A shopper buys daily necessities, compares prices, and learns useful “how much / total / change” phrases.
LEVEL/WORDCOUNT: HSK2 / 456 characters
在超市买东西
今天下班以后，我去超市买一些日用品。进门以后我先拿了一个篮子，然后打开手机里的购物清单：牛奶、面包、鸡蛋，还要买一点水果。
我走到牛奶区，发现同样的牛奶有两种牌子，价格差不多。我看了保质期，选了更新鲜的。买面包的时候，我看到有打折的标志，就多买了一个。后来我又去称水果，苹果一斤八块，香蕉一斤六块，我觉得很便宜。
结账时，收银员问我用现金还是手机支付。我用现金，因为我想练习找钱。我给了她一百块，她说一共六十八块，然后把找我的钱给我。我检查了一下，没有错，心里很放心。
回家以后我发现自己买得刚刚好，没有花太多钱。现在我越来越喜欢在超市买东西：先列清单，再比较价格和打折信息，真的很省心。
Zài Chāoshì Mǎi Dōngxi
Jīntiān xiàbān yǐhòu, wǒ qù chāoshì mǎi yìxiē rìyòngpǐn. Jìn mén yǐhòu wǒ xiān ná le yí gè lánzi, ránhòu dǎkāi shǒujī lǐ de gòuwù qīngdān: niúnǎi, miànbāo, jīdàn, hái yào mǎi yìdiǎn shuǐguǒ.
Wǒ zǒu dào niúnǎi qū, fāxiàn tóngyàng de niúnǎi yǒu liǎng zhǒng páizi, jiàgé chàbuduō. Wǒ kàn le bǎozhìqī, xuǎn le gèng xīnxiān de. Mǎi miànbāo de shíhou, wǒ kàn dào yǒu dǎzhé de biāozhì, jiù duō mǎi le yí gè. Hòulái wǒ yòu qù chēng shuǐguǒ, píngguǒ yì jīn bā kuài, xiāngjiāo yì jīn liù kuài, wǒ juéde hěn piányi.
Jiézhàng shí, shōuyínyuán wèn wǒ yòng xiànjīn háishi shǒujī zhīfù. Wǒ yòng xiànjīn, yīnwèi wǒ xiǎng liànxí zhǎoqián. Wǒ gěi le tā yì bǎi kuài, tā shuō yí gòng liùshíbā kuài, ránhòu bǎ zhǎo wǒ de qián gěi wǒ. Wǒ jiǎnchá le yíxià, méi yǒu cuò, xīnli hěn fàngxīn.
Huí jiā yǐhòu wǒ fāxiàn zìjǐ mǎi de gānggāng hǎo, méi yǒu huā tài duō qián. Xiànzài wǒ yuèláiyuè xǐhuan zài chāoshì mǎi dōngxi: xiān liè qīngdān, zài bǐjiào jiàgé hé dǎzhé xìnxī, zhēn de hěn shěngxīn.
Shopping at the Supermarket
After work today, I went to the supermarket to buy some daily necessities. After entering, I first took a basket, then opened my shopping list on my phone: milk, bread, eggs, and some fruit.
I went to the milk section and saw two brands of the same product with similar prices. I checked the expiration date and chose the fresher one. When buying bread, I saw a discount sign, so I bought one extra. Later I weighed fruit: apples were 8 yuan per jin and bananas were 6 yuan per jin, which I felt was cheap.
At checkout, the cashier asked if I wanted to pay by cash or phone. I used cash because I wanted to practice receiving change. I gave her 100 yuan; she said the total was 68 yuan and gave me the change. I checked it and it was correct, so I felt reassured.
After getting home, I realized I bought just the right amount and didn’t spend too much money. Now I like supermarket shopping more and more: make a list first, then compare prices and discount information—it really makes life easier.
Help
How to Use the Audio
The audio is designed to help you improve your Mandarin Chinese listening skills and pronunciation. You can use it in two ways:
- Before reading: Listen to understand rhythm, intonation, and natural speech.
- After reading: Listen again to compare pronunciation and improve fluency.
Vocabulary
| Characters | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 超市 | chāoshì | supermarket |
| 日用品 | rìyòngpǐn | daily necessities |
| 清单 | qīngdān | list |
| 保质期 | bǎozhìqī | expiration date / shelf life |
| 打折 | dǎzhé | discount |
| 便宜 | piányi | cheap |
| 称 | chēng | to weigh |
| 收银员 | shōuyínyuán | cashier |
| 一共 | yígòng | altogether; total |
| 找钱 | zhǎo qián | to give change |
Grammar
先…然后… (xiān… ránhòu…)
A sequence pattern for describing shopping steps (take basket → check list → buy items).
Example:
先拿篮子，然后看清单
…的时候… (…de shíhou…)
Means “when …,” useful for routines: 买面包的时候、结账的时候.
Example:
买面包的时候看到打折
越来越… (yuèláiyuè…)
Shows gradual change: liking something more and more.
Example:
我越来越喜欢
Idiomatic Expressions
差不多
Used when comparing prices or sizes that are “about the same.”
Example: 价格差不多
刚刚好
Means “just right,” often used for quantity, size, or time.
Example: 买得刚刚好
省心
Means “makes life easier / less to worry about,” common for routines and systems.
Example: 列清单很省心
Cultural Insights
Asking about prices & totals
In daily shopping Chinese, phrases like “多少钱？” and “一共…” are extremely common at checkout and help you confirm the total. [web:153]
Discount signs
“打折” is a standard word used on signs and in speech to indicate a discount, and many shoppers look for these labels while browsing. [web:148]
Simple bargaining vs supermarkets
Bargaining phrases like “便宜点吧？” exist, but they’re more typical in markets than fixed-price supermarkets where discounts are shown on labels. [web:148]
10 Questions
- 他下班以后去哪里？ (答案)
- 他买什么？ (答案)
- 他进门以后先做什么？ (答案)
- 他为什么选更新鲜的牛奶？ (答案)
- 他为什么多买了一个面包？ (答案)
- 他怎么买水果？ (答案)
- 他用什么付钱？ (答案)
- 一共多少钱？ (答案)
- 他为什么想练习找钱？ (答案)
- 他觉得怎么买东西很省心？ (答案)
Multiple Choice
-
他去超市买什么？
(答案)
a) 机票
b) 日用品
c) 火车票 -
他怎么选牛奶？
(答案)
a) 看保质期，选更新鲜的
b) 只买最贵的
c) 不看牌子 -
他为什么多买面包？
(答案)
a) 因为饿了
b) 因为迷路了
c) 因为打折 -
他用什么支付？
(答案)
a) 不付钱
b) 现金
c) 只用卡 -
他最后觉得怎么买东西好？
(答案)
a) 先列清单，再比较
b) 什么都买
c) 不用看价格
True or False
- 他去超市买衣服。 (答案)
- 他用手机看购物清单。 (答案)
- 他买面包时看到打折。 (答案)
- 他用现金是因为不会手机支付。 (答案)
- 他一共花了六十八块。 (答案)
Retell the Story
请用你自己的话重写这个故事。
Hints: 超市, 清单, 保质期, 打折, 便宜, 称水果, 收银员, 一共, 找钱, 省心
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