Hi, my name is Manuel! I am from Spain and I am a Student Advisor at LTL and I’m based at our Taipei school.
Hi, my name is Mojca! I am from Slovenia in Europe and I work as a student advisor at our Shanghai school.100+ Words and Phrases About Places in Chinese // Beginner Level
Places in Chinese | Your Guide to ALL the Key Vocab
Knowing how to say a few places in Chinese will get you far in a conversation.
- Want to explain where you went this weekend?
- What about where you have to go this afternoon?
There’s never enough vocabulary to learn, right?
This article is meant as a starting point for beginners in terms of places to know about.
It is here to help you build more complex sentences and be able to explain more about your weekend’s activities in your next Chinese class.
We’ll add short chapters with more details for certain locations, so you can be sure you’ll be learning even more Chinese vocabulary today.
Places in Chinese | Common Places
Places in Chinese | Sentence Structure
Places in Chinese | Bank
Places in Chinese | Pharmacy
Places in Chinese | Hospital
Places in Chinese | School
Places in Chinese | Travel Agency
BONUS | Test Your Knowledge
First things first:
Place in Chinese is 地方 dìfāng
Common Places in Chinese
Here’s a list of common places in Chinese you should learn first.
There are of course a lot more places we could include in this table, but this article is meant for beginner students.
Let’s crack on
If you’d like to share more places your learned in class or during self-study, make sure to write a comment below!
Places in Chinese are listed in alphabetical order:
| English | Hanzi | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| Bank | 银行 | yín háng |
| Casino | 赌场 | dǔ chǎng |
| Cathedral | 大教堂 | dà jiào táng |
| Church | 教会 | jiào huì |
| City hall | 市政厅 | shì zhèng tīng |
| College | 学院 | xué yuàn |
| Drugstore, pharmacy | 药房 | yào fáng |
| Embassy | 大使馆 | dà shǐ guǎn |
| Gas station | 加油站 | jiā yóu zhàn |
| Hospital | 医院 | yī yuàn |
| Hotel | 酒店 | jiǔ diàn |
| Information office | 问询处 | wèn xún chù |
| Library | 图书馆 | tú shū guǎn |
| Money exchange | 货币兑换 | huò bì duì huàn |
| Mosque | 清真寺 | qīng zhēn sì |
| Movie theater | 电影院 | diàn yǐng yuàn |
| Museum | 博物馆 | bó wù guǎn |
| Nightclub | 夜总会 | yè zǒng huì |
| Opera | 歌剧院 | gē jù yuàn |
| Optical store | 眼镜店 | yǎn jìng diàn |
| Parking lot | 停车场 | tíng chē chǎng |
| Restaurant | 餐厅 | cāntīng |
| School | 学校 | xué xiào |
| Store | 商店 | shāng diàn |
| Subway | 地铁 | dì tiě |
| Synagogue | 犹太教徒 | yóu tài jiào táng |
| Temple | 庙宇 | miào yǔ |
| Theater | 剧院 | jù yuàn |
| Travel agency | 旅行社 | lǚ xíng shè |
| University | 大学 | dà xué |
| Zoo | 动物园 | dòng wù yuán |
Places in Chinese | Sentence Structure
To indicate the location where the activity or event takes place, you need to use the following sentence structure:
Subject + 在 + Place + Verb (+ Object)
在 (zài) is a preposition you will see very often in your Chinese studies, considering it is the 8th most common Chinese character!
Let’s have a look at some examples, so you know how to use it in a sentence:
- 他在公司工作。
- tā zài gōngsī gōngzuò.
- He works at the company.
- 妈妈在超市买东西。
- māmā zài chāoshì mǎi dōngxī.
- Mum is shopping in the supermarket.
- 弟弟在书店买书。
- dìdì zài shūdiàn mǎishū.
- Younger brother buys books in the bookstore.
NOTE – In English, location is usually put at the end of a sentence. In Chinese, location is usually put after the subject but before the verb.
Make sure to build your sentence in the right order!
在 actually has more than one usage, and can be used as a verb or a complement.
