描述圖表（miáoshù túbiǎo）means “to describe graphs and charts.” It sounds simple until you try to explain a line on a chart in Chinese and suddenly your brain is doing accounting homework in a typhoon. This guide gives you the phrases, sentence patterns, and useful vocabulary to talk about trends, changes, comparisons, and percentages in natural Traditional Chinese.
For the broader learning path, visit our parent guide.
By the end, you’ll be able to describe rises, drops, steady lines, sharp changes, and comparisons in a clear Taiwan-style way. You’ll also learn the words people actually use in reports, presentations, class discussions, and test answers. Fancy chart talk, but without the dramatic suffering.
For more practice, you can also check the Traditional Chinese vocabulary test and the TOCFL placement test. If you need related daily-use grammar, try basic questions in Traditional Chinese, introduce yourself in Traditional Chinese, and write an email in Traditional Chinese.
看圖說話（kàn tú shuōhuà）is the real skill here: look at the chart, say what changed, and do not panic when the numbers start climbing like they have a deadline.
Core Verbs For Chart Descriptions
These are the verbs you’ll use again and again. If you know these, you can already sound much more natural.
| Traditional Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning | Example (ZH) | Example (Pinyin) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 上升 | shàngshēng | to rise, to go up | 銷售額在第三季明顯上升。 | Xiāoshòu’é zài dì-sān jì míngxiǎn shàngshēng. | Sales rose noticeably in the third quarter. |
| 增加 | zēngjiā | to increase | 今年的遊客人數增加了很多。 | Jīnnián de yóukè rénshù zēngjiā le hěn duō. | The number of tourists increased a lot this year. |
| 成長 | chéngzhǎng | to grow | 這個市場在過去五年快速成長。 | Zhège shìchǎng zài guòqù wǔ nián kuàisù chéngzhǎng. | This market has grown quickly over the past five years. |
| 下降 | xiàjiàng | to decline, to go down | 冬天過後，溫度開始下降。 | Dōngtiān guò hòu, wēndù kāishǐ xiàjiàng. | After winter passed, the temperature began to drop. |
| 減少 | jiǎnshǎo | to decrease | 這個月的支出減少了一點。 | Zhège yuè de zhīchū jiǎnshǎo le yì diǎn. | This month’s expenses decreased a little. |
| 下滑 | xiàhuá | to slide down, to fall gradually | 點閱率最近有點下滑。 | Diǎnyuèlǜ zuìjìn yǒudiǎn xiàhuá. | The click-through rate has slipped a bit recently. |
| 維持 | wéichí | to maintain, to stay the same | 價格大致維持不變。 | Jiàgé dàzhì wéichí bú biàn. | The price basically stayed the same. |
| 保持 | bǎochí | to keep, to remain | 他們的表現一直保持穩定。 | Tāmen de biǎoxiàn yìzhí bǎochí wěndìng. | Their performance remained stable. |
| 波動 | bōdòng | to fluctuate | 股價這幾天波動很大。 | Gǔjià zhè jǐ tiān bōdòng hěn dà. | The stock price has fluctuated a lot these days. |
| 飆升 | biāoshēng | to surge, to shoot up | 需求突然飆升。 | Xūqiú tūrán biāoshēng. | Demand suddenly surged. |
| 暴增 | bàozēng | to skyrocket, to increase explosively | 假期期間，訂單暴增。 | Jiàqī qījiān, dìngdān bàozēng. | During the holiday period, orders skyrocketed. |
| 回升 | huíshēng | to recover, to rise again | 市場信心慢慢回升。 | Shìchǎng xìnxīn mànmàn huíshēng. | Market confidence slowly recovered. |
Useful Trend Phrases
These phrases help you describe what a graph is doing without sounding like a robot who just discovered Excel.
