Expressing Your Feelings in Chinese
Being able to share your feelings and preferences is one of the most useful skills when learning a new language! In this lesson, you'll learn how to express your likes, dislikes, and emotions in simple Mandarin conversations.
Saying What You Like in Chinese
Let's start with these essential words for expressing positive feelings about things:
喜欢to like means "to like" - this is a very common and useful word! For example:
- 我喜欢中国菜 (I like Chinese food)
- 你喜欢什么颜色？ (What color do you like?)
爱love means "to love" - this is stronger than 喜欢to like and often used for people, activities or things you feel deeply about:
- 我爱我的家人 (I love my family)
- 她爱唱歌 (She loves singing)
Expressing Dislikes in Chinese
Now let's learn how to say when you don't like something:
不喜欢don't like means "don't like" - simply add 不not before 喜欢to like:
- 我不喜欢冷天气 (I don't like cold weather)
- 他不喜欢吃辣的菜 (He doesn't like eating spicy food)
讨厌dislike means "to hate" or "to strongly dislike" - stronger than 不喜欢don't like:
- 我讨厌下雨天 (I hate rainy days)
Basic Emotions in Chinese
These words will help you express how you're feeling:
高兴happy, glad means "happy" - one of the most common positive emotions:
- 我很高兴 (I am happy)
- 他看起来很高兴 (He looks happy)
难过sad, upset, to feel bad means "sad" - when you're feeling down:
- 我很难过 (I am sad)
- 这个电影很难过 (This movie is sad)
Here are more useful emotion words to express your feelings:
生气to get angry means "angry":
- 老师生气了 (The teacher is angry)
害怕to fear, to be afraid of means "afraid" or "scared":
- 孩子害怕黑暗 (The child is afraid of the dark)
紧张nervous, tense means "nervous":
- 考试前我很紧张 (I'm nervous before the exam)
累tired means "tired":
- 工作后我很累 (I'm tired after work)
无聊boring means "bored":
- 这个电影很无聊 (This movie is boring)
Expressing Opinions and Thoughts in Chinese
These words help you share what you think or feel about something:
觉得think means "to feel" or "to think" - very useful for giving opinions:
- 我觉得这个电影很有意思 (I think this movie is interesting)
- 你觉得怎么样？ (What do you think?)
认为to think, to believe also means "to think" or "believe" - slightly more formal than 觉得think:
- 我认为学习中文很重要 (I believe learning Chinese is important)
Expressing Desires with 想
想want, think, miss is a versatile word that means "to want to" or "would like to":
- 我想去中国I want to go to China (I want to go to China)
- 他想喝水 (He wants to drink water)
- 你想做什么？ (What do you want to do?)
Comparing Preferences in Chinese
When you want to express that you prefer one thing over another:
比较to compare; relatively means "relatively" or "comparatively" and can express preferences:
- 我比较喜欢咖啡，不太喜欢茶 (I prefer coffee, I don't really like tea)
更more, even more means "more" and is often used with 喜欢to like to express stronger preferences:
- 我更喜欢夏天，不喜欢冬天 (I prefer summer more, I don't like winter)
Practice Dialogues
Try these conversations to practice expressing feelings and preferences:
Dialogue 1: Talking About Food Preferences
- 👩 你喜欢吃什么？ (What do you like to eat?)
- 👨 我喜欢吃中国菜，尤其是北京烤鸭。你呢？ (I like to eat Chinese food, especially Peking duck. How about you?)
- 👩 我也喜欢中国菜，但是我不喜欢太辣的。 (I also like Chinese food, but I don't like very spicy food.)
Dialogue 2: Expressing Emotions
- 👨 你今天看起来很高兴，为什么？ (You look happy today, why?)
- 👩 因为我考试考得很好！ (Because I did well on my exam!)
- 👨 恭喜你！我为你感到高兴。 (Congratulations! I'm happy for you.)
Dialogue 3: Making Weekend Plans
- 👩 周末你想做什么？ (What do you want to do this weekend?)
- 👨 我想去看电影。你呢？ (I want to go see a movie. How about you?)
- 👩 我不太喜欢看电影，我更喜欢去公园。 (I don't really like watching movies, I prefer going to the park.)
- 👨 那我们周六去公园，周日看电影，好吗？ (Then let's go to the park on Saturday and see a movie on Sunday, okay?)
- 👩 好的，我觉得这个主意很好！ (Okay, I think that's a good idea!)
Dialogue 4: Discussing Feelings About a Movie
- 👨 你觉得这个电影怎么样？ (What do you think of this movie?)
- 👩 我觉得很有意思，但有点儿难懂。你呢？ (I think it's interesting, but a bit difficult to understand. How about you?)
- 👨 我觉得有点儿无聊。 (I find it a bit boring.)
Learning Tips for Expressing Feelings in Chinese
- Practice daily emotions - Each day, try saying how you feel in Chinese
- Create like/dislike lists - Make a list of 5 things you like and 5 things you don't like
- Use simple patterns - The structure "我...[emotion]" or "我喜欢...[thing]" is very useful
- Listen for emotion words - Pay attention to how native speakers express their feelings
- Express opinions about photos - Look at pictures and practice saying "我觉得这个..."
Summary
In this lesson, you've learned essential Chinese vocabulary for expressing your feelings, likes, dislikes, and preferences. You now know how to use 喜欢to like and 不喜欢don't like to talk about what you like and don't like, emotion words like 高兴happy, glad and 难过sad, upset, to feel bad to express how you feel, and phrases with 觉得think and 想want, think, miss to share your thoughts and desires.
With these words and phrases, you can now express your feelings and preferences in everyday Chinese conversations! Remember to practice these expressions regularly to make them a natural part of your Chinese speaking skills.