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Mythic Mandarin

By comparison: 相对 and 相比之下

HSK 6 Unit 5: Degrees and limits · Lesson 4 of 5 · About 26 minutes

Preview version — Chinese review in progress.

Your mission: By the end of this lesson, you can compare two options fairly with 相对 and 相比之下, and choose where to stay on holiday.

Warm-up: do you remember?

Two quick questions from earlier lessons. Recalling before you learn makes the new material stick.

  1. Meaning

    What does 开销 mean?

    1. expenses
    2. stairs
    3. resident
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, expenses.

    开销 (kāixiāo) means expenses.

  2. Characters

    Which word means “water and electricity bills”?

    1. 生活费
    2. 水电费
    3. 开通
    Show the answer

    Answer: B, 水电费.

    “water and electricity bills” is 水电费 (shuǐdiànfèi).

  3. Listening

    From an earlier unit. Listen. What does the word mean?

    Cannot listen? Read it instead

    脚步声 jiǎobùshēng

    1. with the result that (a bad result)
    2. to feel wronged, to put up with
    3. sound of footsteps
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, sound of footsteps.

    You heard 脚步声 (jiǎobùshēng): sound of footsteps.

New words

  • 相对xiāngduìrelatively
  • 相比之下xiāngbǐ zhī xiàby comparison
  • 民宿mínsùguesthouse, homestay
  • 性价比xìngjiàbǐvalue for money
  • 体验tǐyànto experience, experience

相对 and 相比之下

相对 (xiāngduì) + adjective: relatively, compared with others. 相比之下 (xiāngbǐ zhī xià) starts a sentence after you describe one option: by comparison ….

  • 这个地区的房价相对便宜。

    Zhège dìqū de fángjià xiāngduì piányi.

    Housing prices in this area are relatively low.

  • 酒店很方便，但是太贵了。相比之下，民宿便宜多了。

    Jiǔdiàn hěn fāngbiàn, dànshì tài guì le. Xiāngbǐ zhī xià, mínsù piányi duō le.

    The hotel is convenient but too expensive. By comparison, the guesthouse is much cheaper.

Characters

Open a character to see how it is written, stroke by stroke, with its meanings and words.

Hotel or guesthouse?

Gao Fei and Chen Jing are planning a weekend away.

Listen first

Play the whole conversation and answer the questions before you open the transcript.

Helpful words: 主人 zhǔrén host, owner; 早餐 zǎocān breakfast; 地道 dìdao authentic

  1. Listening

    Listen first. How much is the guesthouse per night?

    1. twelve hundred
    2. four hundred
    3. two hundred
    Show the answer

    Answer: B, four hundred.

    这家民宿只要四百.

  2. Listening

    What is one advantage of the guesthouse, apart from price?

    1. a swimming pool for guests
    2. authentic breakfasts from the host
    3. it is closer to the scenic area
    Show the answer

    Answer: B, authentic breakfasts from the host.

    主人会做地道的早餐.

Show the transcript
Pinyin
Translation

  1. 高飞

    你Nǐ看kàn这个zhège酒店jiǔdiàn，离lí景区jǐngqū很hěn近jìn，服务fúwù也yě好hǎo，可是kěshì一yì晚wǎn要yào一千二yìqiān'èr。

    Look at this hotel: it's close to the scenic area and the service is good, but it's twelve hundred a night.

  2. 陈静

    相比之下Xiāngbǐ zhī xià，这zhè家jiā民宿mínsù只要zhǐyào四百sìbǎi，性价比xìngjiàbǐ高gāo多duō了le。

    By comparison, this guesthouse is only four hundred. Much better value for money.

  3. 高飞

    民宿Mínsù离lí景区jǐngqū远yuǎn吗ma？

    Is the guesthouse far from the scenic area?

  4. 陈静

    相对Xiāngduì远yuǎn一点儿yìdiǎnr，走路zǒulù二十èrshí分钟fēnzhōng。不过Búguò主人zhǔrén会huì做zuò地道dìdao的de早餐zǎocān。

    Relatively further: a twenty-minute walk. But the host makes authentic breakfasts.