| Traditional Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning | Example (ZH) | Example (Pinyin) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 持續上升 | chíxù shàngshēng | to continue rising | 人口在近十年持續上升。 | Rénkǒu zài jìn shí nián chíxù shàngshēng. | The population has continued to rise over the past ten years. |
| 逐漸增加 | zhújiàn zēngjiā | to increase gradually | 使用率逐漸增加。 | Shǐyònglǜ zhújiàn zēngjiā. | The usage rate gradually increased. |
| 快速上升 | kuàisù shàngshēng | to rise quickly | 需求在夏天快速上升。 | Xūqiú zài xiàtiān kuàisù shàngshēng. | Demand rose quickly in summer. |
| 明顯下降 | míngxiǎn xiàjiàng | to drop clearly | 氣溫在夜裡明顯下降。 | Qìwēn zài yèlǐ míngxiǎn xiàjiàng. | The temperature dropped clearly at night. |
| 大幅減少 | dàfú jiǎnshǎo | to decrease sharply | 事故數量大幅減少。 | Shìgù shùliàng dàfú jiǎnshǎo. | The number of accidents decreased sharply. |
| 穩定成長 | wěndìng chéngzhǎng | to grow steadily | 品牌知名度持續穩定成長。 | Pǐnpái zhīmíngdù chíxù wěndìng chéngzhǎng. | Brand awareness continues to grow steadily. |
| 大致持平 | dàzhì chípíng | roughly flat, mostly unchanged | 兩家公司的表現大致持平。 | Liǎng jiā gōngsī de biǎoxiàn dàzhì chípíng. | The two companies performed about the same. |
| 上下波動 | shàngxià bōdòng | to fluctuate up and down | 這段期間價格上下波動。 | Zhè duàn qījiān jiàgé shàngxià bōdòng. | Prices fluctuated during this period. |
| 先升後降 | xiān shēng hòu jiàng | to rise first, then fall | 曲線呈現先升後降的趨勢。 | Qūxiàn chéngxiàn xiān shēng hòu jiàng de qūshì. | The line shows a rise-then-fall trend. |
| 先降後升 | xiān jiàng hòu shēng | to fall first, then rise | 數據先降後升，最後回到原點附近。 | Shùjù xiān jiàng hòu shēng, zuìhòu huídào yuándiǎn fùjìn. | The data fell first and then rose, ending near the starting point. |
Sentence Patterns You Can Reuse
These patterns are the backbone of chart descriptions. Swap in your own numbers, time periods, or categories, and you’re off.
| Pattern | Meaning | Example (ZH) | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ……增加了…… | … increased by … | 這個月銷售額增加了百分之十。 | Zhège yuè xiāoshòu’é zēngjiā le bǎifēn zhī shí. | Sales increased by 10% this month. |
| ……下降了…… | … decreased by … | 去年冬天，遊客人數下降了很多。 | Qùnián dōngtiān, yóukè rénshù xiàjiàng le hěn duō. | Last winter, the number of tourists decreased a lot. |
| ……從……升到…… | … rose from … to … | 價格從一百元升到一百二十元。 | Jiàgé cóng yì bǎi yuán shēng dào yì bǎi èr shí yuán. | The price rose from 100 dollars to 120 dollars. |
| ……從……降到…… | … fell from … to … | 人數從五百降到三百。 | Rénshù cóng wǔ bǎi jiàng dào sān bǎi. | The number of people fell from 500 to 300. |
| ……達到…… | … reached … | 出口量在八月達到最高點。 | Chūkǒu liàng zài bā yuè dádào zuìgāodiǎn. | Exports reached their highest point in August. |
| ……維持在…… | … stayed at … | 利率維持在百分之二左右。 | Lìlǜ wéichí zài bǎifēn zhī èr zuǒyòu. | The interest rate stayed around 2%. |
| ……占…… | … account for … | 這個區塊占整體市場的三成。 | Zhège qūkuài zhàn zhěngtǐ shìchǎng de sān chéng. | This segment accounts for 30% of the overall market. |
| ……高於…… | … is higher than … | 男生的比例高於女生。 | Nánshēng de bǐlì gāoyú nǚshēng. | The proportion of boys is higher than that of girls. |
