Weather small talk is a universal friendship cheat code. In Mandarin, the four seasons are clean, memorable, and endlessly useful for planning, chatting, and surviving ice-cold offices in July. Learn the core words in Traditional Chinese (with pinyin right after), add a few weather lines, and you can talk like a local from plum-rain spring to typhoon-season summer.
The Four Seasons: Core Words You’ll Use Everywhere
春天
chūn tiān
Spring
夏天
xià tiān
Summer
秋天
qiū tiān
Autumn/Fall
冬天
dōng tiān
Winter
季節
jì jié
Season
Season + Weather: Natural One-Two Punch
今天天氣很好。
jīn tiān tiān qì hěn hǎo
The weather is great today.
春天常常下雨。
chūn tiān chángcháng xià yǔ
It often rains in spring.
夏天又熱又濕。
xià tiān yòu rè yòu shī
Summer is hot and humid.
秋天很舒服，風也比較涼。
qiū tiān hěn shū fú, fēng yě bǐ jiào liáng
Autumn is comfy; the wind is cooler.
冬天會變冷，記得多穿一點。
dōng tiān huì biàn lěng, jì dé duō chuān yì diǎn
Winter gets cold—remember to layer up.
Temperature, Humidity, And Comfort Phrases
很熱／很冷
hěn rè / hěn lěng
Very hot / very cold
悶熱
mēn rè
Stuffy-hot
涼快
liáng kuài
Nice and cool
濕度很高
shī dù hěn gāo
Humidity is high
體感溫度
tǐ gǎn wēn dù
“Feels like” temperature
今天體感三十六度，好悶。
jīn tiān tǐ gǎn sān shí liù dù, hǎo mēn
“Feels like” 36°C today—so stuffy.
Taiwan Season Notes (Handy Local Context)
梅雨季
méi yǔ jì
Plum-rain season (late spring/early summer; lots of rain)
颱風季
tái fēng jì
Typhoon season (mainly summer to early autumn)
冬天濕冷
dōng tiān shī lěng
Wet-cold winters (feels colder than the number)
秋老虎
qiū lǎo hǔ
“Autumn Tiger” heatwaves after summer
Seasonal Activities And Plans
春天賞花、踏青。
chūn tiān shǎng huā, tà qīng
In spring people view flowers and go out into nature.
夏天去海邊玩水。
xià tiān qù hǎi biān wán shuǐ
In summer go to the beach to play in the water.
秋天很適合爬山。
qiū tiān hěn shì hé pá shān
Autumn is great for hiking.
冬天想喝熱湯。
dōng tiān xiǎng hē rè tāng
In winter I crave hot soup.
Mini Dialogues (Short, Real, Reusable)
A：最近天氣怎麼樣？
A: zuì jìn tiān qì zěn me yàng?
A: How’s the weather lately?
B：進入梅雨季了，常常下大雨。
B: jìn rù méi yǔ jì le, cháng cháng xià dà yǔ
B: Plum-rain season now—rains a lot.
A：週末要不要去山上走走？
A: zhōu mò yào bù yào qù shān shàng zǒu zǒu?
A: Want to go up the mountain this weekend?
B：好啊！秋天很涼快。
B: hǎo a! qiū tiān hěn liáng kuài
B: Sure! Autumn is nice and cool.
A：冬天你怎麼保暖？
A: dōng tiān nǐ zěn me bǎo nuǎn?
A: How do you keep warm in winter?
B：穿發熱衣，喝薑茶。
B: chuān fā rè yī, hē jiāng chá
B: Wear heat-tech tops and drink ginger tea.
Festivals And Seasonal Keywords (Taiwan Focus)
春節／農曆新年
chūn jié / nóng lì xīn nián
Lunar New Year (late winter)
元宵節
yuán xiāo jié
Lantern Festival (end of Lunar New Year period)
清明節
qīng míng jié
Tomb-Sweeping Day (spring)
端午節
duān wǔ jié
Dragon Boat Festival (early summer)
中秋節
zhōng qiū jié
Mid-Autumn Festival (autumn; mooncakes, BBQ in Taiwan)
冬至
dōng zhì
Winter Solstice (eat tangyuan)
今年中秋節在秋天的哪一天？
jīn nián zhōng qiū jié zài qiū tiān de nǎ yì tiān?
