How common it is
是 appears often in everyday Chinese, so it is worth practicing early and reviewing often.
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Pronunciation focus
Say shì slowly first, then repeat it in a short phrase. Listen for the tone shape.
Usage note
是用于表示某事的状态或属性。例如，用来说明一个人的性别、职业等。
shì yòng yù bǐnggào měi gè rén de xìng bié、zhí néng děng。
Is is used to indicate the state or attribute of something. For example, it can be used to describe a person's gender or profession.
Context note
是常见于描述人的身份或事物的状态，如“他是个学生”、“这是一本书”。
shì jǐngān yú miáo shù rén de shēndì huò shì wù de zhuàngtài, rú ‘tā shì gè xuésheng’、‘zhè shì yī běn shū’.
Is is commonly used to describe a person's identity or the state of things, such as '他是个学生' (He is a student) and '这是一本书' (This is a book).
5 examples
她是个老师。
tā shì gè lǎo shī。
She is a teacher.
这个是你的书包。
zhè ge shì nǐ de shū bāo。
This is your backpack.
他不是医生。
tā bú shì yī shēng。
He is not a doctor.
这是一只猫。
zhè shì yì zhī māo。
This is a cat.
她是个妈妈。
tā shì gè mā ma。
She is a mother.
5 mini stories
小明是个男孩，他喜欢画画。
xiǎo míng shì gè nán hái， tā xǐ huan huà huà。
Xiaoming is a boy, he likes drawing.
妈妈说这是一本书，爸爸说是杂志。
mā ma shuō zhè shì yì běn shū， bà ba shuō shì zá zhì。
Mom says this is a book, Dad says it's a magazine.
这是我的朋友，他是个医生。
zhè shì wǒ de péng yǒu， tā shì gè yī shēng。
This is my friend, he is a doctor.
这是一只狗，不是猫。
zhè shì yì zhī gǒu， bú shì māo。
This is a dog, not a cat.
她是个老师，教我们语文。
tā shì gè lǎo shī， jiào wǒ men yǔ wén。
She is a teacher, teaching us Chinese.