饱 “be full”.

Speed:Male voice:

Dialogues

At a restaurant

A
服务员，请给我们菜单。
Fúwùyuán, qǐng gěi wǒmen càidān.
Waiter, could we have the menu, please?
B
好的，你们先看一下。
Hǎo de, nǐmen xiān kàn yíxià.
Of course, have a look first.
A
我们要一盘饺子、两碗米饭。
Wǒmen yào yì pán jiǎozi, liǎng wǎn mǐfàn.
We’d like a plate of dumplings and two bowls of rice.
B
喝什么？我们有啤酒、饮料和矿泉水。
Hē shénme? Wǒmen yǒu píjiǔ, yǐnliào hé kuàngquánshuǐ.
What would you like to drink? We have beer, soft drinks and mineral water.
A
两瓶矿泉水，谢谢。
Liǎng píng kuàngquánshuǐ, xièxie.
Two bottles of mineral water, thanks.

I’m full!

A
这个西瓜又大又甜！你尝一口。
Zhège xīguā yòu dà yòu tián! Nǐ cháng yì kǒu.
This watermelon is big and sweet! Have a taste.
B
真好吃。可是我已经吃饱了。
Zhēn hǎochī. Kěshì wǒ yǐjīng chībǎo le.
Delicious. But I’m already full.
A
那我们一边喝茶一边聊天儿吧。
Nà wǒmen yìbiān hē chá yìbiān liáotiānr ba.
Then let’s chat over a cup of tea.
B
好。晚上吃什么？叫外卖吧？
Hǎo. Wǎnshang chī shénme? Jiào wàimài ba?
OK. What shall we have for dinner? Order a takeaway?
A
外卖不新鲜。我们先去超市买菜，然后回家做饭。
Wàimài bù xīnxiān. Wǒmen xiān qù chāoshì mǎi cài, ránhòu huí jiā zuò fàn.
Takeaway isn’t fresh. Let’s first go to the supermarket for groceries, then cook at home.

New words

📝 Worksheet for this lesson

Grammar

1. 一碗, 一盘, 一瓶 — containers as measure words

A container becomes the measure word: 一碗米饭 “a bowl of rice”, 一盘饺子 “a plate of dumplings”, 两瓶水 “two bottles of water”, 一杯茶. The dishes themselves are 碗, 盘子, 瓶子: 一个碗, 两个盘子.

我要一碗米饭。
Wǒ yào yì wǎn mǐfàn.
A bowl of rice for me.
桌子上有两瓶水。
Zhuōzi shang yǒu liǎng píng shuǐ.
There are two bottles of water on the table.

2. 又…又… — “both… and…”

又 + adj. / verb + 又 + adj. / verb

Two qualities at once: 又大又甜 “big and sweet”, 又便宜又好吃, 他又会唱歌又会跳舞. Usually both are of the same kind — both good or both bad.

这家饭馆又便宜又好吃。
Zhè jiā fànguǎn yòu piányi yòu hǎochī.
This restaurant is cheap and tasty.

3. 一边…一边… — “while”, at the same time

Two actions at the same time: 一边喝茶一边聊天儿 “chat over tea”, 他一边听音乐一边写作业 “he does homework while listening to music”.

我们一边吃饭一边聊天儿。
Wǒmen yìbiān chīfàn yìbiān liáotiānr.
We chat while we eat.

4. 先…再 / 然后… — “first…, then…”

A sequence: 先去超市买菜，然后回家做饭 “first go to the supermarket, then home to cook”. 再 is for future plans: 先吃饭再看 “eat first, look later”. 然后 opens the second part, 再 stands before the verb.

我们先吃饭，然后去看电影。
Wǒmen xiān chīfàn, ránhòu qù kàn diànyǐng.
First we’ll eat, then go to the cinema.

5. 尝一口, 吃饱 — “a bite”, “full”

口 is “a mouthful”: 尝一口 “have a taste”, 喝一口 “take a sip”. 吃饱 means “eat one’s fill”: 我吃饱了 “I’m full”. The opposites are 饿 “hungry” and 渴 “thirsty”.

你尝一口。
Nǐ cháng yì kǒu.
Have a taste.
我吃饱了。
Wǒ chībǎo le.
I’m full.

Exercises

1. Listen and choose the translation

  1. Answer
    这个西瓜又大又甜。 Zhège xīguā yòu dà yòu tián. — This watermelon is big and sweet.

  2. Answer
    我吃饱了。 Wǒ chībǎo le. — I’m full.

  3. Answer
    我要一碗米饭。 Wǒ yào yì wǎn mǐfàn. — A bowl of rice for me.

  4. Answer
    我们一边吃饭一边聊天儿。 Wǒmen yìbiān chīfàn yìbiān liáotiānr. — We chat while we eat.

2. Choose the correct option

  1. 这家饭馆___便宜___好吃。

    Answer
    又 … 又
  2. “A plate of dumplings”: 一___饺子

    Answer
    盘
  3. “Eat first, then go”: ___吃饭，然后去。

    Answer
    先
  4. “I’m full”: 我吃___了。

    Answer
    饱

3. Build the sentence

  1. We chat over tea.

    Answer
    我们一边喝茶一边聊天儿。 Wǒmen yìbiān hē chá yìbiān liáotiānr.
  2. This restaurant is cheap and tasty.

    Answer
    这家饭馆又便宜又好吃。 Zhè jiā fànguǎn yòu piányi yòu hǎochī.
  3. First the supermarket, then home.

    Answer
    我们先去超市，然后回家。 Wǒmen xiān qù chāoshì, ránhòu huí jiā.
  4. Could we have the menu, please?

    Answer
    请给我们菜单。 Qǐng gěi wǒmen càidān.

4. Dialogue: you are the guest

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

A
你饿了吗？
Nǐ è le ma?
Are you hungry?
B
饿了，我们先吃饭吧。
È le, wǒmen xiān chīfàn ba.
Yes, let’s eat first.
A
你尝尝这个蛋糕，又甜又好吃。
Nǐ chángchang zhège dàngāo, yòu tián yòu hǎochī.
Try this cake — it’s sweet and delicious.
B
真好吃！
Zhēn hǎochī!
Really tasty!
A
再吃一块吧。
Zài chī yí kuài ba.
Have another piece.
B
谢谢，我已经吃饱了。
Xièxie, wǒ yǐjīng chībǎo le.
Thanks, I’m already full.

5. Translate into Chinese

  1. This watermelon is big and sweet.
    Answer
    这个西瓜又大又甜。
  2. I watch TV while I have lunch.
    Answer
    我一边吃午饭一边看电视。
  3. Two bottles of water, please.
    Answer
    要两瓶水。/ 请给我两瓶水。

💡 Did you know?: Chopstick manners

Never stand chopsticks upright in rice — that is how incense is placed for the dead. Don’t tap the bowl with them or point them at people. Shared dishes sit in the middle of the table and everyone takes a little — often with separate serving chopsticks, 公筷 gōngkuài.

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