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Mythic Mandarin

Buying apples

Preview version — Chinese review in progress.

HSK 1 About 3 minutes

买苹果

Mǎi píngguǒ

Buying apples

Story

  1. 。

    Mǎ Lì hé māma qù mǎi píngguǒ.

    Ma Li and her mum go to buy apples.

    Words in this sentence
    马丽 Mǎ Lì
    Ma Li (name)
    和 hé
    and Dictionary
    妈妈 māma
    mum Dictionary
    去 qù
    to go Dictionary
    买 mǎi
    to buy Dictionary
    苹果 píngguǒ
    apple Dictionary

  2. ：“？”

    Mǎ Lì shuō:“ píngguǒ duōshao qián yì jīn?”

    Ma Li says, "How much are the apples a jin?"

    Words in this sentence
    马丽 Mǎ Lì
    Ma Li (name)
    说 shuō
    to say, to speak Dictionary
    苹果 píngguǒ
    apple Dictionary
    多少 duōshao
    how much, how many Dictionary
    钱 qián
    money Dictionary
    一 yì
    one, a Dictionary
    斤 jīn
    jin (half a kilo) Dictionary

  3. “。”

    “ shí kuài yì jīn.”

    "Ten yuan a jin."

    Words in this sentence
    十 shí
    ten
    块 kuài
    yuan (money, spoken) Dictionary
    一 yì
    one, a Dictionary
    斤 jīn
    jin (half a kilo) Dictionary

  4. ：“！”

    Mǎ Lì shuō:“ hěn guì!”

    Ma Li says, "That's expensive!"

    Words in this sentence
    马丽 Mǎ Lì
    Ma Li (name)
    说 shuō
    to say, to speak Dictionary
    很 hěn
    very Dictionary
    贵 guì
    expensive Dictionary

  5. “，！”

    “ píngguǒ hěn dà, hěn hǎochī!”

    "The apples are big and very tasty!"

    Words in this sentence
    苹果 píngguǒ
    apple Dictionary
    很 hěn
    very Dictionary
    大 dà
    big, loud Dictionary
    很 hěn
    very Dictionary
    好吃 hǎochī
    tasty (food) Dictionary

  6. 。

    māma mǎi liǎng jīn.

    Mum buys two jin.

    Words in this sentence
    妈妈 māma
    mum Dictionary
    买 mǎi
    to buy Dictionary
    两 liǎng
    two Dictionary
    斤 jīn
    jin (half a kilo) Dictionary

  7. ：“！”

    Mǎ Lì chī yí gè:“ zhēn hǎochī!”

    Ma Li eats one: "Really tasty!"

    Words in this sentence
    马丽 Mǎ Lì
    Ma Li (name)
    吃 chī
    to eat Dictionary
    一 yí
    one, a Dictionary
    个 gè
    (measure word for people and things) Dictionary
    真 zhēn
    real, true Dictionary
    好吃 hǎochī
    tasty (food) Dictionary

Grammar focus

  • 多少钱 "how much (money)?"
  • 很 "very": 很 + adjective

Vocabulary

Questions

1苹果多少钱一斤？Píngguǒ duōshao qián yì jīn?How much is a jin of apples?
Show the answer and explanations

Answer: B. Sentence 3: 十块一斤, "Ten yuan a jin."

  • A: 两 is in sentence 6: Mum buys two jin, not two yuan.
  • C: The price in sentence 3 is 十块, ten yuan.
2马丽说苹果很贵。Mǎ Lì shuō píngguǒ hěn guì.Ma Li says the apples are expensive.
Show the answer and explanations

Answer: A. True. Sentence 4: 马丽说：“很贵！” "That's expensive!"

  • B: In sentence 4 Ma Li says 很贵, "very expensive", so the statement is true.
3妈妈买几斤苹果？Māma mǎi jǐ jīn píngguǒ?How many jin of apples does Mum buy?
Show the answer and explanations

Answer: C. Sentence 6: 妈妈买两斤, "Mum buys two jin."

  • A: 十 is the price (sentence 3), not how much Mum buys.
  • B: The price is for 一斤; Mum buys 两斤.
4“贵”是什么意思？"Guì" shì shénme yìsi?What does 贵 mean?
Show the answer and explanations

Answer: B. 贵 means "expensive": 很贵, it costs a lot of money.

  • A: "Big" is 大 (sentence 5: 很大); 贵 is about the price.
  • C: 好吃 is about taste (sentence 5); 贵 is about money.
5哪个句子对？Nǎ gè jùzi duì?Which sentence is correct?
Show the answer and explanations

Answer: A. Subject, verb, then the amount: 妈妈 买 两斤 (sentence 6).

  • B: The verb 买 comes before what you buy: 买两斤.
  • C: A Chinese statement starts with the subject: 妈妈 first.

Speaking task

你想买水果。问多少钱。

Nǐ xiǎng mǎi shuǐguǒ. Wèn duōshao qián.

You want to buy fruit. Ask how much it is.

Tips

  • Ask with ……多少钱一斤？
  • Say the amount after 买: 我买两斤.
Try it yourself first, then show the model answer

你好！苹果多少钱一斤？我买两斤。

Nǐ hǎo! Píngguǒ duōshao qián yì jīn? Wǒ mǎi liǎng jīn.

Hello! How much are the apples a jin? I'll take two jin.

About the HSK 1 level