Projects & Deadlines in Chinese 项目
xiàngmù
Project / deadline in Chinese are 项目 / 截止日期 (xiàng mù / jié zhǐ rì qī).
Also searched for as: project, deadline, task.
What are you working on right now? 15 essential projects & deadlines 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 word for project in Chinese is 项目 (xiàng mù), and once you add 截止日期 (jié zhǐ rì qī), deadline, and 进度 (jìn dù), progress, you have the core of almost every workplace conversation. This list also includes some very natural spoken words, like 来不及 (lái bu jí), 'there isn't enough time', and 赶 (gǎn), to rush to get something finished.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 项目 | xiàng mù | project |
| 任务 | rèn wu | task |
| 计划 | jì huà | plan |
| 进度 | jìn dù | progress |
| 截止日期 | jié zhǐ rì qī | deadline |
| 来不及 | lái bu jí | not enough time |
| 赶 | gǎn | to rush (to finish) |
| 负责 | fù zé | to be in charge |
| 分工 | fēn gōng | division of work |
| 目标 | mù biāo | goal |
| 预算 | yù suàn | budget |
| 完成 | wán chéng | to complete |
| 推迟 | tuī chí | to delay |
| 优先 | yōu xiān | to take priority; to prioritise |
| 汇报 | huì bào | to report (to a boss) |
Usage tips
- The opposite of 来不及 is 来得及 (lái de jí), so 还来得及吗？ (hái lái de jí ma?) means "is there still time?".
- 赶 (gǎn) has useful collocations: 赶报告 (gǎn bào gào), to rush a report, 赶时间 (gǎn shí jiān), to be in a hurry, and 赶进度 (gǎn jìn dù), to catch up on a schedule.
- For a more formal way to say who's responsible, use 由 (yóu): 这个项目由我负责 (zhè gè xiàng mù yóu wǒ fù zé), 'this project is led by me'.
Common mistakes
- Using 汇报 for updating your own team → 汇报 (huì bào) only goes upwards, to a manager; to tell your team, use 通知 (tōng zhī) or 告诉 (gào su).
- Saying 我没有时间 when you mean you won't meet a deadline → 没有时间 (méi yǒu shí jiān) means you're too busy; 来不及 (lái bu jí) means it's too late to get it done in time.
Mini dialogue
- A这个项目的进度怎么样？Zhè gè xiàng mù de jìn dù zěn me yàng?How's the project coming along?
- B还差很多，截止日期是周五，恐怕来不及了。Hái chà hěn duō, jié zhǐ rì qī shì zhōu wǔ, kǒng pà lái bu jí le.There's still a lot left. The deadline's Friday, and I'm afraid we won't make it.
- A别着急，我们分工合作吧。你负责报告，我来做预算。Bié zháo jí, wǒ men fēn gōng hé zuò ba. Nǐ fù zé bào gào, wǒ lái zuò yù suàn.Don't panic, let's split the work. You do the report and I'll do the budget.
- B好主意！这样周四就能完成。Hǎo zhǔ yi! Zhè yàng zhōu sì jiù néng wán chéng.Good idea! That way we can finish by Thursday.
Example sentences
- 我在做一个新项目。I'm working on a new project.
- 今天的任务很多。There are lots of tasks today.
- 我们先做一个计划。Let's make a plan first.
- 现在进度怎么样？How's progress?
- 截止日期是周五。The deadline is Friday.
- 恐怕来不及了。I'm afraid there isn't enough time.
- 我在赶报告。I'm rushing to finish the report.
- 这个项目由我负责。I'm in charge of this project.
- 我们分工合作吧。Let's split up the work.
- 这个月的目标是什么？What's this month's goal?
- 预算不够。The budget isn't enough.
- 项目终于完成了！The project is finally done!
- 项目推迟了一个月。The project has been delayed by a month.
- 重要的事情优先处理。Deal with important things first.
- 我下午向经理汇报。I'm reporting to the manager this afternoon.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Projects & deadlines speaking island has 8 everyday questions about projects & deadlines to prepare your own answers to.