Making Weekend Plans in Chinese: Park Dialogue & Essential Vocabulary 🌳

Ready to make plans with friends in Chinese? This lesson follows a simple conversation between Wang Wei and Li Na as they arrange a weekend trip to the park. You’ll learn essential vocabulary for discussing days, times, and activities, all in a natural, easy-to-follow story.

💬 Video Transcript

王伟: 你好，李娜！
(Wang Wei: Hello, Li Na!)

李娜: 你好，王伟！
(Li Na: Hello, Wang Wei!)

王伟: 李娜，这个周末你做什么？
(Wang Wei: Li Na, what are you doing this weekend?)

李娜: 嗯……我不知道。你呢？王伟，你这个周末做什么？
(Li Na: Hmm… I don’t know. How about you? Wang Wei, what are you doing this weekend?)

王伟: 我想去公园。我们一起去公园，好吗？
(Wang Wei: I want to go to the park. Shall we go to the park together, okay?)

李娜: 去公园？好啊！我喜欢公园。
(Li Na: Go to the park? Okay! I like parks.)

王伟: 太好了！公园很大，也很漂亮。
(Wang Wei: Great! The park is big and also very beautiful.)

李娜: 是的，公园很大，很漂亮。我喜欢大公园。
(Li Na: Yes, the park is big and beautiful. I like big parks.)

王伟: 我们星期六去，还是星期天去？
(Wang Wei: Shall we go on Saturday, or on Sunday?)

李娜: 嗯……星期六，好吗？
(Li Na: Hmm… Saturday, okay?)

王伟: 好，星期六去。星期天我很忙。
(Wang Wei: Okay, let’s go on Saturday. I’m very busy on Sunday.)

李娜: 你星期天做什么？
(Li Na: What are you doing on Sunday?)

王伟: 我星期天在家看书。
(Wang Wei: I’m reading a book at home on Sunday.)

李娜: 好的。那我们星期六去公园。
(Li Na: Okay. Then let’s go to the park on Saturday.)

王伟: 我们上午去，还是下午去？
(Wang Wei: Shall we go in the morning, or in the afternoon?)

李娜: 上午去吧。上午天气很好。
(Li Na: Let’s go in the morning. The weather is very good in the morning.)

王伟: 对，上午天气很好。下午很热。
(Wang Wei: Right, the weather is very good in the morning. The afternoon is very hot.)

李娜: 是的，下午太热了。我们上午去。
(Li Na: Yes, the afternoon is too hot. Let’s go in the morning.)

王伟: 好。那我们星期六上午去公园。
(Wang Wei: Okay. Then let’s go to the park on Saturday morning.)

李娜: 星期六上午几点？
(Li Na: What time on Saturday morning?)

王伟: 上午十点，怎么样？
(Wang Wei: 10 AM, how about that?)

李娜: 十点？好的。星期六上午十点。
(Li Na: 10 o’clock? Okay. Saturday at 10 AM.)

王伟: 我们在公园门口见，好吗？
(Wang Wei: Let’s meet at the park entrance, okay?)

李娜: 好。我们在公园门口见。
(Li Na: Okay. Let’s meet at the park entrance.)

王伟: 星期六上午十点，在公园门口见。
(Wang Wei: Saturday at 10 AM, meet at the park entrance.)

李娜: 好的，王伟。星期六见！
(Li Na: Okay, Wang Wei. See you on Saturday!)

王伟: 星期六见，李娜！再见！
(Wang Wei: See you on Saturday, Li Na! Goodbye!)

李娜: 再见！
(Li Na: Goodbye!)

📝 Essential Vocabulary

Here are some of the key words and phrases you’ll hear in the video. Practice them to master making plans in Mandarin!

🔍 Grammar Focus

This conversation showcases two incredibly useful patterns for making plans and decisions in Chinese.

Making Suggestions with “好吗？” (hǎo ma?)

When you want to propose an activity and ask if the other person agrees, you can add 好吗？ (hǎo ma?), which means “okay?” or “is that good?”, to the end of your sentence. It’s a polite way to turn a statement into a suggestion.

In the dialogue, Wang Wei suggests they go to the park together:

• 我们一起去公园，好吗？ (Wǒmen yìqǐ qù gōngyuán, hǎo ma?)
• Shall we go to the park together, okay?

Later, he confirms the meeting spot with the same pattern:

• 我们在公园门口见，好吗？ (Wǒmen zài gōngyuán ménkǒu jiàn, hǎo ma?)
• Let’s meet at the park entrance, okay?

Asking “A or B” Questions with “还是” (háishi)

To ask a question that offers a choice between two options, you use the word 还是 (háishi), which means “or”. This is only used in questions.

Wang Wei uses this structure twice to finalize the plans:

1. To decide on the day:

   • 我们星期六去，还是星期天去？ (Wǒmen xīngqīliù qù, háishi xīngqītiān qù?)
   • Shall we go on Saturday, or on Sunday?

2. To decide on the time of day:

   • 我们上午去，还是下午去？ (Wǒmen shàngwǔ qù, háishi xiàwǔ qù?)
   • Shall we go in the morning, or in the afternoon?

🌍 Cultural Tip

🃏 Flip & Learn

Use these flashcards to test your memory of key phrases from the conversation.

💡 Key Takeaways

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

• To ask what someone is doing at a specific time, use the pattern: [Time] + 你做什么？ (e.g., 这个周末你做什么？).
• To make a polite suggestion, state the activity and add 好吗？ at the end (e.g., 我们一起去公园，好吗？).
• Use 还是 (háishi) to ask “A or B” choice questions, like deciding between two days or times.
• Essential time-related vocabulary includes 周末 (weekend), 星期六 (Saturday), 星期天 (Sunday), 上午 (morning), and 下午 (afternoon).
• 见 (jiàn) means “to see” or “to meet”. You can say [Time] + 见 to mean “See you [then]!” (e.g., 星期六见！).

🎯 Practice Quiz

Check your understanding of the dialogue and vocabulary with these questions.

✍️ Fill in the Blanks

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