Chinese phrasebook
At the Phone Shop in Chinese
Practise buying a SIM card in China. Say how much data you need, ask about calls, show your passport and pay.
Situation: A mobile phone shop in Beijing. Your goal: Buy a prepaid SIM card with data.
The whole conversation, line by line
Tap to hear a line. Shop assistant speaks first; the bold lines are what you can say. To see the lines in your own language, choose it in the language menu at the top.
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Shop assistant
你好，下午好。有什么可以帮您？
nǐ hǎo, xiàwǔ hǎo. yǒu shénme kěyǐ bāng nín?
Hello, good afternoon. What can I do for you?
You
你好。我来中国旅游，想买一张有流量的电话卡。
nǐ hǎo. wǒ lái Zhōngguó lǚyóu, xiǎng mǎi yì zhāng yǒu liúliàng de diànhuà kǎ.
Hello. I need a SIM card with data for my phone. I'm visiting China.
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Shop assistant
我们有预付费的电话卡。您需要多少流量？
wǒmen yǒu yùfùfèi de diànhuà kǎ. nín xūyào duōshao liúliàng?
We have prepaid SIM cards. How many gigabytes do you need?
You
十个G应该够用两个星期。
shí ge G yīnggāi gòu yòng liǎng ge xīngqī.
With ten gigabytes I should have enough for two weeks.
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Shop assistant
好的。十个G的卡一百块，三十天有效。
hǎo de. shí ge G de kǎ yìbǎi kuài, sānshí tiān yǒuxiào.
Perfect. The ten-gigabyte SIM costs one hundred yuan and lasts thirty days.
You
可以。这张卡能给我们国家打电话吗？
kěyǐ. zhè zhāng kǎ néng gěi wǒmen guójiā dǎ diànhuà ma?
That's fine. Can I also call my country with this SIM?
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Shop assistant
国际电话不包括在内，不过您可以用流量打微信电话。
guójì diànhuà bù bāokuò zàinèi, búguò nín kěyǐ yòng liúliàng dǎ Wēixìn diànhuà.
International calls aren't included, but you can make WeChat calls with the data.
You
明白了，微信就够了。你能帮我把卡装进手机吗？
míngbái le, Wēixìn jiù gòu le. nǐ néng bāng wǒ bǎ kǎ zhuāng jìn shǒujī ma?
I see, WeChat is enough. Could you put the SIM in my phone?
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Shop assistant
当然可以。办卡需要您的护照，请给我看一下。
dāngrán kěyǐ. bàn kǎ xūyào nín de hùzhào, qǐng gěi wǒ kàn yíxià.
Of course. I need to see your passport to register the SIM.
You
好的，这是我的护照。
hǎo de, zhè shì wǒ de hùzhào.
Yes, here is my passport.
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Shop assistant
谢谢。已经开通了。您刷卡还是付现金？
xièxie. yǐjīng kāitōng le. nín shuākǎ háishi fù xiànjīn?
Thanks. It's activated. Would you like to pay by card or in cash?
You
刷卡，谢谢。可以给我小票吗？
shuākǎ, xièxie. kěyǐ gěi wǒ xiǎo piào ma?
By card, please. Could I have a receipt?
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Shop assistant
给您。祝您在中国玩得开心！
gěi nín. zhù nín zài Zhōngguó wán de kāixīn!
Here you are. Enjoy your stay in China!
You
非常感谢。再见！
fēicháng gǎnxiè. zàijiàn!
Thank you very much. Goodbye!
Now say it for real.
Play this scene as a conversation: the other person speaks, you pick the right reply, and every wrong one comes with a hint. Free on the web.