Book 1, Lesson 7: Time and Scheduling

Lesson 7 teaches you to master time.

Note: This page serves as a companion to the A Course in Contemporary Chinese series by the Mandarin Training Center of the National Taiwan Normal University. You can use this post as a reference, but we strongly advise you to purchase the book to get the full didactic value it offers.

After learning to navigate locations in Lesson 6, Book 1 Lesson 7 of A Course in Contemporary Chinese (Dangdai) introduces the vocabulary of scheduling—telling time, making appointments, and coordinating plans with others.

This is essential social vocabulary. In Taiwan, you will constantly arrange meetings, confirm times, and negotiate schedules. Whether you are planning to meet classmates for KTV, scheduling a language exchange, or coordinating study sessions, this lesson provides the framework.

The Theme: Time and Appointments

The scenario of Lesson 7 revolves around scheduling and time management. People discuss when to meet, check their availability, and coordinate activities. It is the vocabulary of daily planning and social coordination.

The vocabulary divides into several categories:

Time Expressions

The core vocabulary for telling time: 點 (o’clock), 分 (minute), 半 (half), 中午 (noon), 下午 (afternoon). These words let you specify exactly when things happen.

Days and Periods

Words that extend beyond today: 後天 (day after tomorrow), 下次 (next time), 最近 (recently), 每天 (every day). These allow you to plan ahead and discuss patterns.

Scheduling Verbs

Actions related to coordination: 見面 (to meet), 開始 (to begin), 結束 (to end), 等 (to wait). The verbs that make appointments happen.

Activities

Things you might schedule: 唱歌 (to sing), 比賽 (competition), 書法 (calligraphy), 課 (class), 午餐 (lunch). The activities that fill your calendar.

Common Phrases

Essential scheduling expressions: 沒問題 (no problem), 有空 (to have free time), 有事 (to have something to do), 等一下 (wait a moment). The social lubricants of appointment-making.

Vocabulary Table

Click any character to view stroke order, pronunciation, and example sentences in our dictionary.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning	Type
點	diǎn	o’clock; point	Noun
KTV	KTV	karaoke (from “Karaoke Television”)	Noun
唱歌	chànggē	to sing (songs)	Verb
分	fēn	minute	Noun
見面	jiànmiàn	to meet (face-to-face)	Verb
從	cóng	from	Preposition
中午	zhōngwǔ	noon; midday	Noun
得	děi	must; have to	Auxiliary verb
銀行	yínháng	bank	Noun
時候	shíhou	time; moment; when	Noun
後天	hòutiān	day after tomorrow	Noun
大安	Dà’ān	Da’an (district in Taipei)	Proper noun
下次	xiàcì	next time	Noun
沒問題	méi wèntí	no problem	Phrase
對了	duìle	by the way; that’s right	Phrase
有空	yǒu kòng	to have free time	Verb phrase
再見	zàijiàn	goodbye	Phrase
在	zài	at; in (location/time)	Preposition
午餐	wǔcān	lunch	Noun
剛	gāng	just (now); just finished	Adverb
下課	xiàkè	to finish class; class dismissed	Verb
下午	xiàwǔ	afternoon	Noun
半	bàn	half	Number
比賽	bǐsài	competition; match; game	Noun
結束	jiéshù	to end; to finish	Verb
最近	zuìjìn	recently; lately	Adverb
忙	máng	busy	Adjective
每	měi	every; each	Determiner
天	tiān	day	Noun
書法	shūfǎ	calligraphy	Noun
課	kè	class; lesson	Noun
開始	kāishǐ	to begin; to start	Verb
字	zì	character; word	Noun
寫	xiě	to write	Verb
可以	kěyǐ	can; may	Auxiliary verb
問	wèn	to ask	Verb
等一下	děng yíxià	wait a moment	Phrase
有事	yǒu shì	to have something to do; to be busy	Verb phrase
有意思	yǒu yìsi	interesting	Adjective

Key Grammar

Telling Time: 點 and 分

Mandarin tells time using 點 (o’clock) and 分 (minutes):

Basic structure: Number + 點 + Number + 分

三點 — 3:00 (three o’clock)
三點十五分 — 3:15
七點三十分 — 7:30
十二點四十五分 — 12:45

Using 半 (half):

三點半 — 3:30 (three-thirty)
中午十二點半 — 12:30 PM

Note: When stating the half hour, 半 replaces 三十分.

