She is beautiful - 她很漂亮。

Hi! I am Fàn Xiāo (范虓) and today we are learning how to use a couple of very useful Chinese characters: 是 (shì) and 很 (hěn).

是 (shì) is usually translated:

• As the verb to be when used as a copula:
• 你是 Charlie 吗?
  Nǐ shì Charlie ma?
  Are you Charlie?
• 你是老师吗?
  Nǐ shì lǎoshī ma?
  Are you a teacher?
• As the adverb yes when answering a question:
• 你是 Charlie 吗?
  是的，我是 Charlie。
  Shì de, wǒ shì Charlie.
  Yes, I am Charlie. (both yes and to be).
• 你是老师吗?
  是的，我是老师。
  Shì de, wǒ shì lǎoshī.
  Yes, I am a teacher. (both yes and to be).

很 (hěn) is usually translated:

• As the verb to be when used to link a substantive with an adjective.
  The usual structure is substantive + 很 + adjective:
• 她很漂亮。
  Tā hěn piàoliang.
  She is beautiful.
• 他很高兴。
  Tā hěn gāoxìng.
  He is happy.

So, how would you say he is tall? Yes! You are right. It would be translated to:

• 他很高。
  Tā hěn gāo.
  He is tall.

A few more examples before finishing. I hope you have enjoyed today's lesson!

• 是
• 他是中国人。
  Tā shì zhōngguó rén.
  He is Chinese.
• 她是西班牙人。
  Tā shì xībānyá rén.
  She is Spanish.
• 他是学生。
  Tā shì xuéshēng.
  He is a student.
• 他是工程师。
  Tā shì gōngchéngshī
  He is ingineer.
• 他们是夫妻。
  Tāmen shì fūqī.
  They are husband and wife.
• 很
• 她很高。
  Tā hěn gāo.
  She is tall.
• 我的家很远。
  Wǒ de jiā hěn yuǎn.
  My family is far away
• 你的家很近。
  Nǐ de jiā hěn jìn.
  Your house is close.
• 这台电脑很贵。
  Zhè tái diànnǎo hěn guì.
  This computer is expensive.
• 这件衣服很便宜。
  Zhè jiàn yīfú hěn piányí.
  This dress is cheap.
• 这个东西很好吃。
  Zhège dōngxī hěn hào chī.
  This is good.
• 是 y 很
• 他很高吗？是的，他很高。
  Tā hěn gāo ma? Shì de, tā hěn gāo.
  Is he tall? Yes, he is tall.
• 她漂亮吗？是的，她很漂亮。
  Tā piàoliang ma? Shì de, tā hěn piàoliang.
  Is she beautiful? Yes, very beautiful.
• 他很有钱吗？是的，他很有钱。
  Tā hěn yǒu qián ma? Shì de, tā hěn yǒu qián. Is he rich? Yes, he is very rich.
• 他是高，但是很虚弱。
  Tā shì gāo, dànshì hěn xūruò.
  Yes, he is tall, but he is also weak.
• 他是聪明，但是很懒。
  Tā shì cōngmíng, dànshì hěn lǎn.
  Yes, he is smart, but he is lazy.
• 他是很有钱，但我不爱他。
  Tā shì hěn yǒu qián, dàn wǒ bù ài tā.
  Yes, he is rich, but I do not love him.