Hitting the Beach in Chinese | Learn The Fundamentals

Good news – summer is here!

We all know what that means for you lucky Beihai students… time to hit the beach!

Or if you’re elsewhere in China, don’t worry, China’s coastline is around 18,000 kilometers long!

Luckily, there are plenty of beautiful beaches to choose from.

Before you do, make sure you’re up to scratch with all the essential Chinese beach vocabulary you need/

That way, you can get a tan and impress all your Chinese friends with native-sounding conversational skills.

In this article, you’ll find all that need-to-know beach vocabulary, from sunset, sand and sea, to shark, snorkel and seafood!

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Where is the Beach?

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Common Nouns

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Swimwear and Swimming Gear

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Sun Protection

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Ocean Animals

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Beach Bar Food and Drinks

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Ocean Chengyu

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – FAQs

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Where is the Beach?

You wake up to a new day in China and realize the sun is shining, it’s a beautiful day and it’s a great opportunity to hit the beach!

So you pack your bag, whack on your shades, text your local friends and off you go.

But first, you’ll need to figure out how to get there!

If you need a refresher in asking for directions in Chinese, check out our Ultimate Guide to Chinese Directions

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Common Nouns

Once you’ve made it to the golden sands and turquoise oceans in one piece, it’s time to explore and enjoy the beach!

How well do you think you could describe things you’d find at the beach in Chinese?

Below you’ll find some commonly used nouns you need to add to your Chinese beach vocabulary.

Let’s take a look

Think you can remember all those?

Try the exercise below and see if you can match the Chinese characters to the correct beach vocabulary.

One of the best ways to practice vocabulary is to take those new words and put them into sentences.

Have a go at using the vocabulary from the table to translate these sentences into Chinese.

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Swimwear and Swimming Gear

On a hot summer’s day, there’s no better activity than going for a swim in the sea.

Once you know there’s a 救生员 jiù shēng yuán (lifeguard) on duty, you can stick on your swimwear and dive on in.

Maybe you could even come up with your own synchronized swimming routine like the gold-medal winning Chinese team at the FINA World Aquatics Championships!

Did you know?

China has a wide range of diving locations, including a fascinating section of the Great Wall of China that is underwater.

Even if you don’t think your swimming is up to world championship level, it’s still definitely worth learning all the related Chinese vocabulary, so that you’re all set for your trip.

We’ve also included words for commonly used equipment if you fancy going diving in China.

After you’ve learned the following vocabulary, you’ll be more prepared to plan a diving trip, purchase or rent all the gear and then of course, tell other Chinese speakers about your experiences!

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Sun Protection

Remember, sunscreen is a must! Especially for those of you going for a swim.

Make sure to lather on that factor 50 – or if you’re in China, you can even get your hands on some SPF 100.

On a similar note, it’s also very common in China on sunny days to see people carrying umbrellas to protect themselves from the sun.

Down below is all the vocab you’ll need to chat about sun safety (and burns!) with your Chinese pals:

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Ocean Animals

China is rich in diving options, teeming with sea creatures.

For those of you who want to channel your inner Little Mermaid and go diving under the sea with Sebastian and Flounder, we’d definitely recommending checking out Sanya, aka China’s Hawaii.

After you’re fully submerged in the water, you might be lucky enough to spot some ocean wildlife!

Fun Fact

Around the waters of Hong Kong, you might be able to spot pink dolphins! Though these dolphins are officially known as Chinese white dolphins, they are pink in color and are very rare.

Do you know how to say dolphin in Chinese? How about jellyfish, shark and seal?

It’s definitely worth learning how to say seagull at least, so at least you can complain like a native when they steal your ice cream!

Check out the table below to learn how to say all of these in Chinese.

When you take a closer look at the characters, you’ll find a lot of these animals have very interesting names.

For instance, the characters for jellyfish, 水母 shuǐmǔ, translate directly into ‘water mother’.

So now, why don’t you test yourself! Take our translation quiz to ‘sea’ how well you know your Chinese ocean animals…

BONUS | For a full list of animal vocabulary check out our extensive article on over 170 animals in Chinese.

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Beach Bar Food and Drinks

Don’t forget to hydrate! After a hot, sunny day on the beach, it’s definitely time for a refreshing drink and a snack, or three…

You might even fancy a swigging a mojito or red wine to enjoy that ocean view (we won’t tell anyone).

Now, we know a few of you might be wanting something a little stronger with your beachside snacks, so check out our drinks menu cheat sheet below for all that alcohol-related vocab.

Don’t worry designated drivers, we also included soft drinks on there too:

When it’s time for a hearty lunch or dinner (or even just a quick snack), it definitely helps to be able to read those beach bar menus.

Ordering food can be a little intimidating for beginners, so it definitely helps to memorize some of your favorite foods – and especially foods you can’t eat!

Here we’ve compiled a list of foods and fruits you’re likely to be enjoying beside the seaside.

At the end of a long beach day in China, a lot of us might just prefer to take the easy way out on the way home and grab a quick McDonald’s or KFC.

There’s also a huge range of local snacks you could take with you to the beach, from White Rabbit Candy to rice cracker biscuits.

Even better, we found a video of some kids taste testing a whole bunch of them, so you don’t have to!

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – Ocean Chengyu

And last but not least – time for a Chinese chengyu!

That chengyu is 人山人海 rén shān rén hǎi.

If we break it down literally, this chengyu means people (人) mountain (山) people (人) sea (海).

Can you guess what it really means?

人山人海, or ‘people mountain people sea’ actually means extremely crowded!

In other words, it means a place is so crowded that it feels as though there are mountains of people or an ocean of people.

This is something we can definitely relate to in Spring Festival travel season…

Hopefully you won’t have to use 人山人海 to describe your beach vacation this year, but if you do, at least you’ll sound like a pro when you’re complaining!

Do you know another beach-related chengyu, common phrase or slang term in Chinese? Let us know in the comments below!

Speaking of the beach, want your kids to experience a Mandarin language summer? Check out our Chinese Summer Camp and Taipei Summer Camp.

Chinese Beach Vocabulary – FAQs

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