Which day in autumn is Mid-Autumn Festival this year?
Season Words + Time Frames (Talk Like A Planner)
這個春天／下個夏天／去年冬天
zhè ge chūn tiān / xià ge xià tiān / qù nián dōng tiān
This spring / next summer / last winter
整個秋天都很舒服。
zhěng ge qiū tiān dōu hěn shū fú
The whole autumn was really comfortable.
今年夏天比去年更熱。
jīn nián xià tiān bǐ qù nián gèng rè
This summer is hotter than last year.
Copy-Ready Patterns (Swap The Blank And Go)
我最喜歡＿＿天，因為＿＿。
wǒ zuì xǐ huān ______ tiān, yīn wèi ______
I like ______ the most because ______.
這個＿＿天常常＿＿，要＿＿。
zhè ge ______ tiān cháng cháng ______, yào ______
This ______ often ______, so we should ______.
我們打算在＿＿天去＿＿。
wǒ men dǎ suàn zài ______ tiān qù ______
We plan to go ______ in ______.
＿＿季到了，記得帶＿＿。
______ jì dào le, jì dé dài ______
It’s ______ season—remember to bring ______.
Weather Add-Ons You’ll Say All The Time
下雨／下大雨
xià yǔ / xià dà yǔ
To rain / to pour
颳風
guā fēng
Windy
出太陽
chū tài yáng
Sunny
潮濕
cháo shī
Humid
乾燥
gān zào
Dry
今天很潮濕，我家地板都黏黏的。
jīn tiān hěn cháo shī, wǒ jiā dì bǎn dōu nián nián de
It’s humid today—my floor feels sticky.
Quick Reference Table
| English | Traditional Chinese | Pinyin |
| Season | 季節 | jì jié |
| Spring | 春天 | chūn tiān |
| Summer | 夏天 | xià tiān |
| Autumn/Fall | 秋天 | qiū tiān |
| Winter | 冬天 | dōng tiān |
| Rainy season (Taiwan) | 梅雨季 | méi yǔ jì |
| Typhoon season | 颱風季 | tái fēng jì |
| Humid | 潮濕 | cháo shī |
| Cool (pleasant) | 涼快 | liáng kuài |
| Stuffily hot | 悶熱 | mēn rè |
| “Feels like” temperature | 體感溫度 | tǐ gǎn wēn dù |
Pronunciation Tips That Keep You Clear
春 chūn：把 “ch” 送氣清楚，收鼻音 -n 乾淨。
夏 xià：第四聲要落到底，別變「xiá」。
秋 qiū：q 舌面前、ū 圓而短，整體乾脆。
冬 dōng：-ng 收得緊，避免「dōn」。
天 tiān：第一聲平直；連讀時春天／夏天要保持兩個音節各自清楚。
Common Mistakes And Easy Fixes
把季節和月份直譯英式花名
修正：中文用「春天、夏天…」；月份用「三月、四月」，不說 “April” 在中文句子裡。
只會說熱或冷，描述不夠自然
修正：學會「悶熱、涼快、濕度很高、體感溫度」來更貼近實際感受。
忽略台灣季節用語
修正：聽到「梅雨季、颱風季、秋老虎」時，先問日期與準備事項（雨具、防曬、備用行程）。
Practice Plan (Five Honest Minutes)
朗讀四季＋三句天氣描述各兩輪：春天常常下雨／夏天很悶熱／秋天很涼快／冬天有點濕冷。
把本週行程改寫成季節句：這個夏天我要＿＿；秋天我們去＿＿。
錄音一句包含「體感溫度」與「濕度很高」，回放修正尾音與語調。
最後造兩句提醒：颱風季到了請＿＿；梅雨季記得＿＿。
Yak-Style Closing Spark
Seasons are just four doors: open one and the small talk walks in by itself. Pair 春夏秋冬 with a few honest weather lines, sprinkle in Taiwan-specific words, and you’ve got year-round conversation fuel—no umbrella guarantees included, but highly recommended.