Talking About Your Location in Chinese: Phone Call Dialogue & Guessing Game 📍

In this lesson, you’ll master essential Chinese phrases for talking about your location. Follow along with a fun phone call between Wang Wei and Li Na as they ask “Where are you?” (你在哪儿?) and discuss being at home, school, and the library.

💬 Video Transcript

王伟: 喂？
(Wang Wei: Hello?)

李娜: 喂？你好！
(Li Na: Hello? Hi!)

王伟: 你好！是李娜吗？
(Wang Wei: Hi! Is that Li Na?)

李娜: 是我，王伟。你好吗？
(Li Na: It’s me, Wang Wei. How are you?)

王伟: 我很好，谢谢。你呢？
(Wang Wei: I’m very good, thanks. And you?)

李娜: 我也很好，谢谢。
(Li Na: I’m also very good, thanks.)

王伟: 李娜，你在哪儿？
(Wang Wei: Li Na, where are you?)

李娜: 我不在家。
(Li Na: I’m not at home.)

王伟: 你不在家？嗯……你在学校吗？
(Wang Wei: You’re not at home? Hmm… Are you at school?)

李娜: 我不在学校。你猜。
(Li Na: I’m not at school. You guess.)

王伟: 你不在学校……你在商店吗？
(Wang Wei: You’re not at school… Are you at the store?)

李娜: 我也不在商店。
(Li Na: I’m not at the store either.)

王伟: 啊？你不在家，你也不在学校，你也不在商店。你在哪儿？
(Wang Wei: Huh? You’re not at home, you’re not at school, and you’re not at the store. Where are you?)

李娜: 我在一个有很多书的地方。
(Li Na: I’m in a place with a lot of books.)

王伟: 很多书的地方？哦！你在图书馆！
(Wang Wei: A place with a lot of books? Oh! You’re at the library!)

李娜: 对！我在图书馆。
(Li Na: Correct! I’m at the library.)

王伟: 你在图书馆做什么？
(Wang Wei: What are you doing at the library?)

李娜: 我在看书。这里的书很多，也很好看。
(Li Na: I’m reading. The books here are many, and also very good.)

王伟: 你喜欢看书吗？
(Wang Wei: Do you like to read?)

李娜: 是的，我很喜欢看书。你呢？你在哪儿？
(Li Na: Yes, I really like to read. And you? Where are you?)

王伟: 我在家。
(Wang Wei: I’m at home.)

李娜: 你在家做什么？
(Li Na: What are you doing at home?)

王伟: 我在家喝茶。我的猫也在这儿。
(Wang Wei: I’m drinking tea at home. My cat is also here.)

李娜: 你的猫！它叫什么名字？
(Li Na: Your cat! What’s its name?)

王伟: 它叫包子。它现在在睡觉。
(Wang Wei: Its name is Baozi. It’s sleeping right now.)

李娜: 包子很可爱。我很想看它。
(Li Na: Baozi is very cute. I’d really like to see it.)

王伟: 好啊。你什么时候来我的家？
(Wang Wei: Okay. When are you coming to my home?)

李娜: 我不知道。我现在在看书。好吧，王伟，再见。
(Li Na: I don’t know. I’m reading right now. Okay, Wang Wei, goodbye.)

王伟: 好的，李娜。再见。
(Wang Wei: Okay, Li Na. Goodbye.)

📝 Essential Vocabulary

Here are some key words and phrases from the video that you’ll need to know. Practice your pronunciation with the audio clips!

🔍 Grammar Focus

This conversation is packed with useful grammar for beginners. Let’s break down two key patterns.

1. Asking and Stating Your Location with 在 (zài)

The word 在 (zài) is fundamental for talking about location. It acts like the verb “to be at/in/on.”

To ask where someone is, you use the pattern: Subject + 在哪儿 (zài nǎr)?

• Example from the script: 李娜，你**在哪儿**？ (Li Na, where are you?)

To state where you are, the pattern is: Subject + 在 (zài) + Place.

• Example from the script: 我**在家**。 (I am at home.)
• Another example: 我**在图书馆**。 (I am at the library.)

To say where you are not, you simply add the negative marker 不 (bù) before 在.

• Example from the script: 我**不在家**。 (I am not at home.)
• Another example: 我**不在学校**。 (I am not at school.)

2. Asking What Someone is Doing

To ask what someone is doing, you can use a similar structure to the location question. The pattern is: Subject + 在 (zài) + Verb/Action?

The word 在 here indicates an action in progress, similar to “-ing” in English.

• Example from the script: 你**在家做什么**？ (What are you doing at home?)
• Another example: 你**在图书馆做什么**？ (What are you doing at the library?)

To answer, you follow the same pattern: Subject + 在 + Verb/Action.

• Example from the script: 我**在看书**。 (I am reading a book.)
• Another example: 它现在**在睡觉**。 (It is sleeping right now.)

🌍 Cultural Tip

🃏 Flip & Learn

Use these flashcards to test your memory on the key phrases from this dialogue.

💡 Key Takeaways

Here are the most important points to remember from this lesson:

• To ask “Where are you?” in Chinese, say 你在哪儿？ (Nǐ zài nǎr?).
• To state your location, use the structure 我 + 在 + [place]. For example, 我在家 (I am at home).
• To say where you are not, use 我 + 不在 + [place]. For example, 我不在学校 (I am not at school).
• Remember these essential locations: 家 (home), 学校 (school), 商店 (store), and 图书馆 (library).
• To ask “What are you doing?”, you can say 你在做什么？ (Nǐ zài zuò shénme?).

🎯 Practice Quiz

Let’s see what you’ve learned! Choose the best answer for each question.

✍️ Fill in the Blanks

Let’s test your spelling and memory! Fill in the missing words below. Use correct spelling.