In this episode, we’ve talked about the days of the week (Monday, Tuesday, etc.) in Taiwanese. Also, we learned about expressing days and weeks in a relative sense, such as “today” or “last week”.
(These show notes use tables and rich formatting. Please visit the episode webpage for an optimal viewing experience.)
SENTENCES AND VOCABULARY
| TAIWANESE | ENGLISH |
| hioh-khùn | to take a break |
| phah-sǹg | to plan, to intend |
| tshit-thô | to play, to have fun; to go sightseeing |
| Ua̍t-lâm | Vietnam |
| Thài-kok | Thailand |
| Sìng-tàn-tseh / Sìng-tàn | Christmas |
| Lí tang-sî beh khì? | When are you going? When will you go? |
| tang-sî | when |
| kin-á-ji̍t | today |
| tsa-hng / tsa̋ng | yesterday |
| bîn-á-tsài / miâ-á-tsài | tomorrow |
| tso̍h--ji̍t | the day before yesterday |
| āu--ji̍t | the day after tomorrow
Pronunciation note: “--ji̍t” in “the day after tomorrow” is always in the neutral tone. If you change the tone in the regular way, it becomes “some day in the future.” |
| āu | next or after
Usage note: when “āu” is prefixed to the days of the week, remember to use the full form, e.g., “āu lé-pài-sann” (the Wednesday of the coming week), “āu lé-pài-ji̍t” (the Sunday of the coming week). |
| āu-ji̍t | some day in the future |
| Kin-á-ji̍t pài-kuí? | What day is today? |
| kuí | how many; several |
| lé-pài-ji̍t / lé-pài | Sunday
Culture note: “lé-pài-ji̍t” literally means “the day of worship”, which originates from Christian culture. It was brought into Taiwanese long ago possibly by missionaries or through contacts with Western cultures. Usage note: the shortened form is used more often in common conversation. |
| lé-pài | Week
Usage note: when “lé-pài” is used with “āu” (next), “tíng” (last), or numbers in the front, it only means “week”, not “Sunday”. |
| (lé-)pài-it | Monday
Usage note: the shortened form is used more often in common conversation. This also applies to the other days of the week. |
| (lé-)pài-jī | Tuesday |
| (lé-)pài-sann | Wednesday |
| (lé-)pài-sì | Thursday |
| (lé-)pài-gōo | Friday |
| (lé-)pài-la̍k | Saturday |
| āu lé-pài | next week |
| tíng lé-pài | last week |
| tíng | last or previous
Usage note: same as the usage of āu; when people add the days of the week after “tíng”, they usually use the full form, e.g., tíng lé pái-sann (the Wednesday of the previous week). |
| Tsiok ta̍k-ke sìng-tàn khuài-lo̍k. | Wishing everyone a merry Christmas. |
| tsiok | to offer good wishes; to congratulate |
| khuài-lo̍k | to be happy; happiness |
| Sin-nî khuài-lo̍k! | Happy New Year! |
| Sin-nî | New Year |
*Syllables that have been greyed out require tone changes.
For more about how to talk about time, go check out our downloadable workbook! It also gives you additional vocabulary with characters, pronunciation notes, grammar explanations, culture tips, and fun exercises to help your practice.
Music Credit: TeknoAXE