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🏠 家务 (jiā wù) - Household Chores & Daily Responsibilities

Learn essential vocabulary for household chores and daily responsibilities. Practice expressing what you do at home using HSK1-HSK2 level vocabulary.

Chinese lesson from Monday, June 23, 2025

🧹 Basic Household Tasks

Learn fundamental household chores using simple verb patterns and familiar vocabulary we've studied before.

Perfect for beginners and essential concepts

📚 Key Phrase: 我做家务 (wǒ zuò jiā wù)

📖

Grammar Focus

🏠 家务 (jiā wù) - Household Chores

Today we learn about daily responsibilities at home! These are essential life skills and vocabulary that you'll use constantly. We'll practice using verbs you already know with new household vocabulary.
Basic Pattern: 我 + Verb + Object
• 我洗碗 (wǒ xǐ wán) - I wash dishes
• 我做饭 (wǒ zuò fàn) - I cook
• 我打扫 (wǒ dǎ sǎo) - I clean
🧹 Essential Household Verbs:
• 洗 (xǐ) - wash
• 做 (zuò) - do/make
• 打扫 (dǎ sǎo) - clean/sweep
• 买 (mǎi) - buy
• 帮 (bāng) - help

These verbs combine with household objects to create complete actions!
Washing Pattern: 洗 + Object
• 洗衣服 (xǐ yī fu) - wash clothes
• 洗碗 (xǐ wán) - wash dishes
• 洗手 (xǐ shǒu) - wash hands
我每天洗碗
wǒ měi tiān xǐ wán
I wash dishes every day
⏰ Adding Time Expressions:
Use time words you already know with household chores:
• 每天 (měi tiān) - every day
• 星期天 (xīng qī tiān) - Sunday
• 今天 (jīn tiān) - today
• 明天 (míng tiān) - tomorrow
我做家务
wǒ zuò jiā wù
I do household chores
Hago las tareas del hogar

词汇 Vocabulary Practice

Practice writing the phrases from today's Chinese lesson!

我做家务
wǒ zuò jiā wù
English:
I do household chores
Español:
Hago las tareas del hogar
洗衣服
xǐ yī fu
English:
Wash clothes
Español:
Lavar la ropa
我每天洗碗
wǒ měi tiān xǐ wán
English:
I wash dishes every day
Español:
Lavo los platos todos los días
打扫房间
dǎ sǎo fáng jiān
English:
Clean the room
Español:
Limpiar la habitación
做饭很好吃
zuò fàn hěn hǎo chī
English:
Cooking tastes very good
Español:
Cocinar sabe muy rico
我会帮妈妈
wǒ huì bāng mā ma
English:
I will help mom
Español:
Ayudaré a mamá
买菜去市场
mǎi cài qù shì chǎng
English:
Buy vegetables, go to market
Español:
Comprar verduras, ir al mercado
家里很干净
jiā lǐ hěn gān jìng
English:
Home is very clean
Español:
La casa está muy limpia
我不喜欢洗衣服
wǒ bù xǐ huan xǐ yī fu
English:
I don't like washing clothes
Español:
No me gusta lavar la ropa
爸爸做饭，妈妈洗碗
bà ba zuò fàn, mā ma xǐ wán
English:
Dad cooks, mom washes dishes
Español:
Papá cocina, mamá lava los platos
星期天我们打扫家
xīng qī tiān wǒ men dǎ sǎo jiā
English:
On Sunday we clean the house
Español:
El domingo limpiamos la casa
这个工作很累
zhè ge gōng zuò hěn lèi
English:
This work is very tiring
Español:
Este trabajo es muy cansado
我想休息一下
wǒ xiǎng xiū xi yī xià
English:
I want to rest a bit
Español:
Quiero descansar un poco
家务是大家的工作
jiā wù shì dà jiā de gōng zuò
English:
Household chores are everyone's work
Español:
Las tareas del hogar son trabajo de todos

文化 Cultural Insights

🏮 Household Culture in Chinese Families

🔥 Traditional Roles

In traditional Chinese households, family members often have specific roles. However, modern Chinese families are embracing more shared responsibilities, with everyone contributing to household chores.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family Harmony

The concept of 和谐 (hé xié - harmony) is very important. When everyone helps with chores, it creates a peaceful and happy home environment.