We’ve put together a very useful guide on how to use 在 with lots of sentence examples to make it easier to understand.
Make sure to check it out and add it to your favourites, so you can always come back to check some Chinese Grammar points you’re unsure about!
CHINESE GRAMMAR BANK | Find more lessons like this one in our Grammar Bank.
Bank in Chinese | 银行 yín háng
Let’s teach you some words you could need at your next visit to the bank.
Going to the bank in China can be an arduous experience.
The queue is usually quite long and depending on your city, bank employees might not be used to foreign documentation, making it an even more awkward experience.
Hopefully this will help you a bit.
If you’d like to discover more, check out our articles about money in Chinese, and this one about Chinese currency.
Want even more? We also have one about cryptocurrency in Chinese. Don’t say we don’t look after you!
| English | Characters | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| Bank clerk, consultant | 顾问 | gù wèn |
| Banking account | 账户 | zhànghù |
| Account number | 账号 | zhàng hào |
| Checking account | 活期账户 | huó qī zhànghù |
| Savings account | 储蓄账户 | chǔ xù zhànghù |
| To open an account | 开立账户 | kāi lì zhàng hù |
| To close the account | 关闭账户 | guān bì zhànghù |
| To deposit into the account | 存入账户 | cún rù zhàng hù |
| To withdraw (v) | 取钱 | qǔqián |
| To make a deposit | 存款 | cún kuǎn |
| Wire transfer | 汇款 | huì kuǎn |
| Sum | 金额 | jīn é |
| Credit card | 信用卡 | xìn yòng kǎ |
| Code | 密码 | mì mǎ |
| Credit card number | 信用卡号码 | xìn yòng kǎ hào mǎ |
| ATM | 自动取款机 | zì dòng qǔ kuǎn jī |
| Check | 支票 | zhī piào |
| Checkbook | 支票本 | zhī piào běn |
| To apply for a loan | 借款 | jiè kuǎn |
| To get a loan | 取得贷款 | qǔ dé dài kuǎn |
Pharmacy in Chinese | 药房 yào fáng
If you forgot to bring some items for your first aid kit before you come to China, fear not!
Here’s a list of common items you can find in every pharmacy.
Check out our dedicated article for more vocabulary related to Health in Chinese.
| English | Characters | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| Bandages | 包扎 | bāo zhā |
| Band Aid | OK绷 | O.K bēng |
| Cleansing wipes | 清洁湿巾 | qīngjié shī jīn |
| Disposable sterile gloves | 一次性无菌手套 | yícì xìng wú jūn shǒutào |
| First aid | 急救 | jí jiù |
| Gauze | 纱布 | shā bù |
| Ointment | 药膏 | yào ɡāo |
| Painkillers | 止痛药 | zhǐtòng yào |
| Safety pins | 安全别针 | ānquán biézhēn |
| Scissors | 剪刀 | jiǎn dāo |
| Sticky tape | 胶带 | jiāodài |
| Thermometer | 温度计 | wēndùjì |
| Tweezers | 镊子夹子 | nièzi jiázi |
| To wrap up | 绷带 | bēng dài |
Hospital in Chinese | 医院 yīyuàn
Following the previous vocab topic, here we go for more vocabulary related to hospital in Chinese.
You can discover what it’s like to visit a Chinese hospital from the perspective of a foreigner as LTL student Tereza and her Mum Lenka document.
