New here? This is lesson 80 of a free 240-lesson Traditional Chinese course.
Sharing a table in Traditional Chinese
Lunch is busy at a small Taipei eatery, and the tables are nearly full. Maya and Yi-Jun spot a stranger with an empty seat.
Learn how to ask if a seat is taken and whether you can share a table. You will also say who has arrived and who is still on the way.
Then take a first look at the menu and ask about the shop's specialty. A neighbor's cousin joins the conversation, but the fortune slip stays unexplained.
By the end of this lesson
Ask whether a seat is available, request to share a table, say who is still coming, and ask about a specialty.
- 這邊有人坐嗎？Is anyone sitting here?
- 可以併桌嗎？May we share a table?
- 人到齊了Everyone's here.
- 還有一位還沒到One additional person, beyond those already here, has not arrived yet.
- 我們先看一下菜單We'll look at the menu first.
- 招牌是什麼？What's the specialty?
Scene — a busy lunch
It is lunchtime at a busy 小吃 shop near Banyan Lane. Maya and Yi-Jun find one open place at a shared table, next to someone they have not met.
The stranger turns out to be a neighbor's cousin. Their friend is still on the way, so the group makes room and looks at the menu while they wait.
Learn — finding a seat together
Listen to six useful lines for sharing a table and checking whether everyone has arrived.
Notice how 嗎 makes a yes-or-no question, while 還沒 tells someone that an event has not happened yet.
這邊有人坐嗎？
Is anyone sitting here?
When to use it: Ask this when you want to know whether a seat is taken.
嗎 turns this into a yes-or-no question.
Say it: 嗎 is a light, neutral-tone question particle.
可以併桌嗎？
May we share a table?
When to use it: Ask this when you would like to sit at someone else's table.
Put 可以 before an action, then add 嗎 to ask permission.
Say it: 嗎 is a light, neutral-tone question particle.
人到齊了
Everyone's here.
When to use it: Say this when everyone expected has arrived.
了 marks the change to a completed state: everyone has arrived.
Say it: 了 is a light, neutral-tone particle here.
還有一位還沒到
One additional person, beyond those already here, has not arrived yet.
When to use it: Say this when one person in your group has not arrived yet.
還沒 means that something has not happened yet.
Say it: 一 changes to a rising tone before the fourth-tone 位.
我們先看一下菜單
We'll look at the menu first.
When to use it: Say this when you want to look at the menu before ordering.
先 means you will do this before another action.
Say it: 一 in 一下 changes to a rising tone before the fourth-tone 下.
招牌是什麼？
What's the specialty?
When to use it: Ask this to find out what a shop is especially known for.
什麼 asks for information about the thing named after 是.
Story — lunch at a small shop
Maya and Yi-Jun find a seat at a crowded 小吃 shop and ask to share a table.
A stranger turns out to be a neighbor's cousin. One more friend is on the way, so they look at the menu while they wait.
Auntie Lin中午這家小吃店好多人喔。There are so many people at this shop at lunchtime.
Maya你好。Hello.- Maya這邊有人坐嗎？Is anyone sitting here?
- A neighbor's cousin沒有人，請坐。No one is sitting here. Please sit down.
- Maya可以併桌嗎？May we share a table?
- A neighbor's cousin可以，我是隔壁鄰居的表弟。Sure. I'm the cousin of your neighbor next door.
Yi-Jun還有一位還沒到嗎？Is one more person still not here?- Maya還有一位還沒到One more person is still not here.
- Maya我們先看一下菜單We'll look at the menu first.
- Maya招牌是什麼？What's the specialty?
- Shop staff我幫你問老闆。I'll ask the owner for you.
- Shop staff老闆說，招牌是滷肉飯。The owner says the specialty is braised pork rice.
- Their friend arrives a little later.
- Auntie Lin你的朋友到了。Your friend is here.
- Maya人到齊了Everyone's here.
Practice — make room at the table
Use the new lines to find a seat, share a table, and talk about who is still coming.
The exercises also bring back two familiar greetings and a polite invitation to sit.
0 of 10 done
What does it mean?
What does it mean?
這邊有人坐嗎？
What do you say?
What do you say?
The table is crowded, and you want to sit with the people already there. Ask permission.
Build the line
Build the line
Everyone's here.
Tap the words in order.
Fill the gap
Fill the gap
One additional person, beyond those already here, has not arrived yet.
____一位還沒到
Match the pairs
Traditional Chinese
這邊有人坐嗎？Drop the English here我們先看一下菜單Drop the English here招牌是什麼？Drop the English hereEnglish
What did you hear?
What did you hear?
Pick the reply
Yi-Jun says:
Pick the reply
還有一位還沒到嗎？
Is one more person still not here?
And you reply with:
What do you say?
What do you say?
You are meeting someone for the first time. Give them a simple greeting.
Build the line
Build the line
What's the specialty?
？
Tap the words in order.
What do you say?
What do you say?
You offer someone an empty seat. Invite them to sit politely.
Say it — your lunch conversation
You are Maya at the crowded lunch shop. Ask about the seat, check whether you may share the table, and keep the others updated.
Listen to each cue, then say your line aloud. Your last turn comes after your friend arrives.
- Maya finds an open place beside a stranger.
- Maya (you)Ask if anyone is sitting in the place.
Ask if anyone is sitting in the place.
這邊有人坐嗎？
Is anyone sitting here?
0 of 4 said
Recap — what you can say now
| Traditional Chinese | English | Play |
|---|---|---|
| 這邊有人坐嗎？ | Is anyone sitting here? | |
| 可以併桌嗎？ | May we share a table? | |
| 人到齊了 | Everyone's here. | |
| 還有一位還沒到 | One additional person, beyond those already here, has not arrived yet. | |
| 我們先看一下菜單 | We'll look at the menu first. | |
| 招牌是什麼？ | What's the specialty? |
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Keep practicing with Yak Cards
Save useful restaurant lines in Yak Cards and review them before your next meal out.
Practise asking to share a table until the words come easily.
Open Yak Cards