🍚 Food Preparation

Chinese families often spend significant time on food preparation. Fresh ingredients are preferred, so daily trips to the market (去市场 qù shì chǎng) are common.

🧧 Teaching Values

Children are taught early that contributing to household chores builds character and shows respect for the family. The phrase 勤劳 (qín láo - hardworking) is a highly valued trait.

💡 Modern Changes

In modern China, especially in cities, many families share household duties equally, and it's becoming more common for fathers to cook and participate in all aspects of housework.

🕒 Advanced Household Management

Explore time expressions with chores, family responsibilities, and expressing when we do different household tasks.

For students ready to dive deeper

📖 Reading Practice

📖 小明的一天 - Xiao Ming's Day of Chores

Jīn tiān shì xīng qī tiān, xiǎo Míng zài jiā zuò jiā wù.
今天是星期天，小明在家做家务。
Zǎo shàng bā diǎn, tā qǐ chuáng jiù kāi shǐ dǎ sǎo fáng jiān.
早上八点，他起床就开始打扫房间。
Xiǎo Míng shuō: "Wǒ xiǎng bāng mā ma zuò jiā wù."
小明说："我想帮妈妈做家务。"
Shǒu xiān, tā xǐ le suǒ yǒu de wǎn hé kuài zi.
首先，他洗了所有的碗和筷子。
Rán hòu, tā qù xǐ yī fu. Zhè shì tā bù xǐ huan de gōng zuò.
然后，他去洗衣服。这是他不喜欢的工作。
Dàn shì tā zhī dào, jiā wù shì dà jiā de gōng zuò.
但是他知道，家务是大家的工作。
Shí diǎn de shí hòu, mā ma huí jiā le.
十点的时候，妈妈回家了。
Mā ma shuō: "Xiǎo Míng, nǐ zhēn shì gè hǎo hái zi!"
妈妈说："小明，你真是个好孩子！"
Tā men yī qǐ qù shì chǎng mǎi cài.
他们一起去市场买菜。
Xià wǔ, bà ba huí jiā zuò fàn, mā ma xǐ wǎn.
下午，爸爸回家做饭，妈妈洗碗。
Xiǎo Míng jué de hěn lèi, dàn shì hěn gāo xìng.
小明觉得很累，但是很高兴。
Tā shuō: "Jiā lǐ xiàn zài hěn gān jìng, wǒ xiǎng xiū xi yī xià."
他说："家里现在很干净，我想休息一下。"

📝 Vocabulary from this reading:

首先
shǒu xiān
first, firstly
然后
rán hòu
then, after that
筷子
kuài zi
chopsticks
但是
dàn shì
but, however
知道
zhī dào
to know
真是
zhēn shì
really is
现在
xiàn zài
now

作业 Homework & Practice

🏠 Household Chores Practice

📝 Writing Practice:
1. Write 5 sentences about what household chores you do using: 我 + [time] + [verb] + [object]
2. Create a family chore chart: 爸爸做..., 妈妈做..., 我做...
3. Write 3 sentences about chores you like and don't like using 喜欢/不喜欢

🗣️ Speaking Practice:
4. Practice saying what you'll do tomorrow: 明天我会... (at least 4 household tasks)
5. Ask family members: 你会帮我吗？(Will you help me?)

🎯 Real Life Application:
6. Help with one household chore this week and describe it in Chinese
7. Learn the Chinese names for 3 household items in your home

💡 Bonus Challenge:
Create a weekly schedule in Chinese: 星期一我洗衣服，星期二我...

🌟 Cultural Reflection:
Think about: How do household responsibilities compare between your culture and Chinese culture?

Practice Checklist:

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