| ……低於…… | … is lower than … | 今年的成績低於預期。 | Jīnnián de chéngjì dīyú yùqí. | This year’s result is below expectations. |
| ……大約是…… | … is about … | 這條線大約是三十％。 | Zhè tiáo xiàn dàyuē shì sānshí %. | This line is about 30%. |
Words For Charts, Graphs, And Data
| Traditional Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning | Example (ZH) | Example (Pinyin) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 圖表 | túbiǎo | chart, graph | 這張圖表很清楚。 | Zhè zhāng túbiǎo hěn qīngchǔ. | This chart is very clear. |
| 折線圖 | zhéxiàntú | line graph | 折線圖最適合看趨勢。 | Zhéxiàntú zuì shìhé kàn qūshì. | A line graph is best for seeing trends. |
| 長條圖 | chángtiáotú | bar chart | 長條圖很容易比較數字。 | Chángtiáotú hěn róngyì bǐjiào shùzì. | A bar chart makes numbers easy to compare. |
| 圓餅圖 | yuánbǐngtú | pie chart | 圓餅圖常用來看比例。 | Yuánbǐngtú cháng yòng lái kàn bǐlì. | A pie chart is often used to show proportions. |
| 座標軸 | zuòbiāozhóu | axis | X軸和Y軸標得很清楚。 | X zhóu hé Y zhóu biāo de hěn qīngchǔ. | The X-axis and Y-axis are labeled clearly. |
| 橫軸 | héngzhóu | horizontal axis | 橫軸代表年份。 | Héngzhóu dàibiǎo niánfèn. | The horizontal axis represents years. |
| 縱軸 | zòngzhóu | vertical axis | 縱軸顯示人數。 | Zòngzhóu xiǎnshì rénshù. | The vertical axis shows the number of people. |
| 比例 | bǐlì | ratio, proportion | 這個比例很高。 | Zhège bǐlì hěn gāo. | This proportion is high. |
| 百分比 | bǎifēnbǐ | percentage | 百分比可以直接看出差異。 | Bǎifēnbǐ kěyǐ zhíjiē kàn chū chāyì. | Percentages make the difference easy to see. |
| 數據 | shùjù | data | 這些數據來自調查。 | Zhèxiē shùjù láizì diàochá. | These data come from a survey. |
| 趨勢 | qūshì | trend | 目前的趨勢是向上。 | Mùqián de qūshì shì xiàngshàng. | The current trend is upward. |
| 峰值 | fēngzhí | peak value | 五月出現峰值。 | Wǔ yuè chūxiàn fēngzhí. | The peak value appeared in May. |
How To Compare Different Items
When you describe charts, you often need to compare categories. In Chinese, comparison is usually straightforward, but the word order matters. Chinese likes to be tidy. Shocking, I know.
| Pattern | Meaning | Example (ZH) | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A 比 B + adjective | A is more/less… than B | 男性人數比女性多。 | Nánxìng rénshù bǐ nǚxìng duō. | The number of men is higher than the number of women. |
| A 和 B 相比 | compared with A and B | 和去年相比，今年成長很多。 | Hé qùnián xiāngbǐ, jīnnián chéngzhǎng hěn duō. | Compared with last year, this year grew a lot. |
| 不如 | not as good as | 這一季的表現不如上一季。 | Zhè yì jì de biǎoxiàn bùrú shàng yí jì. | This quarter’s performance is not as good as the previous quarter’s. |
| 遠高於 | far higher than | 第一名的數字遠高於其他組。 | Dì-yī míng de shùzì yuǎn gāoyú qítā zǔ. | The top number is far higher than the other groups. |
| 略低於 | slightly lower than | 這個值略低於平均值。 | Zhège zhí lüè dīyú píngjūn zhí. | This value is slightly below the average. |
| 差不多 | about the same | 兩邊的數量差不多。 | Liǎng biān de shùliàng chàbuduō. | The quantities on both sides are about the same. |
Example Descriptions You Can Copy
Here are some ready-made descriptions. These are useful for speaking tests, class presentations, and report writing. Yes, the chart is doing the work, but you still need the words.
