How to say “grandmother” in Chinese
grandmother (paternal)
“Grandmother” in Chinese is 奶奶, nǎi nai: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
奶奶 is read nǎi nai: 2 syllables. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
On the left, 女 “woman”.
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “奶奶”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 奶奶. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 你奶奶今年多大？nǐnǎinaijīnniánduōdàHow old is your grandma?
- 我爷爷比我奶奶大两岁wǒyéyebǐwǒnǎinaidàliǎngsuìMy grandpa is two years older than my grandma.
- 我给奶奶写了一封信。wǒgěinǎinaixiěleyìfēngxìnI wrote my grandma a letter.
- 我奶奶活到了九十岁wǒnǎinaihuódàolejiǔshísuìMy grandma lived to be ninety.
- 奶奶把钱藏在柜子里nǎinaibǎqiáncángzàiguìziliGrandma hides her money in the cabinet.
- 奶奶在楼梯上摔倒2了nǎinaizàilóutīshangshuāidǎoleGrandma fell on the stairs.
More words from the lesson “The extended family”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “grandmother” in Chinese?
“Grandmother” in Chinese is 奶奶, pinyin nǎinai.
What does 奶奶 mean?
奶奶 (nǎinai) means “grandmother (paternal)”.
How do you write 奶奶?
奶奶 is 2 characters: 奶 (nǎi) — milk. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 奶奶?
奶奶 is read nǎinai. Tones: nǎi — third tone, nai — neutral tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“grandmother” in the lesson “The extended family”
This word is from the topic “People around you” of HSK 2. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
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