2049 Chinese

The 20K Word Road to
Mandarin Proficiency

Chapter 2.8: Rail Journeys

The Situation

At Beijing’s crowded 火车 (train | huǒchē) 车站 (station | chēzhàn), two young European girls frantically searched for their train.

“We should’ve checked the 时间表 (schedule | shíjiānbiǎo) more carefully,” the first girl fretted, clutching her 票 (tickets | piào).

Her friend, scanning the swirling crowd, replied, “Let’s ask at the 买票 (ticket office | mǎipiào) counter for directions to our 站台 (platform | zhàntái).”

Clutching their 行李 (luggage | xínglǐ), they navigated through the bustling crowd, hoping to find their 座位 (seats | zuòwèi) before 出发 (departure | chūfā). The excitement and chaos of the Beijing train station overwhelmed her, yet thrilled her.

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The Sentences

火车

我今天坐火车去北京。

Wǒ jīntiān zuò huǒchē qù běijīng.

I’m taking the train to Beijing today.

高铁

高铁比普通火车快很多。

Gāotiě bǐ pǔtōng huǒchē kuài hěnduō.

High-speed trains are much faster than regular trains.

车站

车站里人很多。

Chēzhàn lǐ rén hěnduō.

The station was crowded.

票

我的票丢了。

Wǒ de piào diūle.

I lost my ticket.

买票

我要在网上买票。

Wǒ yào zài wǎngshàng mǎi piào.

I have to buy a ticket online.

时间表

请查看火车的时间表。

Qǐng chákàn huǒchē de shíjiān biǎo.

Please check the train’s schedule.

站台

火车在三号站台停靠。

Huǒchē zài sān hào zhàntái tíngkào.

The train stopped at platform three.

座位

这是我的座位。

Zhè shì wǒ de zuòwèi.

This is my seat.

行李

不要忘记你的行李。

Bùyào wàngjì nǐ de xíngli.

Don’t forget your luggage.

检票

进站前需要检票。

Jìn zhàn qián xūyào jiǎnpiào.

You need to check your ticket before entering the station.

出发

火车八点出发。

Huǒchē bā diǎn chūfā.

The train leaves at eight o’clock.

到达

火车晚上到达。

Huǒchē wǎnshàng dàodá.

The train arrives at night.

候车室

候车室很温暖。

Hòuchē shì hěn wēnnuǎn.

The waiting room is warm.

转车

到南京需要转车。

Dào nánjīng xūyào zhuǎnchē.

You need to change trains to Nanjing.

一等座

我订了一等座。

Wǒ dìngle yī děng zuò.

I booked a first class seat.

二等座

二等座也很舒适。

Èr děng zuò yě hěn shūshì.

The second class seat is also very comfortable.

硬座

硬座票比较便宜。

Yìngzuò piào bǐjiào piányi.

Hard seat tickets are cheaper.

软座

软座比硬座舒服。

Ruǎn zuò bǐ yìngzuò shūfu.

Soft seats are more comfortable than hard seats.

站点

下一个站点是我的目的地。

Xià yígè zhàndiǎn shì wǒ de mùdì dì.

The next station is my destination.

导航

用手机导航到车站。

Yòng shǒujī dǎoháng dào chēzhàn.

Used my cell phone to navigate to the station.

行程

我的行程很紧凑。

Wǒ de xíngchéng hěn jǐncòu.

My itinerary is tight.

预订

我已经预订了回程票。

Wǒ yǐjīng yùdìngle huíchéng piào.

I had booked a return ticket.

取消

我不得不取消我的票。

Wǒ bùdé bù qǔxiāo wǒ de piào.

I had to cancel my ticket.

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The Words

火车

huǒchē

train

高铁

gāotiě

high-speed train

车站

chēzhàn

train station

票

piào

ticket

买票

mǎi piào

buy a ticket

时间表

shíjiān biǎo

schedule

站台

zhàntái

platform

座位

zuòwèi

seat

行李

xíngli

luggage

检票

jiǎnpiào

ticket check

出发

chūfā

depart

到达

dàodá

arrive

候车室

hòuchē shì

waiting room

转车

zhuǎnchē

transfer

一等座

yī děng zuò

first class

二等座

èr děng zuò

second class

硬座

yìngzuò

hard seat

软座

ruǎn zuò

soft seat

站点

zhàndiǎn

stop

导航

dǎoháng

navigation

行程

xíngchéng

itinerary

预订

yùdìng

reserve

取消

qǔxiāo

cancel

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