Asking the time:

現在幾點？ — What time is it now?
你幾點下課？ — What time does your class end?

Time Periods: 早上, 中午, 下午, 晚上

Mandarin specifies time of day before the clock time:

Period	Meaning	Approximate Time
早上	morning	~6:00 AM - 12:00 PM
中午	noon/midday	~11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
下午	afternoon	~12:00 PM - 6:00 PM
晚上	evening/night	~6:00 PM onwards

Structure: Time period + clock time

下午三點 — 3:00 PM
早上九點半 — 9:30 AM
晚上七點十五分 — 7:15 PM

從…到… — “From…to…”

從 indicates a starting point in time or space:

Time:

從三點到五點 — from 3:00 to 5:00
從星期一到星期五 — from Monday to Friday

Place:

從學校到銀行 — from school to the bank
從台北到花蓮 — from Taipei to Hualien

得 (děi) — “Must/Have to”

得 (pronounced děi, not dé) indicates obligation or necessity:

我得去銀行。 — I have to go to the bank.
你得早一點來。 — You have to come earlier.
明天我得上課。 — Tomorrow I have to attend class.

Note: This is different from 得 (de) as a complement particle.

剛 — “Just (now)”

剛 indicates something just happened:

我剛下課。 — I just finished class.
他剛到。 — He just arrived.
比賽剛結束。 — The competition just ended.

剛 emphasizes the recency of an action—it happened moments ago.

每 + Measure Word + Noun — “Every”

每 means “every” and requires a measure word:

每天 — every day (天 is its own measure word)
每個人 — every person
每次 — every time

Examples:

我每天都上課。 — I have class every day.
每個星期六我去KTV。 — Every Saturday I go to KTV.

…的時候 — “When…”

時候 creates “when” clauses:

下課的時候，你在哪裡？ — When class ended, where were you?
我忙的時候，不能見面。 — When I’m busy, I can’t meet.
你有空的時候，我們去唱歌吧。 — When you’re free, let’s go sing.

有空 vs 有事 — Availability

These phrases are opposites:

有空 (yǒu kòng) — to have free time, to be available:

你明天有空嗎？ — Are you free tomorrow?
我下午有空。 — I’m free in the afternoon.

有事 (yǒu shì) — to have something to do, to be busy:

對不起，我今天有事。 — Sorry, I have something to do today.
他晚上有事。 — He’s busy tonight.

These are the standard ways to discuss availability when making plans.

Cultural Notes

KTV — Taiwan’s Singing Culture

KTV (karaoke television) is a cornerstone of Taiwanese social life. Unlike Western karaoke bars where you sing in front of strangers, Taiwanese KTV provides private rooms where groups of friends sing together.

The experience typically involves:

Renting a room by the hour (按小時計費)
An all-you-can-eat buffet or drink bar (often included)
A vast song selection in multiple languages
Comfortable seating, often with couches
Tambourines and other noisemakers

Major chains include 錢櫃 (Cashbox) and 好樂迪 (Holiday KTV). Prices vary by time—afternoon sessions (下午場) are cheaper than evening peak hours.

KTV is appropriate for almost any social occasion: birthdays, farewells, team building, or simply spending time with friends. When someone suggests 我們去唱歌吧, they mean KTV, not singing in the street.

