{"id":12193,"date":"2019-10-14T03:10:46","date_gmt":"2019-10-14T03:10:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.blog.thatsmandarin.com\/?p=12193"},"modified":"2021-05-05T10:35:17","modified_gmt":"2021-05-05T10:35:17","slug":"essential-phrases-for-wechat-conversations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/api.thatsmandarin.com\/blog\/essential-phrases-for-wechat-conversations\/","title":{"rendered":"Essential Phrases for WeChat Conversations"},"content":{"rendered":"

WeChat has now become an inalienable part of Chinese people\u2019s daily life as it allows people to do many different things like booking tickets or paying bills with only a few clicks. Nevertheless, people in China mainly use WeChat to talk with each other. In this article, we will explain some of the commonly used words and phrases on WeChat.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Wechat<\/p>\n

1. \u5728<\/b><\/span>\u5417<\/b><\/span> (z\u00e0i ma)<\/b><\/span>\uff1f<\/b><\/span>\/ <\/b><\/span>\u4f60\u5728<\/b><\/span>\u5417<\/b><\/span> (n<\/b><\/span>\u01d0<\/b><\/span> z\u00e0i ma)<\/b><\/span>\uff1f<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

This phrase literally means \u201cAre you there?\u201d.\u00a0 <\/span>In China, if you would like to start a conversation with a person on WeChat, \u201c<\/span>\u5728<\/span>\u5417<\/span> (z\u00e0i ma)?\u201d or \u201c<\/span>\u4f60\u5728<\/span>\u5417<\/span> (n<\/span>\u01d0<\/span> z\u00e0i ma)?\u201d is a common phrase to use in this situation. In Chinese culture, people don\u2019t usually cut to the chase right away if they want to initiate a conversation or a negotiation. Instead, Chinese people have a propensity to start with a small talk, which often serves as the \u201cprelude\u201d to a conversation. <\/span><\/p>\n

Therefore, when it comes to a typical Chinese conversation on WeChat, \u201c<\/span>\u5728<\/span>\u5417<\/span> (z\u00e0i ma)?\u201d is quite often followed by questions like \u201cWhat are you up to?\u201c or \u201cWhat have you been doing today\/recently?\u201d. However, some people can be irritated by the constant appearance of this phrase, and it\u2019s perfectly fine to get down to business straight away if it\u2019s something really important, especially between colleagues or close friends.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Wechat<\/p>\n

2. \u4f60\u5728\u5e72\u561b<\/b><\/span>(n<\/b><\/span>\u01d0<\/b><\/span> z\u00e0i g\u00e0n m\u00e1)<\/b><\/span>\uff1f<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

\u201c<\/span>\u5e72\u561b<\/span>(g\u00e0n m\u00e1)\u201d is a casual way to say \u201cwhat to do?\u201d, which is equivalent to \u201c<\/span>\u505a\u4ec0\u4e48<\/span>(zu\u00f2 sh\u00e9n me)?\u201d. Hence, the meaning of this phrase is \u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d.\u00a0 <\/span>\u201c<\/span>\u4f60\u5728\u5e72\u561b<\/span>(n<\/span>\u01d0<\/span> z\u00e0i g\u00e0n m\u00e1)<\/span>\uff1f<\/span>\u201d is frequently used among close friends and young couples in China to start a chat or an informal conversation. So, don\u2019t feel surprised if you happen to receive such a message from your close Chinese friend, it means he or she is ready (or available) to spend some time chatting with you. <\/span><\/p>\n

Again whether to use this phrase or not is based on individual preferences, which means there are some people who wouldn\u2019t like to send or receive a message similar to it as they feel like it is an invasion of privacy.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Wechat<\/p>\n

3. 666 (li\u00f9 li\u00f9 li\u00f9)<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

6 is an auspicious number in Chinese culture, which is associated with \u201cEverything is going very well\u201d. A famous Chinese idiom related to this is \u201c<\/span>\u516d\u516d\u5927<\/span>\u987a<\/span> li\u00f9 li\u00f9 d\u00e0 sh\u00f9n\u201d, which is used to express people\u2019s wish to make everything run smoothly. Nowadays, three \u201c6\u201ds in a row work as a slang for young people to express admiration for something or somebody. <\/span><\/p>\n

In general, Chinese people like to share the good news with their friends as they believe that happiness is something that needs to be celebrated. If you are telling your Chinese friend that you\u2019ve made some achievements in your study or at work, you might receive \u201c666\u201d from him or her as a way to congratulate you on what has been achieved.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What phrases do you commonly use to chat with your friends?<\/em><\/p>\n

\u300cYou can also have a look at our article about Chinese internet slang<\/a>\u300d<\/p>\n

Leave a comment with your answer below – or tweet us at @thatsmandarin<\/a>!<\/em>\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WeChat has now become an inalienable part of Chinese people\u2019s daily life as it allows people to do many different things like booking tickets or paying bills with only a few clicks. Nevertheless, people in China mainly use WeChat to talk with each other. In this article, we will explain some of the commonly used […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":12201,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":""},"categories":[244,275,239],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nEssential Phrases for WeChat Conversations | That's Mandarin<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"People in China mainly use WeChat to talk with each other. 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