Simplified Chinese - Weekend Talk

Lesson 129 of 156

A lively weekend scene showing friends chatting after a meal; Simplified Chinese weekend phrases float like speech bubbles.

Goal: Chat about what you did

Free Simplified Chinese lessons with guided practice, audio, and speaking support.

Ready to share a weekend story? This short lesson helps you say where you went, what you watched, and how you spent most of your weekend. Have fun — and try to speak aloud!

Level A2: In Lesson 129 you'll practice useful weekend phrases for talking about meals, watching things at home, nice weather activities, and catching up on tasks. This CEFR-aligned lesson focuses on eight ready-to-use sentence frames so you can quickly describe your weekend to friends.

After this lesson you'll be able to:

  • Use simple sentence frames to say where and how you spent your weekend in Chinese (A2).
  • Ask and answer routine weekend questions naturally: 你周末一般做什么? (Nǐ zhōumò yìbān zuò shénme?).
  • Describe opinions and what you caught up on using phrases like 还挺___的 and 我把___补上了。
Two friends in a sunny park talking about their weekend plans in Simplified Chinese; casual outdoor vibe.

Ready? Let's go!

When you tap play on phrases, we track your progress through this lesson.

1. Reading + Listening Practice

Hear core phrases, repeat aloud.

我们在___吃了晚饭。

Wǒmen zài ___ chī le wǎnfàn.

We had dinner at ___.

Meaning: We had dinner at ___.

When to use: Use the blank for a restaurant, home, or place name.

我们在小饭馆吃了晚饭。

Wǒmen zài xiǎo fànguǎn chī le wǎnfàn.

We had dinner at a small restaurant.
我们在家吃了晚饭,妈妈做的菜很好吃。

Wǒmen zài jiā chī le wǎnfàn, māma zuò de cài hěn hǎochī.

We had dinner at home; my mom's cooking was tasty.

我在家看了___。

Wǒ zài jiā kàn le ___.

I watched ___ at home.

Meaning: I watched ___ at home.

When to use: Works for movies, TV shows, videos, or sports events.

我在家看了电影,昨晚的那部爱情片。

Wǒ zài jiā kàn le diànyǐng, zuó wǎn de nà bù àiqíng piàn.

I watched a movie at home — that romantic film from last night.
我在家看了比赛,结果很激动。

Wǒ zài jiā kàn le bǐsài, jiéguǒ hěn jīdòng.

I watched the match at home; it was exciting.

天气不错,所以我们___。

Tiānqì búcuò, suǒyǐ wǒmen ___.

The weather was nice, so we ___.

Meaning: The weather was nice, so we ___.

When to use: Use the blank for an outdoor or leisure activity.

天气不错,所以我们去公园散步。

Tiānqì búcuò, suǒyǐ wǒmen qù gōngyuán sànbù.

The weather was nice, so we went for a walk in the park.
天气不错,所以我们在河边拍照。

Tiānqì búcuò, suǒyǐ wǒmen zài hé biān pāizhào.

The weather was nice, so we took photos by the river.

你周末一般做什么?

Nǐ zhōumò yìbān zuò shénme?

What do you usually do on weekends?

Meaning: What do you usually do on weekends?

When to use: Natural question about someone's weekend routine.

你周末一般做什么?我喜欢去市场买菜。

Nǐ zhōumò yìbān zuò shénme? Wǒ xǐhuan qù shìchǎng mǎi cài.

What do you usually do on weekends? I like going to the market to buy food.
你周末一般做什么?有人去爬山吗?

Nǐ zhōumò yìbān zuò shénme? Yǒu rén qù páshān ma?

What do you usually do on weekends? Does anyone go hiking?

还挺___的

Hái tǐng ___ de.

It was pretty ___ .

Meaning: It was pretty ___.

When to use: Use with an adjective, such as 好玩, 累, or 放松.

Tip: Beginners sometimes add a noun after 还挺 without an adjective (e.g., 还挺旅游的). Use an adjective after 还挺.

周末还挺放松的,我没做太多事。

Zhōumò hái tǐng fàngsōng de, wǒ méi zuò tài duō shì.

The weekend was pretty relaxing; I didn't do much.
那次旅行还挺好玩的,我们笑了很多。

Nà cì lǚxíng hái tǐng hǎowán de, wǒmen xiào le hěn duō.

That trip was pretty fun; we laughed a lot.

周末大部分时间我都在___。

Zhōumò dà bùfen shíjiān wǒ dōu zài ___.

I spent most of the weekend ___ .

Meaning: I spent most of the weekend ___.

When to use: 适合后接活动,如“睡觉、看剧、收拾房间”。

周末大部分时间我都在看书,准备考试。

Zhōumò dà bùfen shíjiān wǒ dōu zài kànshū, zhǔnbèi kǎoshì.

I spent most of the weekend reading to prepare for an exam.
周末大部分时间我都在睡觉,因为工作太累了。

Zhōumò dà bùfen shíjiān wǒ dōu zài shuìjiào, yīnwèi gōngzuò tài lèi le.

I spent most of the weekend sleeping because work was tiring.

我把___补上了。

Wǒ bǎ ___ bǔ shàng le.