Common phrases:

你要不要去唱歌？ — Do you want to go sing (at KTV)?
我們唱到幾點？ — Until what time are we singing?
這首歌很好唱。 — This song is easy to sing.
我不太會唱歌。 — I’m not very good at singing.
換你了！ — It’s your turn!

KTV etiquette is relaxed. You are not expected to sing well—enthusiasm matters more than talent. Passing the microphone, singing duets, and cheering for friends are all part of the experience. It is acceptable to simply sit, eat, and enjoy without singing at all.

大安區 — Taipei’s Student District

大安 (Dà’ān) appears in this lesson as a location, and for good reason. Da’an District is the heart of student life in Taipei:

National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU/師大) — home of MTC [7]
National Taiwan University (NTU/台大) — Taiwan’s top university
Countless language exchange cafés and study spots
Shida Night Market (師大夜市)

When MTC students say 我在大安, they are often near campus, in the network of cafés, restaurants, and bookstores that cater to students. The area around Guting Station (古亭站) and Taipower Building Station (台電大樓站) is particularly student-dense.

Key locations in Da’an for language students:

師大路 (Shida Road) — Lined with affordable restaurants and bubble tea shops
溫州街 (Wenzhou Street) — Quiet, leafy streets with independent bookstores
公館 (Gongguan) — Near NTU, with a famous night market and student hangouts

The phrase 我住在大安 (I live in Da’an) often signals that someone is a student or young professional. Rent is higher than outer districts, but the convenience (方便) is unmatched.

書法 — The Art of Writing

書法 (calligraphy) appears in this lesson, reflecting its cultural importance. Many language schools, including MTC, offer calligraphy classes as cultural electives.

Calligraphy is not merely decorative—it reinforces character learning through:

Attention to stroke order and proportion
Understanding of character structure
Development of muscle memory for complex characters
Appreciation for the aesthetic dimension of Chinese writing

The connection between calligraphy and language learning is well-established [8]. When you practice 書法, you are forced to slow down and consider each stroke—its direction, its weight, its relationship to other strokes. This deliberate practice builds the same neural pathways that support character recognition and recall.

Common calligraphy vocabulary:

毛筆 (máobǐ) — brush
墨 (mò) — ink
紙 (zhǐ) — paper
硯 (yàn) — inkstone

Together, these are called 文房四寶 (wénfáng sìbǎo) — the “Four Treasures of the Study.”

Even if you never become proficient at calligraphy, a single class can deepen your appreciation for why characters look the way they do—and why stroke order matters.

再見 — A Note on Goodbyes

This lesson includes 再見 (zàijiàn), the textbook standard for “goodbye.” However, as discussed in earlier lessons, 再見 sounds formal in Taiwanese daily life.

More common farewells include:

掰掰 (bāibāi) — Bye-bye (casual, very common)
先走了 (xiān zǒu le) — I’m leaving first
下次見 (xiàcì jiàn) — See you next time
慢走 (màn zǒu) — Walk slowly (said by host to departing guest)

再見 is not wrong—it is simply more formal. Use it with teachers, in professional contexts, or when the situation calls for politeness. Among friends, 掰掰 is the default.

銀行 — Banking in Taiwan

銀行 (yínháng) appears in this lesson, and banking is something every long-term student must navigate.

Opening a bank account in Taiwan requires:

Your passport
Your ARC (Alien Resident Certificate)
Proof of address (sometimes)
A minimum deposit (usually small)

Popular banks for foreigners include:

中國信託 (CTBC)
國泰世華 (Cathay United)
台北富邦 (Taipei Fubon)

Banking vocabulary you will encounter:

開戶 (kāihù) — to open an account
存錢 (cúnqián) — to deposit money
領錢 (lǐngqián) — to withdraw money
轉帳 (zhuǎnzhàng) — to transfer money
ATM / 提款機 (tíkuǎnjī) — ATM

Most daily transactions in Taiwan can be handled with cash or mobile payment, but a local bank account is essential for receiving scholarships, paying rent, and managing longer-term finances.