How to say “Mr.” in Chinese
Mr., sir
“Mr.” in Chinese is 先生, xiān sheng: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
先生 is read xiān sheng: 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
先生 means “born earlier”: a respectful way to address an elder.
In 学生 it means “one who”: one who studies. It is read with the neutral tone: sheng.
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 “先生”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 先生. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 王先生的年龄比你大吗？WángxiānshengdeniánlíngbǐnǐdàmaIs Mr. Wang older than you?
- 王先生夫妇每天一起散步WángxiānshengfūfùměitiānyìqǐsànbùMr. and Mrs. Wang go for a walk together every day.
- 先生，您贵姓？xiānsheng,nínguìxìngMay I ask your surname, sir?
- 王先生，好久不见！Wángxiānsheng,hǎojiǔbújiànMr. Wang, long time no see!
- 王先生创建了这所学校WángxiānshengchuàngjiànlezhèsuǒxuéxiàoMr. Wang founded this school.
More words from the lesson “Nice to meet you”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “Mr.” in Chinese?
“Mr.” in Chinese is 先生, pinyin xiānsheng.
What does 先生 mean?
先生 (xiānsheng) means “Mr., sir”.
How do you write 先生?
先生 is 2 characters: 先 (xiān) — first, before; 生 (shēng) — be born, life. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 先生?
先生 is read xiānsheng. Tones: xiān — first tone, sheng — neutral tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“Mr.” in the lesson “Nice to meet you”
This word is from the topic “Meeting people” of HSK 1. 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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