Chinese For Dummies (66 page)

Or you can always play hardball and say something like
Zěnme zhèmma guì ah?
怎么这么贵啊
? (
怎麼這麼貴啊
?)
(dzuh-muh juh-muh gway ah?) (
Why is this so expensive?
) in an exasperated voice, start walking away, and see what happens. (Bet they come back with a lower price.)

These haggling-related phrases are also worth knowing:

Dǎ zhé, hǎo búhǎo?
打折
,
好不好
? (dah juh, how boo-how?) (
How about giving me a ­discount?
)

Kéyǐ jiǎng jià ma?
可以讲价吗
? (
可以講價嗎
? ) (kuh-yee jyahng jyah mah?) (
Can we negotiate the price?
)

Nǐmen yào bú yào Měiyuán?
你们要不要美元
? (
你們要不要美元
?) (nee-men yaow boo yaow may-ywan?) (
Do you want U.S. dollars?
)

Zhèige duōshǎo qián?
这个多少钱
(
這個多少錢
?) (jay-guh dwaw-shaow chyan?
)
(
How much is this?
)

If you see something called a
Yǒuyí Shāngdiàn
友谊商店
(
友誼商店
) (yo-ee shahng-dyan) (
Friendship Store
), be aware that it's one of the ubiquitous state-run stores in China, so prices are generally fixed. However, bargaining is the norm everywhere else. Beware of goods with no prices marked on them! If you ask about them, you'll probably be quoted a price far different than that charged to the locals. Often, you can get 5 to 10 percent taken off any price quoted verbally, so try to practice bargaining before you set foot in a street market.

Paying for your purchase (or demanding a refund)

When you finish checking out all the merchandise, haggling (or not) over the price, and deciding on just what to buy, you probably start reaching for your
qiánbāo
钱包
(
錢包
)
(chyan-baow) (
wallet
) to see whether you should take out your
xìnyòng kǎ
信用卡
(sheen-yoong kah) (
credit card
) or some
xiànqián
现钱
(
現錢
)
(shyan-chyan) (
cash
) or, if you got a really good deal, just some
língqián
零钱
(
零錢
)
(leeng-chyan) (
small change
). When you
fùqián
付钱
(
付錢
)
(foo-chyan) (
pay
), you may also want to get a
shōujù
收据
(
收據
)
(show-jyew) (
receipt
).

If you end up being
bùyúkuài
不愉快
(boo-yew-kwye) (
unhappy
) about your purchase, one of these phrases may come in handy when you try to
tuì huí
退回
(tway hway) (
return
) your
merchandise:

Duì wǒ bù héshēn.
对我不合身
. (
對我不合身
.) (dway waw boo huh-shun) (
It doesn't fit me.
)

Qǐng nǐ bāo qǐlái.
请你包起来
. (
請你包起來
.) (cheeng nee baow chee-lye.) (
Please wrap these/this.
)

Qǐng nǐ bǎ qián jìrù wǒde xìnyòng kǎ.
请你把钱计入我的信用卡
. (
請你把錢計入我的信用卡
.) (cheeng nee bah chyan jee-roo waw-duh sheen-yoong kah.) (
Please refund my credit card.
)

Wǒ néng bùnéng jiàn zǒngjīnglǐ?
我能不能见总经理
? (
我能不能見總經理
?) (waw nung boo-nung jyan dzoong-jeeng-lee?) (
May I see the manager?
)

Wǒ yào tuìkuǎn.
我要求退款
.
(waw yaow tway-kwahn.) (
I want a refund.
)