Business Chinese Vocabulary List: Practical Words & Phrases for Meetings, Email, PM, and Sales
Guide Reading: Learn practical Business Chinese vocabulary for meetings, email/IM, project updates, reporting, sales, and negotiation. Includes Chinese, pinyin with tone marks, English meaning, and real usage contexts.
About the Author: This guide is written by the GoEast Mandarin teaching team, drawing from 12+ years of classroom experience teaching over 20,000 students. Our methodology aligns with HSK curriculum standards and emphasizes practical communication.
Most “business Chinese vocab lists” fail for one simple reason: they teach isolated words without the phrases you’ll actually say at work. This guide focuses on high-frequency, real-life business Chinese vocabulary (plus copy-ready chunks) so you can communicate confidently in meetings, emails, and daily collaboration.
How to use this list:
- Pick 10 items.
- Use them in real messages this week (email/WeChat/Slack).
- Repeat with the next 10 items.
Business Chinese Vocabulary List (Chinese + Pinyin with Tones + English)
Mobile tip: On small screens, swipe horizontally to view all columns.
| Category | Chinese | Pinyin (tone marks) | English | Usage context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core | 确认 | quèrèn | confirm | 确认一下时间/范围/责任人 |
| Core | 对齐 | duìqí | align (understanding/expectations) | 对齐目标/口径/方案 |
| Core | 跟进 | gēnjìn | follow up | 会后/邮件后跟进 |
| Core | 推进 | tuījìn | push forward | 推进进度/落地执行 |
| Core | 落地 | luòdì | implement / execute | 把方案落地 |
| Core | 复盘 | fùpán | retrospective / review | 项目结束后复盘 |
| Core | 评估 | pínggū | evaluate | 评估影响/风险/收益 |
| Core | 反馈 | fǎnkuì | feedback | 收集/给出反馈 |
| Core | 优先级 | yōuxiānjí | priority | 先做高优先级 |
| Core | 风险 | fēngxiǎn | risk | 风险点/规避方案 |
| Core | 进度 | jìndù | progress | 进度更新/里程碑 |
| Core | 负责人 | fùzérén | owner (person in charge) | 明确负责人 |
| Core | 截止时间 | jiézhǐ shíjiān | deadline | 截止到周五/月底 |
| Core | 审批 | shěnpī | approve | 流程审批/预算审批 |
| Core | 口径 | kǒujìng | definition/standard (metrics/messaging) | 数据口径/对外口径 |
| Meetings | 我们先简单过一下议程。 | Wǒmen xiān jiǎndān guò yíxià yìchéng. | Let’s quickly go through the agenda. | opening |
| Meetings | 今天的目标是把三件事定下来。 | Jīntiān de mùbiāo shì bǎ sān jiàn shì dìng xiàlái. | Today’s goal is to finalize three things. | set goals |
| Meetings | 这个点我们需要对齐一下。 | Zhège diǎn wǒmen xūyào duìqí yíxià. | We need to align on this. | alignment |
| Meetings | 我理解你的意思是……对吗？ | Wǒ lǐjiě nǐ de yìsi shì… duì ma? | You mean… right? | clarify |
| Meetings | 我们先把问题拆开来看。 | Wǒmen xiān bǎ wèntí chāikāi lái kàn. | Let’s break the problem down. | problem-solving |
| Meetings | 这部分我们先不展开。 | Zhè bùfen wǒmen xiān bù zhǎnkāi. | Let’s not dive into this yet. | time control |
| Meetings | 这个点先记下来，会后再看。 | Zhège diǎn xiān jì xiàlái, huìhòu zài kàn. | Let’s park it and revisit after. | parking lot |
| Meetings | 我们今天先定一个方向。 | Wǒmen jīntiān xiān dìng yí ge fāngxiàng. | Let’s decide on a direction today. | decision |
| Meetings | 最后确认一下行动项、负责人和截止时间。 | Zuìhòu quèrèn yíxià xíngdòngxiàng, fùzérén hé jiézhǐ shíjiān. | Confirm actions, owners, and deadlines. | closing |
| Email/IM | 麻烦你看一下附件。 | Máfan nǐ kàn yíxià fùjiàn. | Please see the attachment. | |
