HSK 3.0 · Level 1 · 1 min

Which Teacher Li?

A student calls for Teacher Li. There are two teachers in the family.

AI-generated Mandarin audio.

我和妈妈都是老师。

Wǒ hé māma dōu shì lǎoshī.

My mother and I are both teachers.

我教汉语,妈妈教英语。

Wǒ jiāo Hànyǔ, māma jiāo Yīngyǔ.

I teach Chinese, and my mother teaches English.

A young teacher on the phone looks toward her mother, who is marking an exercise book.

今天,一个学生给我打电话。

Jīntiān, yí ge xuésheng gěi wǒ dǎ diànhuà.

Today, a student calls me.

他问:“你是李老师吗?”

Tā wèn: “Nǐ shì Lǐ lǎoshī ma?”

He asks, “Are you Teacher Li?”

我说:“是。你想学汉语吗?”

Wǒ shuō: “Shì. Nǐ xiǎng xué Hànyǔ ma?”

I say, “Yes. Do you want to learn Chinese?”

他说:“不,我想学英语。我找你妈妈。”

Tā shuō: “Bù, wǒ xiǎng xué Yīngyǔ. Wǒ zhǎo nǐ māma.”

He says, “No, I want to learn English. I’m looking for your mother.”

Check your understanding

Who does the student want to speak to?

What does the narrator teach?

Words from this reading

老师 lǎoshī
teacher
妈妈 māma
mother
汉语 Hànyǔ
Chinese language
英语 Yīngyǔ
English language
电话 diànhuà
telephone
找 zhǎo
to look for

Both people are teachers

都 means “both” here: 我和妈妈都是老师. A family name followed by 老师 is a way to address a teacher.

Talk about a whole group with 都

Open this reading in Laowai

Requires the updated Laowai reader.

Download Chinese text · Import guide

Source and licence

Original story by Laowai.

Laowai · Laowai original