How to talk to your ayi in Chinese

Your ayi keeps the household running and has strong opinions about how you live. A few phrases turn chaos into partnership.

What you'll say

Tap play to hear it. Everything on this page runs in your browser — nothing is uploaded.

Heads-up: the voice you hear here is your browser’s built-in Mandarin — the app sounds considerably better. On iPhone it uses Apple’s enhanced and premium system voices, plays at real conversational speed, and has a slow mode for practising.

This device has no Chinese voice installed, so audio can’t play here. The app doesn’t have that problem — it uses the Mandarin voices built into iOS.

阿姨，下周一还是老时间来吧。

Āyí, xià zhōuyī háishi lǎo shíjiān lái ba.

Ayi, come next Monday at the usual time.

老时间 (lǎo shíjiān) = 'the usual time'. Instant regular-customer energy.

这个不用洗，我自己来。

Zhège bú yòng xǐ, wǒ zìjǐ lái.

No need to wash this — I'll do it myself.

我自己来 = 'I'll handle it myself'. Protects your dry-clean-only sweater.

麻烦重点打扫一下厨房。

Máfan zhòngdiǎn dǎsǎo yíxià chúfáng.

Please focus on the kitchen this time.

重点 (zhòngdiǎn) = 'focus on'. 卫生间 bathroom, 卧室 bedroom, 阳台 balcony.

1 more phrase in this situation — plus the real-speed audio for all 4, the listening drill, and the camera. Six situations are free in the app; this one is part of Pro.

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What they'll say back

This is the part nobody teaches. Real Mandarin comes back fast and blunt, so hear it at natural speed first.

Press play before you read. In the app, anything you miss comes back slower and then again later, until you catch it at full speed.

They say

洗衣液快用完了，要买了。

Xǐyījiù kuài yòng wán le, yào mǎi le.

The laundry detergent is almost finished — you need to buy more.

You can answer

好，我今天下单。

Hǎo, wǒ jīntiān xiàdān.

OK, I'll order it today.

They say

下周我有事，换到周五可以吗？

Xià zhōu wǒ yǒu shì, huàn dào zhōuwǔ kěyǐ ma?

I'm busy next week — can we switch to Friday?

You can answer

没问题，周五见。

Méi wèntí, zhōuwǔ jiàn.

No problem — see you Friday.

Other situations in Home & apartment

Something's broken — texting the landlord The compound security guard Utilities: bills & blackouts The upstairs neighbor situation