13 Chinese Phrases to Say to Your Neighbors in Lockdown

It has been a difficult time for many of us in the lockdown. The good thing is we are in this together. The compound communities and neighbors are our big support.

Staying at home for a long time is a great opportunity to get to know our neighbors better.

We’ve prepared several Chinese phrases and sentences that you might see in your community Wechat group or use them if you want to talk to your neighbors during the lockdown.

邻居
línjū
a neighbor

远亲不如近邻
Yuǎnqīn bù rú jìnlín
Distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors.

Whether you go downstairs to take a test or you try to order food in the group, you can use these phrases to talk to your neighbors during the lockdown👇

01. MEETING YOUR NEIGHBORS

When you go downstairs to take a PCR test, you can ask your neighbors:

核酸做好了吗?
Hésuān zuò hǎo le ma?
Have you taken a PCR test?

团的菜到了吗?
Tuán de cài dào le ma?
Has your group order arrived?

02. FOOD DISCUSSIONS IN A WECHAT GROUP

When you try to buy food in the group, you might see your neighbors offering to share some food with each other. Next time, If you want to share something with your neighbors, you can say 👇

我的拉⾯买多了, 有⼈想share吗?
Wǒ de lāmiàn mǎi duō le, yǒu rén xiǎng share ma?
I bought too much noodles. Does anyone want to share?

有需要绿叶菜的邻居吗? 群⾥喊⼀声。
Yǒu xūyào lǜyècài de línjū ma? Qún lǐ hǎn yī shēng.
Does anyone need green vegetables? Shout out in the group.

有想要分⻩⽠的邻居吗? 5⽄⼀箱。
Yǒu xiǎngyào fēn huángguā de línjū ma? Wú jīn yī xiāng.
Does anyone want to share cucumbers? One box is 2.5kg.

我有多余的蔬菜放在⼀层⼤厅了, 蔬菜不⾜请⾃取。
Wǒ yǒu duōyú de shūcài fàng zài yī céng dàtīng le, shūcài bùzú qĭng zìqǔ.
I have extra vegetables, I put them in the hall on the first floor. If you don’t have enough vegetables, please help yourselves.

有愿意⽤可乐换⼤蒜的吗?
Yǒu yuànyì yòng kělè huàn dàsuàn de ma?
Is anyone willing to exchange garlic for Cola?

我昨天多团了⼀份调料。可以内部转让, 私信说吧。
Wǒ zuótiān duō tuán le yī fèn tiáoliào. Kěyǐ nèibù zhuǎnràng, sīxìn shuō ba.
I bought an extra portion of seasoning yesterday in a group buy. I can share it (with someone here) internally, PM me for details.

03. LOCKDOWN RULES AND SUPPORT

We should follow the rules and cooperate as a community to keep everyone safe. You might see your neighbors talk about the rules and support each other in a WeChat group 👇

⾮常时期, 现在都不让出⻔了。
Fēicháng shíqī, xiànzài dōu bù ràng chūmén le.
During this emergency period, we’re not allowed to leave our apartments.

物资物业送上⻔, 垃圾也上⻔收。
Wùzī wùyè sòng shàng mén, lājī yě shàng mén shōu.
So the community management delivers food to the doorstep and collects the trash at the door, too.

⼤家都遵守规则。
Dàjiā dōu zūnshǒu guīzé.
Everyone should comply with the rules.

⼤家请放⼼。
Dàjiā qĭng fàngxīn.
Everyone, please take it easy.

今天我们会将阳性病例转运出去。
Jīntiān wǒmen huì jiāng yángxìng bìnglì zhuǎnyùn chūqù.
Today, we will transfer the infected people.

We hope that these Chinese phrases will be useful and help you next time you want to talk to your neighbors in lockdown. To learn more useful Chinese vocabulary and phrases, check out one of our blog posts Chinese Idioms: Complain About Crowds in Chinese