Connecting nouns with "shi"

The verb to be is not used in Chinese the same way as it is in English. In Chinese, 是 is for connecting nouns, and is generally not used with adjectives.

Structure

The structure for connecting nouns with 是 is:

Noun 1 + 是 + Noun 2

This is equivalent to "Noun 1 is Noun 2" in English.

Chinese does not conjugate verbs. That is, the form of the verb is the same no matter who is doing it. In this case, it is always 是 and never changes. As you can see, it's easy to form simple sentences expressing to be in Chinese.

Examples

Simple 是 sentences

Noun 1	是	Noun 2		Translation
我	是	学生	。	I am a student.
她	是	医生	。	She is a doctor.
他	是	老师	。	He is a teacher.
这	是	书	。	This is a book.
那	是	杯子	。	That is a cup.

See also

• Word order
• Simple "noun + adjective" sentences

Sources and further reading

Books

• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 29)　→buy
• Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition (pp. 47-8) →buy
• New Practical Chinese Reader 1 (新实用汉语课本1) (pp. 44) →buy
• New Practical Chinese Reader 1 (新实用汉语课本1)(2nd ed) (pp. 50-1) →buy