| Traditional Chinese | Pinyin | English Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 這張圖表顯示近五年的銷售額持續上升。 | Zhè zhāng túbiǎo xiǎnshì jìn wǔ nián de xiāoshòu’é chíxù shàngshēng. | This chart shows that sales have continued to rise over the past five years. |
| 從數據來看，第一季表現最好。 | Cóng shùjù lái kàn, dì-yī jì biǎoxiàn zuì hǎo. | From the data, the first quarter performed the best. |
| 第二季之後，數字開始明顯下降。 | Dì-èr jì zhī hòu, shùzì kāishǐ míngxiǎn xiàjiàng. | After the second quarter, the numbers began to fall noticeably. |
| 整體來說，趨勢算是穩定成長。 | Zhěngtǐ lái shuō, qūshì suànshì wěndìng chéngzhǎng. | Overall, the trend can be described as stable growth. |
| 這個部門的成績高於平均值。 | Zhège bùmén de chéngjì gāoyú píngjūn zhí. | This department’s results are above average. |
| 雖然中間有波動，但最後還是回升了。 | Suīrán zhōngjiān yǒu bōdòng, dàn zuìhòu háishì huíshēng le. | Although there were fluctuations in the middle, it recovered in the end. |
| 這兩個數字差不多，幾乎沒有差別。 | Zhè liǎng gè shùzì chàbuduō, jīhū méiyǒu chābié. | These two numbers are about the same, with almost no difference. |
| 人口在春季開始回升。 | Rénkǒu zài chūnjì kāishǐ huíshēng. | The population started to recover in spring. |
| 這條線先升後降，形成一個小高峰。 | Zhè tiáo xiàn xiān shēng hòu jiàng, xíngchéng yí gè xiǎo gāofēng. | This line rose first and then fell, forming a small peak. |
| 如果看比例，藍色部分占最大。 | Rúguǒ kàn bǐlì, lánsè bùfèn zhàn zuìdà. | If you look at the proportion, the blue part accounts for the largest share. |
Useful Time And Number Expressions
Charts often need time words and number words. These little pieces do a lot of heavy lifting.
| Traditional Chinese | Pinyin | Meaning | Example (ZH) | Example (Pinyin) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 近年來 | jìnniánlái | in recent years | 近年來，線上購物很流行。 | Jìnniánlái, xiànshàng gòuwù hěn liúxíng. | In recent years, online shopping has become very popular. |
| 過去幾年 | guòqù jǐ nián | the past few years | 過去幾年，價格一直在變。 | Guòqù jǐ nián, jiàgé yìzhí zài biàn. | Over the past few years, prices have kept changing. |
| 第一季 | dì-yī jì | first quarter | 第一季的收入不錯。 | Dì-yī jì de shōurù búcuò. | The first quarter’s revenue was pretty good. |
| 第二季 | dì-èr jì | second quarter | 第二季比較平穩。 | Dì-èr jì bǐjiào píngwěn. | The second quarter was relatively stable. |
| 最高點 | zuìgāodiǎn | highest point | 這裡是最高點。 | Zhèlǐ shì zuìgāodiǎn. | This is the highest point. |
| 最低點 | zuìdīdiǎn | lowest point | 六月出現最低點。 | Liù yuè chūxiàn zuìdīdiǎn. | The lowest point appeared in June. |
| 平均值 | píngjūn zhí | average value | 這個數字高於平均值。 | Zhège shùzì gāoyú píngjūn zhí. | This number is above the average. |
| 大約 | dàyuē | about, approximately | 大約有三成的人支持這個方案。 | Dàyuē yǒu sān chéng de rén zhīchí zhège fāng’àn. | About 30% of people support this plan. |
| 將近 | jiāngjìn | nearly, almost | 人數將近一千。 | Rénshù jiāngjìn yì qiān. | The number of people was nearly 1,000. |
| 超過 | chāoguò | to exceed | 觀看人數超過一萬。 | Guānkàn rénshù chāoguò yí wàn. | The number of views exceeded 10,000. |
Quick Taiwan Usage Notes
In Taiwan, you’ll often hear 圖表（túbiǎo）, 折線圖（zhéxiàntú）, 長條圖（chángtiáotú）, and 圓餅圖（yuánbǐngtú）in school, work, and presentations. 長條圖 is the usual term for “bar chart,” and 柱狀圖（zhùzhuàngtú）also appears, especially in more formal contexts. That said, if you use 長條圖 in everyday Taiwan Mandarin, nobody will raise an eyebrow and demand a committee meeting.
