Shopping and Money: Prices, Quantities, and Simple Bargaining

New Words and Phrases (in English)

In this step you’ll learn key shopping words: how to say money amounts, ask prices with 多少 (duōshao), talk about quantities with measure words, and use simple bargaining phrases.

Language Pattern (in English)

1. Using 多少 (duōshao) to ask price and quantity

Structure for price:

• …多少钱？ (…duōshao qián?) – “How much (money) is …?”

Examples:

• 这个多少钱？
• zhè ge duōshao qián? (juh guh dwor shao chyen?)
• “How much is this?”
• 一共多少钱？
• yí gòng duōshao qián? (ee gong dwor shao chyen?)
• “How much is it in total?”

Structure for quantity:

• 多少 + measure word + noun

Example:

• 你要多少个？
• nǐ yào duōshao ge? (nee yow dwor shao guh?)
• “How many (pieces) do you want?”

2. Measure word 个 (ge)

个 (ge) is a very common, general measure word. In Mandarin, you usually need a measure word between a number and a noun.

Pattern:

• Number + 个 + noun

Examples:

• 三个 (sān ge – “three (of something)”)
• 我要三个。
• wǒ yào sān ge. (waw yow san guh)
• “I want three (of them).”

3. Basic bargaining: 太…了 and 便宜一点

太…了 (tài … le) means “too …” (too expensive, too big, etc.).

• 太贵了。
• tài guì le. (tie gway luh)
• “It’s too expensive.”

You can soften bargaining with 可以…吗？ (kěyǐ … ma?) – “Can (it) … ?”

• 可以便宜一点吗？
• kěyǐ piányi yìdiǎn ma? (kuh yee pyehn yee ee-dyen mah?)
• “Can it be a bit cheaper?”

4. Stating what you want

Use 要 (yào) “to want” with 这个 (zhè ge, this one) and measure words.

Patterns:

• 我要这个。
• wǒ yào zhè ge. – “I want this one.”
• 我要三个。
• wǒ yào sān ge. – “I want three (of them).”

These patterns combine to let you ask prices, talk about how many items you want, and bargain politely.

Practice Dialogue (in English)

In this dialogue, you are buying souvenirs at a small shop. You ask the price, respond that it’s too expensive, politely ask for a lower price, decide how many you want, and ask about paying by card.

Check Your Understanding (in English)

Choose the best answer based on what you learned in this module.