Read Mandarin
HSK 1 · Newbie

妈妈的生日Māma de shēngrìMom's Birthday

HSK 1 reading practice · 43 words · ~1 min
今天jīntiānshì妈妈māmade生日shēngrì
Today is Mom's birthday.
mǎile一个yí gè蛋糕dàngāo
I bought a big cake.
晚上wǎnshang我们wǒmenzàijiā吃饭chī fàn
In the evening, we eat at home.
妈妈māmashuō这个zhègecàihěn好吃hǎochī
Mom says this dish is delicious.
我们wǒmen一起yìqǐshuō生日shēngrì快乐kuàilè
Together we say happy birthday.
妈妈māmahěn高兴gāoxìnghěn高兴gāoxìng
Mom is very happy, and I am very happy too.
🔊 Audio uses your device's Chinese voice for now — teacher recordings are coming. Tap any word to see its meaning.

Key words 生词

生日shēngrìbirthday
蛋糕dàngāocake
快乐kuàilèhappy
晚上wǎnshangevening
高兴gāoxìnghappy; glad
càidish; food

Grammar note 语法点

是 — A is B

是 links two nouns: A 是 B means 'A is B'. Use it for identity, not for adjectives.

今天是妈妈的生日。 — Today is Mom's birthday.
了 — completed action

Put 了 right after the verb to show the action is finished: 买了 = bought.

我买了一个大蛋糕。 — I bought a big cake.
的 — possession

的 goes between the owner and the thing owned: 妈妈的生日 = Mom's birthday.

今天是妈妈的生日。 — Today is Mom's birthday.

Check yourself 小测验

1. Whose birthday is it today?
2. What did the narrator buy?
3. Where do they eat in the evening?
Fei — Mandarin teacher
After this reading

Reading is the easy part. Speaking is where you get stuck.

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