HSC Chinese in Context cheat sheet

个人身份 (personal identity) is expressed through 自我认同 (self-identification) and 归属感 (sense of belonging); both terms appear in HSC texts about family and community life.

Family roles in Chinese: 父母 (parents), 子女 (children), 祖父母 (grandparents), 兄弟姐妹 (siblings); 独生子女 (only child) is a key identity topic.

Register rule: use 您 for elders or strangers and 你 for peers; switching from 您 to 你 signals growing intimacy in dialogue.

Friendship vocabulary: 朋友 (friend), 知己 (close confidant), 同学 (classmate), 邻居 (neighbour); 关系 (relationship) collocates with 建立, 维持, 疏远.

Community life terms: 社区 (community), 志愿者 (volunteer), 邻里 (neighbourhood), 集体活动 (group activity); 参与 (participate) takes 活动 as object.

Measure words for people: 一位老师, 一个朋友, 一名学生; 位 is polite and normally used for adults, not for oneself.

Polite refusal pattern: 谢谢你的邀请，不过…… (thank you for the invitation, however…) softens a decline without damaging the relationship.

Expression of obligation: 应该 (should), 必须 (must), 不得不 (have no choice but to); 不得不 conveys external pressure, 必须 conveys a rule.

Major festivals: 春节 (Spring Festival), 元宵节 (Lantern Festival), 端午节 (Dragon Boat Festival), 中秋节 (Mid-Autumn Festival), 清明节 (Qingming).

Spring Festival customs: 贴春联 (paste couplets), 放鞭炮 (set off firecrackers), 拜年 (pay New Year calls), 红包 (red envelopes), 年夜饭 (New Year's Eve dinner).

Moon Festival foods and symbols: 月饼 (mooncakes), 团圆 (reunion), 赏月 (moon viewing); the full moon stands for family unity.

Dragon Boat Festival links to 屈原 (Qu Yuan) and 粽子 (sticky-rice parcels); races are called 赛龙舟.

Migration vocabulary: 移民 (migrant/immigrate), 侨居 (live abroad), 唐人街 (Chinatown), 落叶归根 (return to one's roots), 融入 (integrate).

Diaspora identity terms: 华裔 (of Chinese descent), 第一代/第二代移民 (first/second-generation migrants), 双重文化 (bicultural), 文化传承 (cultural transmission).

Taboo and etiquette facts: 四 (four) sounds like 死 (death) so is avoided; 八 (eight) suggests 发 (prosper); gifts of clocks or sharp objects are avoided.

Festival greetings: 恭喜发财 (wishing prosperity), 新年快乐 (Happy New Year), 中秋快乐 (Happy Mid-Autumn), 身体健康 (good health).

Career vocabulary: 职业 (occupation), 求职 (job seeking), 简历 (résumé), 面试 (interview), 实习 (internship), 兼职 (part-time job), 全职 (full-time).

Workplace culture terms: 加班 (overtime), 同事 (colleague), 上司 (supervisor), 团队合作 (teamwork), 工作效率 (work efficiency), 压力 (pressure).

Study pathways: 高考 (national university entrance exam), 大学 (university), 专业 (major), 奖学金 (scholarship), 职业教育 (vocational education), 留学 (study abroad).

Gap-year and skill terms: 间隔年 (gap year), 技能 (skill), 经验 (experience), 资格 (qualification); 积累经验 (accumulate experience) is a frequent collocation.

Comparison structure: 与……相比 (compared with), 不如 (not as good as), 越来越 (more and more), 一方面……另一方面 (on one hand… on the other).

Cause-and-effect connectors for work topics: 因为……所以, 由于 (owing to), 因此 (therefore), 导致 (lead to, negative result).

Telework and gig terms: 远程办公 (remote work), 自由职业 (freelance), 灵活就业 (flexible employment), 平台经济 (platform economy).

Future and intention: 打算 (plan), 希望 (hope), 将来 (in the future), 想要 (want to); 打算 is followed by a verb phrase, not 会.

Education system terms: 小学 (primary), 初中 (junior high), 高中 (senior high), 补习班 (tutoring class), 应试教育 (exam-oriented education), 素质教育 (all-round education).

Education reform vocabulary: 双减政策 (double-reduction policy limiting homework and tutoring), 课业负担 (study burden), 公平 (fairness).

Media vocabulary: 社交媒体 (social media), 网络 (internet), 新闻 (news), 广告 (advertisement), 舆论 (public opinion), 网红 (internet celebrity).

Technology terms: 智能手机 (smartphone), 移动支付 (mobile payment), 网购 (online shopping), 人工智能 (artificial intelligence), 隐私 (privacy).

Social change terms: 城市化 (urbanisation), 人口老龄化 (ageing population), 环保 (environmental protection), 消费观念 (consumption attitudes).

Concession pattern for debate: 虽然……但是…… (although… but…), 尽管……仍然…… (despite… still…); only one of the pair appears in each clause.

Statistics language: 百分之 (percent), 增长 (increase), 下降 (decrease), 比例 (proportion); 增长了 takes an amount, 增长到 takes a final figure.

Passive and disposal forms: 被 (passive marker) and 把 (disposal marker); 手机被偷了 versus 我把手机弄丢了.

Cross-cultural terms: 文化交流 (cultural exchange), 跨文化 (cross-cultural), 文化差异 (cultural difference), 刻板印象 (stereotype), 误解 (misunderstanding).

Values contrast: 集体主义 (collectivism) versus 个人主义 (individualism); 面子 (face) and 关系 (relationships) shape communication style.

Indirect speech rule: Chinese refusals often use 可能 (perhaps), 再说吧 (let's talk later), 考虑一下 (think about it) rather than a direct 不.

Australian-Chinese links: 贸易伙伴 (trading partner), 留学生 (international student), 唐人街 (Chinatown), 多元文化 (multiculturalism), 原住民 (Indigenous peoples).

Global citizenship terms: 全球公民 (global citizen), 可持续发展 (sustainable development), 国际合作 (international cooperation), 责任 (responsibility).

Exchange-programme vocabulary: 交换生 (exchange student), 寄宿家庭 (homestay), 文化冲击 (culture shock), 适应 (adapt).

Comparative connectors: 与澳大利亚不同 (unlike Australia), 相比之下 (by contrast), 相似之处 (similarities), 差异 (differences).

Email etiquette: 尊敬的……先生/女士 (Dear Mr/Ms), 此致敬礼 (formal closing), 谢谢您的帮助 (thank you for your help).

Aspect markers: 了 (completed action or change), 过 (past experience), 着 (ongoing state); 我去过中国 = I have been to China.

了 placement rule: verb + 了 + object for completed action (我吃了饭); sentence-final 了 marks a new situation (下雨了).

把 construction: 主语 + 把 + object + verb + complement (我把作业做完了); the object must be definite.

被 construction: 主语 + 被 + agent + verb + complement (我的书被同学借走了); often carries an unfavourable sense.

Comparison patterns: 比 + adjective (他比我高), 跟……一样 (the same as), 没有……那么 (not as … as), 越来越 + adjective.

Resultative complements: 完 (finish), 到 (reach/achieve), 好 (done well), 见 (perceive); 看见, 做完, 找到, 准备好.

Connectors by function: 因为……所以 (cause), 虽然……但是 (concession), 不但……而且 (addition), 如果……就 (condition), 一……就 (as soon as).

Listening strategy: note numbers, names, times and 但是/不过 (but) after them; the answer usually follows the contrast marker.

Writing register: 书面语 (written) uses 因此, 并且, 然而; 口语 (spoken) uses 所以, 还有, 可是.