Everyday Chinese: Have You Eaten?

What Chinese expression do you say when you meet someone new?  What do Chinese people say when they meet a friend?  There are several commonly used Chinese expressions along with “Hello! | nǐ hǎo 你好.”

“What’s up?”  “How’s everything going?”  “How are you doing?”  We hear these greeting expressions all the time.  But, how about in Chinese?  Hello! | nǐ hǎo 你好 is just the beginning.

Chinese people say Hello! | nǐ hǎo 你好.  It literally means “you good.”  People use this greeting expression when they meet someone new and often adding someone’s title or name before nǐ hǎo 你好.

“Have you eaten?”

What?

Yes.  You will very likely hear this greeting when you hang out in a Chinese community for a while.

“Have you eaten? chī fàn le ma? 吃飯了嗎?” is one of the most commonly used greetings for Chinese.  Chinese people love food.  It is an important part of the culture.

If you look at a menu in a Chinese restaurant you will see some common dishes are transformed into something quite extraordinary by the Chinese name of the dish.

When Chinese people see a neighborhood, a friend, or a relative on the street they often use this greeting expression, “Have you eaten? chī fàn le ma? 吃飯了嗎?”  The two commonly used replies are  “(I) have eaten | chī le 吃了。” or  “not yet. | hái méi 還沒-还没。”

Don’t be surprised if you are offered some food after you reply “not yet.”

Here are a few more Chinese expressions you can use with your child.

• Hello! | nǐ hǎo 你好.  -This literally means, “you good”.

• Mrs./Mr. …, Hello |  hǎo …好.  -This one means “good or well.”

• Good morning. |  zǎo 早. -Here is “morning.”

• Good morning. | zǎo ān 早安. -This one literally means, “morning peace”

• Good morning. | zǎoshang hǎo 早上好.  -It literally means ” morning good.”

• Have you eaten? |  chīfàn le ma? 吃飯了嗎? – 吃饭了吗? Here literally means “eat food yet?”

• Good evening. | wǎnshàng hǎo 晚上好 -It literally means “evening good.”

• Good night! | wǎn’ān 晚安 -This one is used before going to bed and it literally means, “night peace.”

What expressions do you want to start using with your child on the list today?

image by pixabay.