  5. 高飞

    住Zhù民宿mínsù还hái能néng体验tǐyàn当地dāngdì人rén的de生活shēnghuó。就Jiù它tā吧ba！

    Staying in a guesthouse also lets you experience local life. Let's take it!

  6. 陈静

    好Hǎo，我wǒ马上mǎshàng订dìng。

    Great, I'll book it now.

Speak: listen, record, compare

Listen to each model, record yourself, then play both and compare: the rhythm, the tones, the vowels. No automatic score: your ear is the judge.

  • 相比之下，这家民宿只要四百，性价比高多了。

    Xiāngbǐ zhī xià, zhè jiā mínsù zhǐyào sìbǎi, xìngjiàbǐ gāo duō le.

    By comparison, this guesthouse is only four hundred. Much better value for money.

  • 住民宿还能体验当地人的生活。就它吧！

    Zhù mínsù hái néng tǐyàn dāngdì rén de shēnghuó. Jiù tā ba!

    Staying in a guesthouse also lets you experience local life. Let's take it!

  • 民宿离景区远吗？

    Mínsù lí jǐngqū yuǎn ma?

    Is the guesthouse far from the scenic area?

Practice

  1. Meaning

    What does 相对 mean?

    1. to meet (up)
    2. relatively
    3. cost
    Show the answer

    Answer: B, relatively.

    相对 (xiāngduì) means relatively.

  2. Characters

    Which word means “by comparison”?

    1. 人山人海
    2. 也就是说
    3. 相比之下
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, 相比之下.

    “by comparison” is 相比之下 (xiāngbǐ zhī xià).

  3. Word order

    Put the words in order: Is the guesthouse far from the scenic area?

    • 民宿
    • 景区
    • 离
    • 吗
    • 远
    Show the answer

    民宿离景区远吗 Mínsù lí jǐngqū yuǎn ma?

    Is the guesthouse far from the scenic area?

    民宿离景区远吗？ The sentence comes from this lesson's text.

  4. Listening

    Listen. What does the word mean?

    Cannot listen? Read it instead

    性价比 xìngjiàbǐ

    1. value for money
    2. arm
    3. income
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, value for money.

    You heard 性价比 (xìngjiàbǐ): value for money.

  5. Your turn

    Recall: type the Chinese for “to experience, experience” (characters or pinyin).

    Show the answer

    Answer: 体验

    “to experience, experience” is 体验 (tǐyàn).

  6. Grammar

    Which sentence is natural?

    1. 这家民宿很值得住。
    2. 这家民宿很值得住它。
    3. 这家民宿值得很住。
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, 这家民宿很值得住。.

    这家民宿很值得住。: 值得 + verb: worth doing.

  7. Grammar

    Which word starts a sentence that compares with the one before?

    1. 相对
    2. 起码
    3. 相比之下
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, 相比之下.

    相比之下: by comparison.

  8. Fill the gap

    Complete: This phone is cheap and good: great value for money.

    这个手机又便宜又好，＿＿很高。

    1. 性价比
    2. 民宿
    3. 体验
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, 性价比.

    性价比: value for money.

  9. In context

    You live with a family for a week to see how they cook and celebrate. What do you do?

    1. 相对当地的生活
    2. 体验当地的生活
    3. 民宿当地的生活
    Show the answer

    Answer: B, 体验当地的生活.

    体验当地的生活: 体验: to experience.

  10. Your turn

    Type the Chinese for relatively

    Show the answer

    Answer: 相对

    相对: relatively.

Compare two choices

Compare two places to stay, two phones or two jobs out loud, in six sentences.

  1. The strengths of the first.
  2. The second, with 相比之下.
  3. One relative point, with 相对.
  4. Your choice.

Sentence frames

  • 相比之下，＿＿。

    Xiāngbǐ zhī xià, ＿＿.

    By comparison, ...

Record your attempt (three and a half minutes at most) and listen back:

Review and finish

Can you do this? If a line feels shaky, go back to that part before you move on.

  • I compare options with 相对 and 相比之下.
  • I can talk about hotels, guesthouses and value for money.

Review works best spaced out: answer these exercises again tomorrow, then after a few days. Your progress is saved in this browser.

Completing records that you finished the lesson. Mastery is separate: it grows as reviews bring the exercises back and you answer them correctly.

Next lesson: Reading: city or countryside?