chino
/CHEE-noh/
Chinese
As an adjective, chino describes something of Chinese origin, like the flag of China.
📝 In Action
Me encanta la comida china.
A1I love Chinese food.
El Año Nuevo chino es una fiesta muy importante.
A2The Chinese New Year is a very important holiday.
💡 Grammar Points
Gender Agreement
As an adjective, 'chino' must match the gender and number of the noun it describes. If the noun is feminine (like 'comida'), you must use 'china'.
❌ Common Pitfalls
Forgetting the Feminine Form
Mistake: "Hablamos de la cultura chino."
Correction: Hablamos de la cultura china. ('Cultura' is feminine, so the adjective must be 'china'.)
⭐ Usage Tips
Capitalization
Unlike English, adjectives of nationality like 'chino' are usually written with a lowercase letter in Spanish.
As a noun, chino can refer to a Chinese man.
chino(noun)
Chinese man
?male person from China
Chinese person
?general reference, masculine form
📝 In Action
Conocimos a un chino muy amable en la tienda.
A1We met a very kind Chinese man at the store.
Los chinos celebran el festival de la luna.
B1The Chinese (people) celebrate the moon festival.
💡 Grammar Points
The Feminine Form
To refer to a female person from China, you must use the feminine noun: 'la china' (the Chinese woman).
⭐ Usage Tips
Using the Article
When referring to the nationality as a noun, you almost always need to use a definite article (el/la/los/las) or an indefinite article (un/una/unos/unas).
Chino also refers to the Chinese language.
📝 In Action
Quiero aprender a hablar chino.
A2I want to learn to speak Chinese.
El chino es uno de los idiomas más hablados del mundo.
B1Chinese is one of the most spoken languages in the world.
💡 Grammar Points
Always Masculine
When referring to the language, 'chino' is always a masculine noun ('el chino'), even though the country 'China' is feminine.
❌ Common Pitfalls
Using 'el' after Hablar
Mistake: "Ella habla el chino muy bien."
Correction: Ella habla chino muy bien. (When 'hablar' is followed directly by the language name, you usually drop the article 'el'.)
✏️ Quick Practice
💡 Quick Quiz: chino
Question 1 of 2
Which sentence uses 'chino' as a noun referring to the language?
📚 More Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 'chino' always used for people from China?
While the primary, neutral meaning is a person from China, in some parts of Latin America, particularly the Southern Cone, 'chino/a' is sometimes used informally to refer to people of East Asian descent in general. It's always best to use the specific nationality if you know it.
How do I know if 'chino' refers to a person or the language?
Context is key. If it follows the verb 'hablar' (to speak) or 'estudiar' (to study), it's the language. If it is preceded by 'un' or 'una' and refers to a person, it's the nationality (e.g., 'un chino' = a Chinese man).