Chinese phrases
How to say good job in Chinese
Good job in Chinese is 真棒 (zhēn bàng), “really great.” To praise a piece of work, say 做得好 (zuò de hǎo), “well done.”
真棒
great!; good job
Ways to say good job
真棒
Everydaygreat!
Praise for a person or a result. Parents and teachers say 你真棒 to children all the time, and friends say it too.
做得好
Everydaywell done
Praise for a task: homework, a report, a meal someone cooked.
干得漂亮
With friendsnicely done
Casual and a bit excited: a great move in a game, a hard problem solved. The plain form is 干得好.
厉害
With friendsimpressive
Said with admiration, often as 你好厉害. Also for a skill: 你中文好厉害, “your Chinese is amazing.”
不错
Everydaypretty good
Calm praise, warmer than the English “not bad.” From a teacher, 不错 is a real compliment.
太强了
With friendsyou’re amazing
Young and casual, in speech and in chats, for a skill or a big win. 太牛了 means the same and sounds a bit rougher.
How to answer praise
谢谢
thank you
A fine answer today, with anyone.
哪里哪里
not at all
Modest and a little old-fashioned. You hear it more from older people.
还差得远呢
I still have a long way to go
The usual modest answer when someone praises your Chinese.
过奖了
you flatter me
Polite and formal, to a boss, a client or an older person.
Common mistakes
Saying 好工作 for “good job”
好工作 means a good job as in employment: 他找到了一个好工作, “he found a good job.” For praise, say 做得好 or 真棒.
Hearing 不错 as lukewarm
“Not bad” in English can sound cool. 不错 is real praise, and 很不错 is even warmer.
Grading your boss
做得好 and 不错 judge someone’s work, so they sound odd when you praise a boss or a teacher. Say what you got from it instead: 学到了, “I learned something from that.”
Making dumplings
你看，我自己包的饺子！
Leon: Look, I made these dumplings myself!
哇，真棒！第一次包吗？
Qiqi: Wow, great job! Is it your first time?
对，第一次。
Leon: Yes, the first time.
厉害，比我包得还好！
Qiqi: Impressive. They’re better than mine!
