Sky & Space in Chinese 天空和宇宙
tiānkōng hé yǔzhòu
Sky / outer space in Chinese are 天空 / 太空 (tiān kōng / tài kōng).
Also searched for as: space, sun moon stars, planets, sky.
Look up: what's above us? 15 essential sky & space 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 words for sky and space in Chinese are 天空 (tiān kōng) and 宇宙 (yǔ zhòu), and between them they take you from a rainy afternoon to the edge of the universe. You'll find everyday sights like 彩虹 (cǎi hóng), rainbow, and 流星 (liú xīng), shooting star, alongside 宇航员 (yǔ háng yuán), astronaut, and 外星人 (wài xīng rén), alien, literally 'person from another star'.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 天空 | tiān kōng | sky |
| 云 | yún | cloud |
| 彩虹 | cǎi hóng | rainbow |
| 太阳 | tài yang | sun |
| 月亮 | yuè liang | moon |
| 星星 | xīng xing | star |
| 日出 | rì chū | sunrise |
| 流星 | liú xīng | shooting star |
| 宇宙 | yǔ zhòu | universe |
| 地球 | dì qiú | Earth |
| 星球 | xīng qiú | planet |
| 宇航员 | yǔ háng yuán | astronaut |
| 卫星 | wèi xīng | satellite |
| 太空 | tài kōng | outer space |
| 外星人 | wài xīng rén | alien |
Usage tips
- The five planets visible to the naked eye are named after the five elements: 水星 (shuǐ xīng), Mercury, 金星 (jīn xīng), Venus, 火星 (huǒ xīng), Mars, 木星 (mù xīng), Jupiter, and 土星 (tǔ xīng), Saturn.
- For Chinese astronauts, official mainland media use 航天员 (háng tiān yuán), while 宇航员 (yǔ háng yuán) is the general word you'll hear for astronauts everywhere.
- Sky words have their own measure words: 一朵云 (yī duǒ yún), a cloud, 一颗星 (yī kē xīng), a star, and 一道彩虹 (yī dào cǎi hóng), a rainbow.
Common mistakes
- Using 星星 for a planet → 星星 (xīng xing) are the stars you see twinkling; a planet is 星球 (xīng qiú) or 行星 (xíng xīng).
- Using 月 on its own for the moon → in speech, 月 (yuè) usually means month, so say 月亮 (yuè liang) for the moon.
Mini dialogue
- A快看，天上有彩虹！Kuài kàn, tiān shàng yǒu cǎi hóng!Look, there's a rainbow!
- B真漂亮！城市里很少看到彩虹。Zhēn piào liang! Chéng shì lǐ hěn shǎo kàn dào cǎi hóng.It's beautiful! You don't often see rainbows in the city.
- A星星也很少看到。我小时候在乡下，每天晚上都能看到。Xīng xing yě hěn shǎo kàn dào. Wǒ xiǎo shí hou zài xiāng xia, měi tiān wǎn shang dōu néng kàn dào.Or stars. When I was little and lived in the countryside, I could see them every night.
- B我小时候还想当宇航员，去太空看地球呢。Wǒ xiǎo shí hou hái xiǎng dāng yǔ háng yuán, qù tài kōng kàn dì qiú ne.When I was little I wanted to be an astronaut and see the Earth from space.
Example sentences
- 今天的天空很蓝。The sky is very blue today.
- 天上一朵云也没有。There isn't a cloud in the sky.
- 雨后出现了彩虹。A rainbow appeared after the rain.
- 太阳出来了。The sun's come out.
- 今晚的月亮又大又圆。Tonight's moon is big and round.
- 城市里看不到星星。You can't see the stars in the city.
- 我们早起看日出。We got up early to watch the sunrise.
- 快看，流星！Look, a shooting star!
- 宇宙有多大？How big is the universe?
- 地球是圆的。The Earth is round.
- 火星是一个红色的星球。Mars is a red planet.
- 他小时候想当宇航员。He wanted to be an astronaut as a child.
- 中国发射了一颗卫星。China launched a satellite.
- 在太空里可以看到地球。You can see the Earth from space.
- 你相信有外星人吗？Do you believe in aliens?
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Sky & space speaking island has 8 everyday questions about sky & space to prepare your own answers to.