For “percentage,” people usually say 百分比（bǎifēnbǐ）or simply ％. For “trend,” 趨勢（qūshì）is very common. If you want a slightly more formal tone, 呈現（chéngxiàn, to show/display）works well in reports and presentations.
If you want a boring but reliable reference for chart-related terms, the Taiwan Ministry of Education Dictionary is a solid place to check wording.
Common Mistakes And Fixes
| Common Mistake | Better Version | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 增加很多的 | 增加很多 | Chinese usually does not need “的” after a verb phrase here. |
| 上升到上面 | 上升到 | 到 already shows the endpoint. “上面” is unnecessary unless you really mean “above.” |
| 比去年增加了很多百分比 | 比去年增加了很多 or 比去年增加了百分之十 | Use either a general amount or a clear percentage, not a clunky mix of both. |
| 數據在上升中 | 數據正在上升 | 正在 sounds more natural for an ongoing action. |
| 很高的上升 | 大幅上升 | 高 describes height, while 大幅 describes the size of the increase. |
| 兩個圖表很比較 | 兩個圖表很容易比較 | 比較 needs the right structure. |
| 從一月到二月下降了 | 從一月到二月下降了很多 or 二月比一月低 | A sentence needs a clear result or comparison. |
Mini Grammar Notes
了（le）often shows a change or completed result: 增加了（zēngjiā le）= “increased.”
比（bǐ）is used for comparison: A 比 B + adjective. Example: 今年比去年多（Jīnnián bǐ qùnián duō.）= “This year is more than last year.”
從……到……（cóng……dào……）shows a change from one point to another. This is super useful for chart descriptions, because charts are basically just numbers taking a journey.
大約（dàyuē）, 左右（zuǒyòu）, and 將近（jiāngjìn）help you sound less suspiciously exact when the chart is only giving approximate figures.
Practice
Try these before your brain decides to take a coffee break.
- Fill in the blank: 今年的銷售額_____百分之十五。
（Hint: “increased”） - Change the sentence: 去年人數較少。
Make it say: “Last year had fewer people.” - Combine the ideas: 價格上升。價格很快。
Make one natural sentence. - Rewrite with comparison: 這個數字很高。那個數字較低。
- Say it in Chinese: “The chart shows stable growth.”
- Say it in Chinese: “The number dropped from 500 to 300.”
Check Your Answers
1. 今年的銷售額增加了百分之十五。
2. 去年人數較少。
3. 價格快速上升。
4. 這個數字比那個數字高。
5. 這張圖表顯示穩定成長。
6. 數字從五百降到三百。
Spot The Difference
| Expression | Use It When… | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 上升 | the line goes up | 數字上升了。 |
| 增加 | something grows in amount | 人數增加了。 |
| 成長 | growth sounds more long-term or business-like | 市場快速成長。 |
| 飆升 | something shoots up suddenly | 需求飆升。 |
| 暴增 | something increases extremely fast | 訂單暴增。 |
| 回升 | a drop is followed by recovery | 業績回升了。 |
Quick Reference Summary
- 上升（shàngshēng）= rise
- 下降（xiàjiàng）= fall
- 維持（wéichí）= stay the same
- 波動（bōdòng）= fluctuate
- 趨勢（qūshì）= trend
- 圖表（túbiǎo）= chart / graph
- 比例（bǐlì）= proportion
- 從……到……（cóng……dào……）= from … to …
- 比（bǐ）= compared to / than
- 大約（dàyuē）= about
If you can say 這張圖表顯示……（zhè zhāng túbiǎo xiǎnshì…）and then add a trend word, you already have the backbone of a good chart description. Add a comparison, a number, and a time period, and suddenly you sound much more prepared than the average mortal facing a presentation slide.
Yak Takeaway: When describing graphs in Traditional Chinese, keep it simple: name the chart, describe the trend, add numbers, and compare clearly. The chart may be full of drama, but your Chinese should stay calm, clean, and a little bit smug.
