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Daily lessons · Day 22 of 90
Shopping and haggling
Buying things
Two kinds of shop exist in China: the ones with a printed price and the ones without. This day covers both, and says clearly which phrases belong where.
Browsing
Doubling a verb makes it casual: just having a look.
Why it works
Doubling a verb, 看看 or 试试, softens it into something brief and low commitment. It is the everyday alternative to 一下 from yesterday and the two are close to interchangeable: 看一下 and 看看 both mean have a quick look. The doubled syllable loses its tone.
The price
太贵了 is expected in a market, and pointless in a supermarket.
Why it works
Haggle where the price is not written: markets, tourist stalls, small shops selling clothes or souvenirs. Do not haggle in supermarkets, chains, restaurants or anywhere with a printed tag, where it only causes confusion. A reasonable opening counter at a tourist market is well under half, and walking away is a normal part of the conversation rather than an insult.
Deciding
How to buy it, and how to leave without buying it.
Why it works
我再看看 does two jobs. It genuinely means you want to think, and it also signals the end of a negotiation without anyone losing face. If a seller was going to come down further, this is usually the moment it happens, which is why walking slowly is part of the technique.
The phone is the wallet
Payment is overwhelmingly by scanning a code, and many small sellers carry no change at all. Cash is still legal and must be accepted, but handing over a hundred yuan note at a fruit stall can genuinely stall the transaction. Linking a foreign card to a payment app before you travel removes most of this friction.
Carried over from earlier days
Say each one out loud before you look at the English.
Today’s words 12
Check yourself
8 questions. Get 6 right to finish the day.
What does doubling a verb do, as in 看看?
- it makes the action brief and casual
- it makes it past
- it makes it plural
- it makes it formal
Show the answer
it makes the action brief and casual 看一下 and 看看 are close to interchangeable.
Type I'm just looking in pinyin.
Show the answer
wǒ kànkan The second syllable is light, with no tone.
Where is haggling appropriate?
- markets and stalls without a printed price
- supermarkets
- restaurants
- chain shops
Show the answer
markets and stalls without a printed price A printed tag means the price is the price.
What does 吧 add to 便宜一点儿吧?
- it makes it a suggestion rather than a demand
- it makes it a question
- it makes it firmer
- it marks the past
Show the answer
it makes it a suggestion rather than a demand The same 吧 as 我们去吧 on day 18.
Why is 我再看看 useful at the end of a negotiation?
- it ends the conversation without either side losing face
- it is a firm refusal
- it doubles the price
- it commits you to buying
Show the answer
it ends the conversation without either side losing face It is often the moment the price drops.
Which means is there a bigger one?
- 有大一点儿的吗 yǒu dà yìdiǎnr de ma
- 有一点儿大的吗 yǒu yìdiǎnr dà de ma
- 大有一点儿吗 dà yǒu yìdiǎnr ma
- 有大的一点儿吗 yǒu dà de yìdiǎnr ma
Show the answer
有大一点儿的吗 yǒu dà yìdiǎnr de ma 一点儿 follows the adjective it softens, then 的 turns it into a thing.
Why might a fruit stall struggle with a hundred yuan note?
- almost everyone pays by scanning a code, so sellers carry little change
- cash is illegal
- notes that large are counterfeit
- fruit is always free
Show the answer
almost everyone pays by scanning a code, so sellers carry little change Cash must legally be accepted, but it can stall things.
Type how much is this one in pinyin.
Show the answer
zhège duōshao qián 多少 asks for a number that could be large.
Question 1 of 8
Writing practice optional
Every character from today, in the order it came up. Watch it, trace it, then write it from memory.
Press Watch to see the stroke order.
Stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi via Hanzi Writer, Arphic Public License.
Character 1 of 34
This lesson is written by an English speaker who learned Mandarin as a second language, and it is waiting on a check by a native speaker. If you spot something off, please tell us and we will fix it.