Modern society is obsessed with WiFi. Dining choices, scenic spots and shopping options don’t matter anymore when people engage in social activities because the most important factor is actually whether or not the place has WiFi. As long as there’s access to WiFi, people can take pictures of what they eat, what they do, and what they purchase and then they can conveniently upload these pictures onto their social networks in order to share with their friends. In this case, “这里有WiFi 吗?(Zhèlǐ yǒu WiFi ma?)” has become the most frequently asked questions for Chinese people now. If there is no WiFi available for some place, lots of people will get anxious about it.
Today, this kind of WiFi anxiety, a phenomenon especially taking foot in China, has invaded the whole younger generation netizen group with the popularity of smart phones, the abundance of mobile apps, and games. The high cost of internet access also brings a lot of trouble to this generation. As a result, it seems that free, accessible WiFi has become a remedy for those who are addicted to their phones and social media.
For a lot of Chinese people, WiFi has helped link different parts of their daily life together. The first thing for them to do when they get up every morning is to connect to WiFi to check their friends’ updates on Weibo or Wechat, popular microblog and chat programs. Even at work, they still won’t forget to sneak away from their tasks to download videos and music. It’s also a must for them to chat with their friends or share pictures and messages with them using QQ or Microblogs at night. And you, my dear friend, do you feel uneasy or uncomfortable without WiFi around you? If the answer is YES, then don’t miss the following Chinese phrases and sentences related to WiFi. Now, let’s take a look at them.
1. Zhèlǐ yǒu WiFi ma?
1. 这里 有 WiFi 吗？
Is WiFi available here?
“
” means “have” or “possess” and it is often used when asking about a service or facilities. The following sentence structure is common: “
+
+ service/facilities.”
Examples
rèshuǐ ma?
热水 吗？
Do you have hot water here?
miǎnfèi WiFi ma?
免费 WiFi 吗？
Is free WiFi available here?
It is worth pointing out that the Chinese counterpart of WiFi is “无线(wúxiàn) or 无线网(wúxiàn wǎng),” but the word “WiFi” is more often used than “无线网(wúxiàn wǎng)” because of its conciseness and international usage.
2. WiFi mìmǎ shì shénme?
2. WiFi 密码 是 什么？
What’s the WiFi password?
“
” means “password” and it can be used to refer to all kinds of passwords such as “银行卡密码(yínhángkǎ mìmǎ), bank card password”, “电脑密码(diànnǎo mìmǎ), computer password,” etc.
Example
Wǒ bù zhīdào nǐ de shǒujī
我 不 知道 你 的 手机 密码。
I don’t know your cell-phone password.
3. WiFi xìnhào bùhǎo!
3. WiFi 信号 不好！
The WiFi signal is not good!
“信号(xìnhào)” means “signal” and in order to describe the intensity of the signal, we use “好(hǎo), good” and “不好(bùhǎo), bad.”
Example
3Gshǒujī de
hěnhǎo.
3G手机 的
很好。
The signal of 3G mobile phones is really good.
4. Yòng WiFi xiàzài diànyǐng.
4. 用 WiFi 下载 电影。
Use WiFi to download movies.
“
” means “download” and it is often used in such phrases as “下载电影(xiàzài diànyǐng), download movies,” “下载歌曲(xiàzài gēqǔ), download songs,” “下载图片(xiàzài túpiàn), download pictures,” etc.
Example
Wǒ jīngcháng cóng wǎngshàng
diànyǐng.
我 经常 从 网上
电影。
I often download movies from the internet.
Quiz
1. If you want to ask for the WiFi password in a restaurant in China, what should you say?
A. 这里有WiFi吗？(Zhèlǐ yǒu WiFi ma?)
B. WiFi密码是什么？(WiFi mìmǎ shì shénme?)
C. WiFi信号好吗？(WiFi xìnhào hǎo ma?)
2. If you want to ask for hot water in a Chinese hotel, what should you say?
A. 那里有热水吗？(Nàlǐ yǒu rèshuǐ ma?)
B. 这里有热水吗？(Zhèlǐ yǒu rèshuǐ ma?)
C. 你喝热水吗？(Nǐ hē rèshuǐ ma?)