Cinema in Chinese 看电影
kàn diànyǐng
Cinema in Chinese is 电影院 (diàn yǐng yuàn).
Also searched for as: movie theater, watch a movie, cinema ticket.
Big screen or small screen? 15 essential at the cinema words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
The phrase for going to the cinema in Chinese is 看电影 (kàn diàn yǐng), 'watch a film', and the first thing you'll need is a 电影票 (diàn yǐng piào), cinema ticket. These words help you choose a showing, pick your seats, order popcorn and decide between an action film, a romance or a 恐怖片 (kǒng bù piàn), horror film. You'll also learn the plea every film fan needs: 别剧透！ (bié jù tòu!), 'no spoilers!'.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 电影票 | diàn yǐng piào | cinema ticket |
| 场 | chǎng | showing |
| 排 | pái | row |
| 选座 | xuǎn zuò | to choose seats |
| 爆米花 | bào mǐ huā | popcorn |
| 上映 | shàng yìng | to be released (in cinemas) |
| 预告片 | yù gào piàn | trailer |
| 动作片 | dòng zuò piàn | action film |
| 恐怖片 | kǒng bù piàn | horror film |
| 爱情片 | ài qíng piàn | romance film |
| 科幻片 | kē huàn piàn | sci-fi film |
| 3D眼镜 | sān D yǎn jìng | 3D glasses |
| 结局 | jié jú | ending |
| 剧透 | jù tòu | spoiler |
| 好看吗 | hǎo kàn ma | was it good? |
Usage tips
- Film genres end in 片 (piàn), 'film', so once you know it you can spot 动作片 (dòng zuò piàn), 科幻片 (kē huàn piàn) and 纪录片 (jì lù piàn).
- In China tickets are usually bought in an app, where you 选座 (xuǎn zuò), choose seats, and a showing is counted with 场 (chǎng): 下一场 (xià yī chǎng), 'the next showing'.
- Seats are given as row and number with 排 (pái) and 号 (hào): 五排三号 (wǔ pái sān hào), row 5, seat 3.
Common mistakes
- Using 行 (háng) for a row of seats → 行 is for rows of text; cinema rows are 排 (pái): 第五排 (dì wǔ pái).
- Asking 那部电影好吗？ to find out if a film is any good → that can sound like 'is that film OK?'; say 那部电影好看吗？ (nà bù diàn yǐng hǎo kàn ma?).
Mini dialogue
- A下一场几点？Xià yī chǎng jǐ diǎn?What time's the next showing?
- B七点半，是那部新的科幻片。Qī diǎn bàn, shì nà bù xīn de kē huàn piàn.Half seven. It's that new sci-fi film.
- A好，我在网上选座吧。坐第五排怎么样？Hǎo, wǒ zài wǎng shang xuǎn zuò ba. Zuò dì wǔ pái zěn me yàng?OK, I'll choose seats online. How about row five?
- B可以。我去买爆米花。Kě yǐ. Wǒ qù mǎi bào mǐ huā.Fine. I'll get the popcorn.
- A对了，你看过预告片吗？别剧透啊！Duì le, nǐ kàn guo yù gào piàn ma? Bié jù tòu a!By the way, have you seen the trailer? No spoilers!
Example sentences
- 我买了两张电影票。I bought two cinema tickets.
- 下一场几点？What time's the next showing?
- 我们坐在第五排。We're sitting in row five.
- 网上可以选座。You can choose your seats online.
- 一桶爆米花和两杯可乐。A tub of popcorn and two colas.
- 这部电影下周上映。This film comes out next week.
- 预告片看起来很精彩。The trailer looks great.
- 我喜欢看动作片。I like action films.
- 恐怖片太吓人了！Horror films are too scary!
- 她喜欢看爱情片。She likes romance films.
- 这部科幻片特效很好。This sci-fi film has great effects.
- 看3D电影要戴3D眼镜。You need 3D glasses for 3D films.
- 这个结局太感人了。The ending was so moving.
- 别剧透！No spoilers!
- 那部电影好看吗？Was that film good?
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The At the cinema speaking island has 8 everyday questions about at the cinema to prepare your own answers to.