Emergencies (Help!) in Chinese 紧急情况
jǐnjí qíngkuàng
Help! in Chinese is 救命 (jiù mìng).
Also searched for as: help, emergency, call the police, ambulance.
What do you do when things go wrong? 15 essential emergencies 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.
Emergency vocabulary is the list you hope never to need but should learn before you travel. The single most important word is 救命 (jiù mìng), "help!", literally "save life", followed by the numbers to call in mainland China: 110 (yāo yāo líng) for the police and 120 (yāo èr líng) for an ambulance. Words like 着火 (zháo huǒ), on fire, and 受伤 (shòu shāng), injured, let you explain quickly what has happened.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 紧急 | jǐn jí | urgent; emergency |
| 救命 | jiù mìng | help! |
| 报警 | bào jǐng | to call the police |
| 一一零 | yāo yāo líng | 110 (police number) |
| 一二零 | yāo èr líng | 120 (ambulance number) |
| 救护车 | jiù hù chē | ambulance |
| 着火 | zháo huǒ | on fire |
| 消防车 | xiāo fáng chē | fire engine |
| 危险 | wēi xiǎn | danger; dangerous |
| 受伤 | shòu shāng | injured |
| 安全出口 | ān quán chū kǒu | emergency exit |
| 冷静 | lěng jìng | calm |
| 帮忙 | bāng máng | to help |
| 晕倒 | yūn dǎo | to faint |
| 事故 | shì gù | accident |
Usage tips
- When reading out phone numbers, 一 is said yāo so it isn't confused with 七 (qī); in mainland China the fire service is 119 (yāo yāo jiǔ). Numbers differ elsewhere: Taiwan uses 119 for both fire and ambulance, and Singapore uses 999 for police and 995 for fire and ambulance.
- Use 了 to report a sudden new situation: 有人受伤了 (yǒu rén shòu shāng le), someone's hurt; 他晕倒了 (tā yūn dǎo le), he's fainted; 着火了 (zháo huǒ le), there's a fire.
- 保持冷静 (bǎo chí lěng jìng), stay calm, and 别慌 (bié huāng), don't panic, are what you'll hear from staff and bystanders, so it helps to recognise them under stress.
Common mistakes
- Reading 着火 as zhe huǒ or zhuó huǒ → it's zháo huǒ, the same 着 as in 睡着 (shuì zháo), to fall asleep.
- Shouting 帮助！ (bāng zhù) for "Help!" sounds bookish → in real danger shout 救命！ (jiù mìng!), and if you just need a hand, say 快来帮忙！ (kuài lái bāng máng!).
- Saying 我叫了警察 for "I called the police" is understood but less natural → say 我报警了 (wǒ bào jǐng le).
Mini dialogue
- A快来帮忙！前面发生事故了！Kuài lái bāng máng! Qián miàn fā shēng shì gù le!Quick, help! There's been an accident up ahead!
- B有人受伤了吗？Yǒu rén shòu shāng le ma?Is anyone hurt?
- A有一个人晕倒了，我不敢动他。Yǒu yī ge rén yūn dǎo le, wǒ bù gǎn dòng tā.Someone's fainted, and I don't dare move him.
- B别慌，保持冷静。我马上打一二零叫救护车。Bié huāng, bǎo chí lěng jìng. Wǒ mǎ shàng dǎ yāo èr líng jiào jiù hù chē.Don't panic, stay calm. I'll ring 120 for an ambulance right now.
Example sentences
- 这是紧急情况！This is an emergency!
- 救命啊！快来人！Help! Someone come quick!
- 快报警！Call the police!
- 中国报警电话是一一零。The police number in China is 110.
- 快打一二零叫救护车！Call 120 for an ambulance!
- 救护车来了。The ambulance is here.
- 着火了！快跑！Fire! Run!
- 消防车很快就到了。The fire engine arrived quickly.
- 这里很危险，别过来。It's dangerous here, stay back.
- 有人受伤了吗？Is anyone hurt?
- 安全出口在那边。The emergency exit is over there.
- 别慌，保持冷静。Don't panic, stay calm.
- 快来帮忙！Come and help, quick!
- 有个老人晕倒了。An old man has fainted.
- 前面发生了交通事故。There's been a traffic accident ahead.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Emergencies speaking island has 8 everyday questions about emergencies to prepare your own answers to.