Mandarin: Sports and hobbies

Learn how to talk about what hobbies and sports you do in Mandarin.

Here is a list of some popular sports in Mandarin:

Did you know?

The verbs in Mandarin for sporting hobbies are:

• 打dǎ (hit) - for when you use your hand to play

• 踢tī (kick) - for when you use your foot to play

For example, in Mandarin you would say:

• 我喜欢打网球Wǒ xǐ huan dǎ wǎng qiú - I like to play tennis

• 我喜欢踢足球Wǒ xǐ huan tī zú qiú - I like to play football

Riding in Mandarin

Hobbies that involve riding in Mandarin include:

Did you know?

The verb in Mandarin for hobbies that involve sitting down or riding is 骑qí (ride).

For example, in Mandarin you would say:

我喜欢骑自行车Wǒ xǐ huan qí zì xíng chē - I like riding a bike

Of course, there are other hobbies than just ball games, including:

Did you know?

The verbs in Mandarin for musical hobbies are:

• 拉lā - when you need a bow to play, eg violin

• 弹tán - when you mostly use your hands to play, eg piano or guitar

The other hobbies listed, eg 跳舞tiào wǔ (to dance), are already in verb form.

For example, in Mandarin you would say:

• 我喜欢拉小提琴Wǒ xǐ huan lā xiǎo tí qín - I like to play the violin

• 我喜欢弹吉他Wǒ xǐ huan tán jí ta - I like to play the guitar

• 我喜欢唱歌Wǒ xǐ huan chàng gē - I like to sing

To talk about your hobbies in Mandarin, you can use the phrase 我会Wǒ huì (I can), for example:

• 我会骑自行车Wǒ huì qí zì xíng chē - I can ride a bike

• 我会弹吉他Wǒ huì tán jí ta - I can play the guitar

If you do a hobby often, you could use the Mandarin phrase 我经常Wǒ jīng cháng (I often), for example:

• 我经常踢足球Wǒ jīng cháng tī zú qiú - I often play football

• 我经常打网球Wǒ jīng cháng dǎ wǎng qiú - I often play tennis

There are many traditional sports in China:

• Chinese Wushu (中国武术Zhōng guó wǔ shù) - also known as kungfu or Chinese martial arts

• Jianzi (踢毽子Tī jiàn zi) - like keepy uppies, but with a shuttlecock

• Bahe (拔河Bá hé) - an equivalent to tug of war

Now you've learnt how to talk about sports and hobbies in Mandarin, let's put it into a conversation!

Tom:我经常在公园踢足球。Wǒ jīng cháng zài gōng yuán tī zú qiú . - I often play football at the park.

Mary:太好啦！我也喜欢足球。Tài hǎo lā! Wǒ yě xǐ huān zú qiú. - Great! I like football also.

Tom:我们一起去吧！Wǒ men yī qǐ qù ba! - Let’s go there together!