Translate Chinese to English Online for Free
For students, travelers and anyone reading Chinese messages, menus or work files. Chinese verbs do not change for tense and nouns have no plural ending, so a good English version has to add what the context implies. You can check the pinyin of the original as you go.
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See approximate pinyin for Chinese text
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Translation
Everyday Chinese phrases with pinyin and English
| 你好 | nǐ hǎo | Hello |
| 谢谢 | xièxie | Thank you |
| 不客气 | bú kèqi | You’re welcome |
| 对不起 | duìbuqǐ | I’m sorry |
| 没关系 | méi guānxi | That’s okay |
| 请问，洗手间在哪里？ | qǐngwèn, xǐshǒujiān zài nǎlǐ? | Excuse me, where is the restroom? |
| 这个多少钱？ | zhège duōshao qián? | How much is this? |
| 我听不懂 | wǒ tīng bù dǒng | I don’t understand |
| 请说慢一点 | qǐng shuō màn yìdiǎn | Please speak a little more slowly |
| 我想预订一个房间 | wǒ xiǎng yùdìng yí gè fángjiān | I’d like to book a room |
| 买单 | mǎidān | Check, please |
| 我们明天开会 | wǒmen míngtiān kāihuì | We have a meeting tomorrow |
| 附件是合同，请查看。 | Fùjiàn shì hétong, qǐng chákàn. | The contract is attached. Please take a look. |
| 收到，谢谢 | shōudào, xièxie | Got it, thanks |
| 辛苦了 | xīnkǔ le | Thanks for all your hard work |
| 加油 | jiāyóu | You’ve got this! |
| 祝你生日快乐 | zhù nǐ shēngrì kuàilè | Happy birthday! |
| 新年快乐 | xīnnián kuàilè | Happy New Year! |
What changes when Chinese becomes English
Tense and plurals have to be added
Chinese verbs do not change form for past, present or future. Time words and particles carry that meaning instead. In 我昨天去了北京 (wǒ zuótiān qùle Běijīng), “yesterday” and 了 signal a finished action, which English marks with “I went to Beijing yesterday.” Nouns also have no plural ending: 三本书 is simply “three books.”
Subjects are often left out
Chinese usually drops the subject when it is clear from context. 吃饭了吗？ has no word for “you,” but English needs one: “Have you eaten?” The translation has to decide who is meant, so it is worth a second look in short chat messages.
Measure words usually vanish
Chinese puts a measure word between a number and a noun. Some have English matches, as in 一杯咖啡, “a cup of coffee,” but the common 个 in 一个人 usually disappears: “one person.”
Names, dates and large numbers
Chinese names put the family name first: 王小明 can stay Wang Xiaoming or become Xiaoming Wang. Dates run year-month-day, as in 2024年5月3日. Large numbers are grouped by 万 (ten thousand), so 三万 is 30,000, not three thousand.
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How do I use this translator?
Paste or type your Chinese text, pick a Tone if you like (Match the original, Formal (business email) or Casual), and start the translation. After the result appears, Meaning kept: shows a confidence estimate from a second AI check.
Is this Chinese to English translator free?
Yes. It runs in your browser with no signup, no account and nothing to install.
Why does the English add words that are not in the Chinese?
Chinese often leaves out the subject and does not mark tense or plurals on words, so English has to add “I,” “you,” “-ed” or “-s” based on context. Check the result where context is thin, such as short chat messages.
How much text can I translate, and can I open a document?
Each run takes up to 5,000 characters, so split longer texts into parts. You can open a DOCX, ODT, RTF or TXT file and its text goes into the editor, but formatting is not kept and PDFs are not supported. For photos and screenshots, use the «Photo / screenshot» button. The image is sent to the server and an AI model reads its text into the input box for translation; the image is not stored.
Is it safe to paste private messages or work emails?
Your text is sent to an AI model, translated, returned and then discarded. It is not stored and not used for training.
Can I see the pinyin of the Chinese text?
Yes. Click Show pronunciation to get an approximate pinyin romanization of the Chinese, shown under the result. Read aloud plays the English translation.
Does it understand Traditional Chinese characters?
Yes, you can paste Traditional text and it is understood; a small note tells you whether your text looks Simplified or Traditional. There is no separate Simplified or Traditional setting.
Can I translate Mandarin to English by speaking or from a photo?
Yes, you can use a photo. Click "Photo / screenshot" to pick, take or paste an image; it is sent to be read by an AI model and is not stored. You can also use Dictate to speak into the microphone, and your words appear in the input box, ready to translate.
Can I translate English into Chinese too?
Yes. Click Swap languages to reverse the direction and keep your text, which makes the page a two-way Chinese English translator. Chinese output is in Simplified characters.