I caught up on ___ .

Meaning: I caught up on ___.

When to use: 适合工作、作业、课、消息等落下的事情;“补觉”更常说“我补了补觉”。

Tip: Don't say 我把补上了 without an object; include what you caught up on (e.g., 我把作业补上了).

我把工作补上了,所以周一不怕加班。

Wǒ bǎ gōngzuò bǔ shàng le, suǒyǐ zhōuyī bù pà jiābān.

I caught up on work, so I'm not worried about overtime on Monday.
周末我把邮件都补上了,感觉轻松多了。

Zhōumò wǒ bǎ yóujiàn dōu bǔ shàng le, gǎnjué qīngsōng duō le.

I caught up on emails over the weekend and feel much more relaxed.

你有机会___了吗?

Nǐ yǒu jīhuì ___ le ma?

Did you get to ___ ?

Meaning: Did you get to ___ ?

When to use: 可用于问对方是否终于做了想做或该做的事。

你有机会去旅行了吗?我一直想知道。

Nǐ yǒu jīhuì qù lǚxíng le ma? Wǒ yìzhí xiǎng zhīdào.

Did you get to travel? I've been wondering.
你有机会看那部电影了吗?口碑很好。

Nǐ yǒu jīhuì kàn nà bù diànyǐng le ma? Kǒubēi hěn hǎo.

Did you get to see that movie? It has great reviews.

2. Conversational Listening Practice

Hear phrases in a real mini-conversation.

Casual catch-up after the weekend in a park

Anna and David sitting on a bench, sharing what they did over the weekend in Simplified Chinese.

What are Anna and David talking about?

Portrait of Anna in a Simplified Chinese lesson dialogue

Anna

你周末一般做什么?

Nǐ zhōumò yìbān zuò shénme?

What do you usually do on weekends?

Portrait of David in a Simplified Chinese lesson dialogue

David

周末大部分时间我都在看书,不过这次我在家看了电影。

Zhōumò dà bùfen shíjiān wǒ dōu zài kànshū, bùguò zhè cì wǒ zài jiā kàn le diànyǐng.

I usually spend most weekends reading, but this time I watched a movie at home.

Portrait of Anna in a Simplified Chinese lesson dialogue

Anna

听起来不错!我们在小饭馆吃了晚饭,天气不错,所以我们还去公园散步了。

Tīng qǐlái búcuò! Wǒmen zài xiǎo fànguǎn chī le wǎnfàn, tiānqì búcuò, suǒyǐ wǒmen hái qù gōngyuán sànbù le.

Sounds nice! We had dinner at a small restaurant, the weather was nice, so we also went for a walk in the park.

Portrait of David in a Simplified Chinese lesson dialogue

David

那还挺放松的。你有机会看那场比赛了吗?

Nà hái tǐng fàngsōng de. Nǐ yǒu jīhuì kàn nà chǎng bǐsài le ma?

That sounds pretty relaxing. Did you get to watch that match?

Portrait of Anna in a Simplified Chinese lesson dialogue

Anna

没有,我把工作补上了,所以没时间。下次一定一起去看。

Méi yǒu, wǒ bǎ gōngzuò bǔ shàng le, suǒyǐ méi shíjiān. Xià cì yídìng yìqǐ qù kàn.

No, I caught up on work, so I didn't have time. Next time let's definitely go watch it together.

3. Guided Practice

Quizzes and matching to lock in meaning.

Which sentence asks about someone's usual weekend routine?

How would you say 'I watched a movie at home' using the lesson frame?

Which sentence means 'I caught up on work'?

Which completes this sentence naturally: 天气不错,所以我们___。

Last night we had dinner at a small restaurant and were very satisfied.

昨天晚上我们在___吃了晚饭,很满意。

I was a bit tired on the weekend, so I caught up on my homework and felt much more relaxed on Monday.

周末我有点累,所以我把___补上了,周一轻松多了。

Did you get the chance to watch the match? I want to know if you saw it.

你有机会___了吗?我想知道你有没有看那场比赛。

Match the core phrases

Match the extra phrases

4. Speaking Practice

Say phrases yourself (mic/recording).

Recording stays on your device only. Check speech uses your browser's speech tools when available.

Say this phrase out loud:

我们在___吃了晚饭。

Wǒmen zài ___ chī le wǎnfàn.

We had dinner at ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

我在家看了___。

Wǒ zài jiā kàn le ___.

I watched ___ at home.

Say this phrase out loud:

天气不错,所以我们___。

Tiānqì búcuò, suǒyǐ wǒmen ___.

The weather was nice, so we ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

你周末一般做什么?

Nǐ zhōumò yìbān zuò shénme?

What do you usually do on weekends?

Say this phrase out loud:

还挺___的

Hái tǐng ___ de.

It was pretty ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

周末大部分时间我都在___。

Zhōumò dà bùfen shíjiān wǒ dōu zài ___.

I spent most of the weekend ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

我把___补上了。

Wǒ bǎ ___ bǔ shàng le.

I caught up on ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

你有机会___了吗?

Nǐ yǒu jīhuì ___ le ma?

Did you get to ___?