Colors, Numbers & Shapes in Chinese 颜色、数字和形状

Colors, numbers and shapes are the vocabulary you reach for every day — counting, describing, shopping and telling the time all run on them. Chinese numbers are beautifully regular: learn 一 through 十 plus 百, 千 and 万, and you can say almost any number. Add the colors and a handful of shapes and you can describe anything you see.

• 44 words
• Tone-colored pinyin
• Audio pronunciation on every word
• Free · no sign-up needed

• 颜色yán sè
  color
  有多少种颜色？

  How many colors are there?
• 红色hóng sè
  red
  红色不流行了。

  Red is out of fashion.
• 橙色chéng sè
  orange (the color)
  根据国土安全部的规定，目前的安全水准是橙色等级。

  The security level, as established by the Department of Homeland Security, is orange.
• 黄色huáng sè
  yellow
  奶酪是黄色的。

  The cheese is yellow.
• 绿色lǜ sè
  green
  绿色代表希望。

  Green stands for hope.
• 蓝色lán sè
  blue
  天空是蓝色的。

  The sky is blue.
• 紫色zǐ sè
  purple
  他的袜子是紫色的。

  His socks are purple.
• 粉红fěn hóng
  pink
  她穿着一件粉红的毛衣。

  She is wearing a pink sweater.
• 黑色hēi sè
  black
  那是黑色的吗？

  Is it black?
• 白色bái sè
  white
  我狗是白色的。

  My dogs are white.
• 灰色huī sè
  gray
  那栋灰色的大楼吗？

  That gray building?
• 棕色zōng sè
  brown
  什么动物是棕色的？

  What animal is brown?
• 米色mǐ sè
  beige
  这件大衣是米色的。

  This overcoat is beige.
• 金色jīn sè
  gold; golden
  玛丽更想把头发染成金色。

  Mary prefers to dye her hair blonde.
• 银色yín sè
  silver; silvery
  她买了一块银色的手表。

  She bought a silver watch.
• 一yī
  one
  外面一片漆黑。

  It's all dark outside.
• 二èr
  two
  男厕所在二楼。

  The men's room is on the second floor.
• 三sān
  three
  三天一直下雨。

  It's been raining non-stop for three days.
• 四sì
  four
  今天是礼拜四。

  Today is Thursday.
• 五wǔ
  five
  给我五天时间。

  Give me five days.
• 六liù
  six
  六点二十分了。

  It's twenty past six.
• 七qī
  seven
  现在已经七点。

  It's already seven.
• 八bā
  eight
  我有八个哥哥。

  I have eight brothers.
• 九jiǔ
  nine
  银行九点开门。

  Banks open at nine o'clock.
• 十shí
  ten
  她会十门语言。

  She is able to speak ten languages.
• 零líng
  zero
  今年是二零一一年。

  This year is 2011.
• 百bǎi
  hundred
  五十步笑百步。

  The pot calls the kettle black.
• 千qiān
  thousand
  我欠你一千美元。

  I owe you $1,000.
• 万wàn
  ten thousand
  一万日元够吗？

  Is ten thousand yen enough?
• 半bàn
  half
  我想买半个蛋糕。

  I'd like to buy half a cake.
• 数字shù zì
  number; digit
  算数处理数字。

  Arithmetic deals with numbers.
• 形状xíng zhuàng
  shape
  那片云是鱼的形状。

  That cloud is in the shape of a fish.
• 圆形yuán xíng
  circle; round shape
  中秋节的月饼是圆形的。

  Mid-Autumn mooncakes are round.
• 三角形sān jiǎo xíng
  triangle
  三角形有三个角，而六边形有六个角

  A triangle has 3 corners, and a hexagon has 6 corners.
• 正方形zhèng fāng xíng
  square
  正方形有四个角。

  A square has four angles.
• 长方形cháng fāng xíng
  rectangle
  这张桌子是长方形的。

  This table is rectangular.
• 五边形wǔ biān xíng
  pentagon
  教室里的挂钟是五边形的。

  The wall clock in the classroom is pentagon-shaped.
• 六边形liù biān xíng
  hexagon
  六边形有六条边。

  An hexagon has six sides.
• 梯形tī xíng
  trapezoid
  我用尺子画了一个梯形。

  I drew a trapezoid with a ruler.
• 长方体cháng fāng tǐ
  cuboid; rectangular prism
  这个纸箱是长方体的。

  This cardboard box is a rectangular prism.
• 立方体lì fāng tǐ
  cube
  数学课上我们学了立方体。

  In math class we learned about cubes.
• 球体qiú tǐ
  sphere
  当时人们就知道，地球是个球体。

  Then people knew, that the world is a sphere.
• 圆柱体yuán zhù tǐ
  cylinder
  这个水杯是圆柱体的。

  This cup is cylindrical.
• 弧形hú xíng
  arc; curved shape
  这座桥是弧形的。

  This bridge is arched.