How to Say 'I Drink' and Name Beverages in Mandarin Chinese
Learn six common Chinese beverage words—water, coffee, tea, juice, milk, soda—and the pattern 我喝 (wǒ hē) to say what you drink. Includes pinyin, tones, and a short dialogue.
By MarcusFood & cafés · Yapr Learn
In this lesson you will learn how to name six common drinks in Mandarin Chinese and how to say 'I drink ___' using the verb 喝 (hē, to drink). Unlike English, Mandarin does not change verb forms for person or tense; the same 喝 works for I, you, he, she, we, and they. You will also learn the measure word 杯 (bēi, cup/glass) to order a cup of something. All examples use simplified Chinese and pinyin with tone marks. By the end, you will be able to say what you drink and ask someone else what they drink.
By the end, you can…
- name six common beverages in Mandarin Chinese.
- say 'I drink ___' using 我喝 (wǒ hē).
- ask someone what they drink using 你喝什么？(nǐ hē shénme?)
- use 杯 (bēi) to order one cup or glass of a drink.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
水
water
shuǐ (third tone)
Plain water. To ask for drinking water, say 水 (shuǐ) or 一杯水 (yì bēi shuǐ, one glass of water).
咖啡
coffee
kāfēi (kā first tone, fēi first tone)
A loanword from English 'coffee'. Use it for hot or iced coffee unless you specify 冰咖啡 (bīng kāfēi, iced coffee).
茶
tea
chá (second tone)
General word for tea. Common types include 绿茶 (lǜchá, green tea) and 红茶 (hóngchá, black tea).
果汁
juice
guǒzhī (guǒ third tone, zhī first tone)
Fruit juice. You can put a fruit name before it, e.g. 橙汁 (chéngzhī, orange juice) or 苹果汁 (píngguǒzhī, apple juice).
牛奶
milk
niúnǎi (niú second tone, nǎi third tone)
Cow's milk. In mainland China, 牛奶 is the everyday word for milk; 奶 alone can sound incomplete.
汽水
soda / soft drink
qìshuǐ (qì fourth tone, shuǐ third tone)
Carbonated soft drink. In some regions people also say 苏打水 (sūdǎshuǐ) for soda water, but 汽水 is the general word for soda.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The basic pattern is 我喝 + drink. 我 (wǒ) means 'I' and 喝 (hē) means 'drink'. For example: 我喝水 (wǒ hē shuǐ, I drink water), 我喝咖啡 (wǒ hē kāfēi, I drink coffee), 我喝茶 (wǒ hē chá, I drink tea). To ask a question, replace 我 with 你 (nǐ, you) and add 什么 (shénme, what) after the verb: 你喝什么？(nǐ hē shénme?, What do you drink?). To order one cup or glass, add 一杯 (yì bēi, one cup) before the drink: 一杯茶 (yì bēi chá, one cup of tea). The verb 喝 does not change for past or future; time words like 今天 (jīntiān, today) or 明天 (míngtiān, tomorrow) show when.
When to use it
Use 我喝 when you state your own drink choice. At a café or restaurant, you can say 我喝一杯咖啡 (wǒ hē yì bēi kāfēi, I'll drink a cup of coffee) or simply 一杯咖啡，谢谢 (yì bēi kāfēi, xièxie, One coffee, thanks). To ask about someone else, say 你喝什么？(nǐ hē shénme?) or 你喝什么茶？(nǐ hē shénme chá?, What tea do you drink?). If you want to offer a drink, say 你喝茶吗？(nǐ hē chá ma?, Do you drink tea?). The particle 吗 (ma) turns a statement into a yes/no question. Note that 喝 is only for drinks; for eating, use 吃 (chī).
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
你喝什么？
What do you drink?nǐ hē shénme? (nǐ third tone, hē first tone, shénme second tone neutral)我喝茶。
I drink tea.wǒ hē chá. (wǒ third tone, hē first tone, chá second tone)我也喝茶。
I also drink tea.wǒ yě hē chá. (wǒ third tone, yě third tone, hē first tone, chá second tone)好，我们喝一杯茶。
Good, let's drink a cup of tea.hǎo, wǒmen hē yì bēi chá. (hǎo third tone, wǒmen third tone neutral, hē first tone, yì fourth tone, bēi first tone, chá second tone)A little context goes a long way
In many Chinese-speaking contexts, offering tea or water is a common way to welcome a guest. When someone offers you a drink, it is polite to accept with 谢谢 (xièxie, thank you) or decline gently with 不用了，谢谢 (bú yòng le, xièxie, No need, thank you). At a restaurant, tea is often served automatically, and you may be asked 喝什么茶？(hē shénme chá?, What tea would you like?). Coffee culture is also widespread in cities, and 咖啡 (kāfēi) is understood everywhere. If you need plain hot water, ask for 热水 (rèshuǐ, hot water), which is commonly available.
One thing to watch for
Using 吃 (chī, eat) for drinks, as in 我吃咖啡 (wǒ chī kāfēi).
Try this instead: Use 喝 (hē, drink) for beverages: 我喝咖啡 (wǒ hē kāfēi, I drink coffee). Reserve 吃 (chī) for solid food, e.g. 我吃饭 (wǒ chī fàn, I eat a meal).
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you say 'I drink water' in Mandarin?
Show a sample answer
我喝水。
我 (wǒ) means I, 喝 (hē) means drink, and 水 (shuǐ) means water. The pattern 我喝 + drink is correct. You could also say 我喝一杯水 (wǒ hē yì bēi shuǐ, I drink a glass of water) if you want to specify one glass.
2What does 你喝什么？mean?
Show a sample answer
What do you drink?
你 (nǐ) means you, 喝 (hē) means drink, and 什么 (shénme) means what. Together they form a common question about someone's drink choice. A possible answer is 我喝茶 (wǒ hē chá, I drink tea).
3How do you order 'one cup of coffee' in Mandarin?
Show a sample answer
一杯咖啡。
一杯 (yì bēi) means one cup, and 咖啡 (kāfēi) means coffee. You can add 谢谢 (xièxie, thank you) to be polite: 一杯咖啡，谢谢。Alternatively, say 我要一杯咖啡 (wǒ yào yì bēi kāfēi, I want a cup of coffee).
Use 我喝 (wǒ hē) plus the drink word to say what you drink. Remember the six drinks: 水 (shuǐ), 咖啡 (kāfēi), 茶 (chá), 果汁 (guǒzhī), 牛奶 (niúnǎi), 汽水 (qìshuǐ). Ask 你喝什么？(nǐ hē shénme?) and order with 一杯 (yì bēi).
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