| Email/IM | 我再跟进一下这件事。 | Wǒ zài gēnjìn yíxià zhè jiàn shì. | Just following up on this. | polite nudge |
| Email/IM | 想确认一下你是否有看到。 | Xiǎng quèrèn yíxià nǐ shìfǒu yǒu kàndào. | Checking if you had a chance to see this. | follow-up |
| Email/IM | 我这边的建议是…… | Wǒ zhèbiān de jiànyì shì… | My suggestion is… | recommendation |
| Email/IM | 我们先同步一下最新进展。 | Wǒmen xiān tóngbù yíxià zuìxīn jìnzhǎn. | Let’s sync the latest progress. | status |
| Email/IM | 辛苦了，谢谢！ | Xīnkǔ le, xièxie! | Thanks—appreciate your effort! | warm closing |
| PM | 项目范围 | xiàngmù fànwéi | project scope | 范围变更要说明 |
| PM | 里程碑 | lǐchéngbēi | milestone | 按里程碑推进 |
| PM | 排期 | páiqī | schedule (timeline) | 排期调整/延期 |
| PM | 依赖 | yīlài | dependency | 有外部依赖会卡住 |
| PM | 验收标准 | yànshōu biāozhǔn | acceptance criteria | 交付前先定标准 |
| PM | 上线 | shàngxiàn | go live / launch | 上线计划/风险 |
| PM | 回滚 | huígǔn | rollback | 上线异常时回滚 |
| Data | 指标 | zhǐbiāo | metric | 核心指标/北极星指标 |
| Data | 数据口径 | shùjù kǒujìng | metric definition | 先统一口径再汇报 |
| Data | 转化率 | zhuǎnhuàlǜ | conversion rate | 漏斗转化 |
| Data | 留存 | liúcún | retention | 次日/7日/30日留存 |
| Data | 环比 / 同比 | huánbǐ / tóngbǐ | MoM / YoY | 对比增长趋势 |
| Sales | 报价 | bàojià | quotation | 发报价单 |
| Sales | 合同 | hétóng | contract | 签合同/走流程 |
| Sales | 条款 | tiáokuǎn | terms | 付款/交付/违约条款 |
| Negotiation | 我们的底线是…… | Wǒmen de dǐxiàn shì… | Our bottom line is… | set boundaries |
| Negotiation | 这个价格我们很难接受。 | Zhège jiàgé wǒmen hěn nán jiēshòu. | This price is hard for us to accept. | push back politely |
| Negotiation | 如果你们能……我们可以…… | Rúguǒ nǐmen néng…, wǒmen kěyǐ… | If you can…, we can… | trade-offs |
| Finance | 预算 | yùsuàn | budget | 年度/项目预算 |
| Finance | 发票 | fāpiào | invoice (China context) | 开票/报销常用 |
| Finance | 报销 | bàoxiāo | reimbursement | 费用报销流程 |
| HR | 绩效 | jìxiào | performance | 绩效目标/评估 |
| HR | 一对一 | yī duì yī | 1:1 meeting | 定期沟通 |
| HR | 反馈建议 | fǎnkuì jiànyì | feedback & suggestions | 更温和的表达方式 |
| Support | 问题已解决 | wèntí yǐ jiějué | issue resolved | closing tickets |
| Support | 我们先提供一个临时方案。 | Wǒmen xiān tígōng yí ge línshí fāng’àn. | We’ll provide a temporary workaround. | workaround |
| Core | 方案 | fāng’àn | plan / solution | “我给一个方案” |
| Core | 需求 | xūqiú | requirement / demand | 产品/客户需求 |
| Core | 范围 | fànwéi | scope | 范围扩大/缩小 |
| Core | 影响 | yǐngxiǎng | impact | 影响排期/成本 |
| Core | 成本 | chéngběn | cost | 人力/时间/预算成本 |
| Core | 收益 | shōuyì | benefit / return | 收益评估 |
Common Business Chinese Phrases (Quick Copy-Paste)
- 我们先对齐一下目标。 (Wǒmen xiān duìqí yíxià mùbiāo.) — Let’s align on the goal first.
- 我这边先整理一下，会后发你。 (Wǒ zhèbiān xiān zhěnglǐ yíxià, huìhòu fā nǐ.) — I’ll summarize and send after the meeting.
- 这个点我需要再确认一下。 (Zhège diǎn wǒ xūyào zài quèrèn yíxià.) — I need to confirm this point.
- 我们先把优先级排一下。 (Wǒmen xiān bǎ yōuxiānjí pái yíxià.) — Let’s prioritize first.
- 如果有风险，我们提前同步。 (Rúguǒ yǒu fēngxiǎn, wǒmen tíqián tóngbù.) — If there’s risk, let’s sync early.
About GoEast Mandarin: Established in 2012, GoEast Mandarin has taught over 20,000 international students. Our courses combine structured learning with real conversation practice, designed for confident communication in real-world situations.
Transparency Note: This educational content is created by GoEast Mandarin’s teaching team. Some content may link to our learning resources, clearly identified as such.
