Interested in Chinese culture: 对…感兴趣
HSK 3 Unit 5: Interests and feelings · Lesson 1 of 5 · About 18 minutes
Preview version — Chinese review in progress.
Your mission: By the end of this lesson, you can say what you are and aren't interested in with 对…感兴趣, and talk about history, culture and calligraphy.
Audio preview uses your device’s Chinese voice. It is not a recording.
Warm-up: do you remember?
Two quick questions from earlier lessons. Recalling before you learn makes the new material stick.
Meaning
What does 遍 mean?
That is 健身房 (jiànshēnfáng).
That is 肉 (ròu).
Show the answer
Answer: C, time (once through, from start to end).
遍 (biàn) means time (once through, from start to end).
Characters
Which word means “to seem, as if”?
感冒 (gǎnmào) means to have a cold, a cold.
健康 (jiànkāng) means healthy, health.
Show the answer
Answer: B, 好像.
“to seem, as if” is 好像 (hǎoxiàng).
New words
对 + topic + 感兴趣
对 (duì) + topic + 感兴趣 (gǎn xìngqù) is to be interested in something. The negative is 不感兴趣 or 没有兴趣.
我对中国历史很感兴趣。
Wǒ duì Zhōngguó lìshǐ hěn gǎnxìngqù.
I'm very interested in Chinese history.
他对运动不感兴趣。
Tā duì yùndòng bù gǎnxìngqù.
He isn't interested in sport.
你对什么感兴趣？
Nǐ duì shénme gǎnxìngqù?
What are you interested in?
Not:
我感兴趣中国文化。But: 我对中国文化感兴趣。 Wǒ duì Zhōngguó wénhuà gǎnxìngqù.
The topic goes after 对, before 感兴趣.
Culture words
文化 (wénhuà) is culture and 历史 (lìshǐ) is history. 书法 (shūfǎ) is the art of writing characters with a brush.
中国有很长的历史。
Zhōngguó yǒu hěn cháng de lìshǐ.
China has a long history.
Characters
Open a character to see how it is written, stroke by stroke, with its meanings and words.
Why Chinese?
Professor Yang meets Sophie, a new student from France.
Listen first
Play the whole conversation and answer the questions before you open the transcript.
Listening
Listen first. Why is Sophie learning Chinese?
Show the answer
Answer: C, She's interested in Chinese history and culture..
因为我对中国的历史和文化很感兴趣.
Listening
What is she most interested in?
Show the answer
Answer: A, calligraphy.
我对书法最感兴趣.
Show the transcript
杨教授
苏菲，你为什么学汉语？
Sophie, why are you learning Chinese?
苏菲
因为我对中国的历史和文化很感兴趣。
Because I'm very interested in Chinese history and culture.
杨教授
你对什么最感兴趣？
What are you most interested in?
苏菲
我对书法最感兴趣。我觉得汉字很漂亮。
Calligraphy. I think Chinese characters are beautiful.
杨教授
下个星期学校有书法课，你想去吗？
There's a calligraphy class at the university next week. Would you like to go?
苏菲
当然想去！
Of course!
Speak: listen, record, compare
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因为我对中国的历史和文化很感兴趣。
Yīnwèi wǒ duì Zhōngguó de lìshǐ hé wénhuà hěn gǎnxìngqù.
Because I'm very interested in Chinese history and culture.
我对书法最感兴趣。我觉得汉字很漂亮。
Wǒ duì shūfǎ zuì gǎnxìngqù. Wǒ juéde Hànzì hěn piàoliang.
Calligraphy. I think Chinese characters are beautiful.
你对什么最感兴趣？
Nǐ duì shénme zuì gǎnxìngqù?
What are you most interested in?
Practice
Meaning
What does 感兴趣 mean?
That is 需要 (xūyào).
That is 个 (gè).
Show the answer
Answer: C, to be interested.
感兴趣 (gǎnxìngqù) means to be interested.
Characters
Which word means “interest”?
蔬菜 (shūcài) means vegetables.
历史 (lìshǐ) means history.
Show the answer
Answer: A, 兴趣.
“interest” is 兴趣 (xìngqù).
Word order
Put the words in order: What are you most interested in?
- 什么
- 感兴趣
- 对
- 你
- 最
Show the answer
你对什么最感兴趣 Nǐ duì shénme zuì gǎnxìngqù?
What are you most interested in?
你对什么最感兴趣？ The sentence comes from this lesson's text.
Listening
Listen. What does the word mean?
Cannot listen? Read it instead
文化 wénhuà
That would be 路口 (lùkǒu).
That would be 肉 (ròu).
Show the answer
Answer: B, culture.
You heard 文化 (wénhuà): culture.
Pinyin
Type the pinyin of 书法 (calligraphy). Tone marks or tone numbers are welcome.
Show the answer
Answer: shūfǎ
书法 is shūfǎ in pinyin.
Grammar
Which sentence means I'm interested in art and history?
Show the answer
Answer: C, 我对历史感兴趣。.
我对历史感兴趣。 对 + topic + 感兴趣.
Fill the gap
Complete: He isn't interested in sport.
他对运动不感＿＿。
Show the answer
Answer: A, 兴趣.
他对运动不感兴趣: not interested.
In context
You want to ask a new friend about their interests. What do you say?
Show the answer
Answer: C, 你对什么感兴趣？.
你对什么感兴趣？: 你对什么感兴趣: what are you interested in?
Your turn
Type the Chinese for Chinese culture
Show the answer
Answer: 中国文化
中国文化: Chinese culture.
Your interests
Talk out loud about three things you are interested in and one you are not.
- 我对…很感兴趣。
- Say why, with 因为.
- 我对…不感兴趣。
Sentence frames
我对＿＿很感兴趣，因为＿＿。
Wǒ duì ＿＿ hěn gǎnxìngqù, yīnwèi ＿＿.
I'm interested in ... because ...
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 say 对 + topic + 感兴趣.
- I can talk about history, culture and calligraphy.
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.