| English | Characters | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| Sick person | 病人 | bìng rén |
| Clinic | 诊所 | zhěn suǒ |
| Doctor | 医生 | yī shēng |
| Nurse | 护士 | hù shi |
| Patient | 患者 | huàn zhě |
| Surgeon | 外科医生 | wài kē yī shēng |
| To be hospitalised | 住院 | zhù yuàn |
| Stethoscope | 听诊器 | tīng zhěn qì |
| Medical prescription | 处方 | chǔ fāng |
| Virus | 病毒 | bìng dú |
| Infect / contagious | 传染 | chuán rǎn |
| Accident | 事故 | shì gù |
| Suffer injuries (in an accident, etc.) | 受伤 | shòu shāng |
| Delivery / labor | 分娩 | fēn miǎn |
| Inspection / to examine | 检查 | jiǎn chá |
| Wheelchair | 轮椅 | lún yǐ |
| To anaesthetize | 麻醉 | má zuì |
| Surgical operation | 手术 | shǒu shù |
| Blood test | 验血 | yàn xuè |
| Injection / to inject | 注射 | zhù shè |
Hospital in China 👩🏾⚕️ No Need To Worry // Lenka and Tereza’s Story
Hospital in China – This is the story of Lenka and her daughter Tereza, from the Czech Republic. Unfortunately during their first month, Tereza became sick.
School in Chinese | 学校 xué xiào
Get ready for school!
With this vocabulary, you’ll be ready to state what you have in your pencil case and find your way around school, all in Chinese.
- Check this page for all words about stationery in Chinese
- And this one for more school vocab in Chinese
| English | Characters | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| Pencil | 铅笔 | qiān bǐ |
| Bullet point pen | 圆珠笔 | yuánzhūbǐ |
| Fountain pen | 钢笔 | gāngbǐ |
| Colouring pen | 彩色铅笔 | cǎi sè qiān bǐ |
| Marker | 记号笔 | jìhào bǐ |
| Eraser | 橡皮擦 | xiàng pí cā |
| Glue | 胶水 | jiāoshuǐ |
| Scissors | 剪刀 | jiǎndāo |
| Stapler | 订书机 | dìngshūjī |
| Headmaster | 校长 | xiào zhǎng |
| Teacher | 老师 | lǎoshī |
| Student | 学生 | xué sheng |
| Classroom | 教室 | jiào shì |
| Lesson | 一堂课 | yī táng kè |
| Recess | 课间休息 | kè jiān xiū xi |
| Dictation | 听写 | tīng xiě |
| Exam | 考试 | kǎo shì |
Travel Agency in Chinese | 旅行社 lǚ xíng shè
Are you planning to come to China?
Either for work, leisure or studies, you might want to write the following vocabulary down.
| English | Characters | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| Flight | 航班 | háng bān |
| Luggage | 行李 | xíng li |
| Map | 地图 | dì tú |
| Passport | 护照 | hù zhào |
| Ticket | 票 | piào |
| Visa | 签证 | qiān zhèng |
| Arrival time | 到达时间 | dào dá shíjiān |
| Boarding pass | 登机牌 | dēng jī pái |
| Information board | 航班信息板 | háng bān xìn xī bǎn |
| Lost Luggage Desk | 失物招领 | shī wù zhāo lǐng |
| Passport control | 护照检查 | hùzhào jiǎnchá |
| Departure gate | 登机口 | dēng jī kǒu |
| Check-in desk | 办理登机手续处 | bàn lǐ dēng jī shǒu xù chù |
| Customs | 海关 | hǎi guān |
How about that! Not only did you learn about the most common places in Chinese, you also got to learn a LOT more vocabulary on your journey.
We hope this helped you improve the way you describe your holidays or weekends in more detail.
Make sure to follow us on Instagram or Discord for even more free resources like this one.
VOCABULARY QUIZ
Now that you (obviously) learned each and every Chinese word of this page, test our your knowledge right now!
Results are immediate.
BONUS | Like learning this kind of stuff? Why not discover these other languages too? You’ll notice some similarities between them which makes it much more fun to study!
PLACES IN CHINESE – FAQ’S
How do you say Hospital in Chinese?
Hospital in Chinese is 医院 yī yuàn.
How do you say Bank in Chinese?
Bank in Chinese is 银行 yín háng.
How do you say School in Chinese?
School in Chinese is 学校 xué xiào.
How do you say Embassy in Chinese?
Embassy in Chinese is 大使馆 dà shǐ guǎn.
How do you say Gas Station in Chinese?
Gas station in Chinese is 加油站 jiā yóu zhàn.
How do you say Nightclub in Chinese?
Nightclub in Chinese is 夜总会 yè zǒng huì.
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