Finding the Correct Platform After a Change | Learn Chinese in English

Sentence explanations

1. 你刚才听到广播了吗？

   Did you hear the announcement just now?

   你

   you

   刚才

   just now

   听到

   hear; hear successfully

   广播

   announcement; broadcast

   了

   completed event

   吗

   yes/no question

   More detail

   你 means “you.” In standard Mandarin, it is the second-person singular pronoun; 你们 is the usual plural form. 你 does not change for gender. Example: 你好吗？—“How are you?” 刚才 means “just now” and places the event shortly before the speaking moment. It is a time expression, not a verb-tense marker. Example: 我刚才看见他。—“I saw him just now.” 听到 combines 听 with 到 as a result complement. Here it means “hear successfully” or “come to hear,” rather than merely directing attention to a sound. The reusable pattern is 听到 + a sound, message, or other hearable information. Example: 我听到一个声音。—“I heard a sound.” 听 alone can describe listening or hearing without highlighting the result. 广播 means “broadcast” or “announcement.” Here it is the noun representing what was heard. Example: 广播开始了。—“The broadcast has started.” 了 follows 听到广播 and presents the hearing event as completed. It does not by itself equal an English past-tense ending; 刚才 also places the event shortly before now. Here, 听到广播了 means that the listener did hear the announcement. 吗 turns the preceding statement into a yes/no question. The reusable pattern is [statement] + 吗？: 听到广播了吗？—“Did you hear the announcement?” Together, 你 + 刚才 + 听到 + 广播 + 了 + 吗？ means “Did you hear the announcement just now?” 你 is the subject, 刚才 locates the event shortly before now, 听到广播 describes hearing the announcement, 了 presents that event as completed, and 吗 asks for a yes-or-no answer.

2. 这趟火车要从另一个站台出发。

   The train is leaving from a different platform.

   这趟

   this train service

   火车

   train

   要

   be going to; will

   从

   from

   另一个

   another; a different one

   站台

   platform

   出发

   depart; leave

   More detail

   这趟 identifies a particular train service or journey: 这 means “this,” and 趟 is a measure word for trips or transport services. It is not simply a general word for “train.” A reusable pattern is 这趟 + transport noun, for example, 这趟航班很准时。 — “This flight is very punctual.” 火车 means “train.” In Chinese, it can be used with a measure word such as 趟 when referring to a particular service or journey. The phrase 这趟火车 therefore refers to this particular train service, rather than trains in general. 要 expresses an upcoming or expected event here: the train is going to depart. With a subject followed by an action, 要 + verb can indicate that the action is imminent, planned, or expected. Its exact force comes from the context; here it does not mean that the train wants something. Example: 电影要开始了。 — “The film is about to start.” 从 marks the starting point of movement: “from.” A reusable pattern is 从 + place + verb of movement, as in 从这里出发 — “depart from here.” 另一个 means “another” or “a different one.” 另 contributes the meaning “other,” and 一个 is a numeral-classifier form that helps make a noun phrase meaning “another one.” In this sentence, it does not by itself assert a separate numerical count; the phrase contrasts this platform with a different platform understood from the situation. Example: 请换另一个座位。 — “Please change to another seat.” 站台 means “platform,” the place where passengers board a train. It is a noun and can be modified by words such as 另一个: 另一个站台 means “a different platform.” 出发 means “to depart” or “to set off.” It describes the beginning of a journey and is commonly used for people, vehicles, or services. It differs from 到达, “arrive,” which describes reaching the destination. Example: 我们八点出发。 — “We leave at eight.” Together, 这趟火车 is “this train service,” 要 marks its upcoming departure, 从另一个站台 gives the departure point, and 出发 is the departure action. The full utterance means: “The train is leaving from a different platform.”

3. 显示屏上说我们应该改去另一个站台。

   The board says we should use the other platform instead.

   显示屏

   display screen

   说

   say

   我们

   we

   应该

   should

   改去

   switch to; go instead

   另一个

   the other; another

   站台

   platform

   More detail

   显示屏 means “display screen” here—the screen at the station that presents the instruction. It is a noun: 显示 means “display,” and 屏 means “screen.” Example: 显示屏坏了。 — “The display screen is broken.” 说 literally means “say,” and it can describe written information as well as spoken words. In 显示屏上说…, the screen is presented as the source of the message. Example: 通知上说今天停电。 — “The notice says there will be a power outage today.” 我们 means “we” or “us,” depending on its role in the sentence. Chinese does not mark this pronoun for gender or grammatical case, and the form does not show whether the listener is included; that depends on context. Here it is the group that should change platforms. 应该 expresses what is advisable or expected: “should” or “ought to.” It normally comes before the action it modifies. Example: 我们应该早点走。 — “We should leave earlier.” This is a recommendation or expectation, not an assertion that the action has already happened. 改去 combines 改, “change or switch,” with 去, “go.” Together here they mean changing the intended destination or plan and going to another place instead. 改 can also be used with other actions, as in 改坐公交车 — “switch to taking the bus.” The verb 去 contributes the movement toward the destination; it is not part of the short gloss for 改 alone. 另一个 means “another” or “the other one.” 另 marks a different choice, while 一个 is the numeral-classifier phrase “one.” In this sentence, the phrase identifies a different platform from the one originally intended; the context does not require interpreting it as a numerical count. Example: 请给我另一个。 — “Please give me another one.” 站台 means “platform,” especially a railway platform. It is a noun and is the destination selected by 改去. Example: 火车在三号站台。 — “The train is at platform three.” The sentence is assembled as 显示屏上 (“on the display screen”) + 说 (“says”) + 我们应该 (“we should”) + 改去另一个站台 (“switch and go to the other platform”). Thus the display’s message is that the group should use a different platform instead of the one previously intended. The wording is a clear, ordinary way to report an instruction shown on a station display.

4. 那我们现在应该跟着指示牌走。

   Then we should follow the signs now.

   那

   then; so

   我们

   we; us

   现在

   now

   应该

   should; ought to

   跟着

   follow

   指示牌

   signs; direction signs

   走

   go; walk

   More detail

   那 introduces a conclusion or next step from the situation just mentioned: “then” or “in that case.” Here it links the changed platform information to the proposed action. Example: 那我们走吧。 — “Then let’s go.” 我们 means “we/us,” referring to the speaker together with at least one other person. It is not the same as 我 (“I”); Chinese does not mark this pronoun for gender. 现在 means “now,” locating the action at the present time. It can appear before the modal or verb phrase, as here. Example: 我们现在出发。 — “We’re setting off now.” 应该 expresses what is advisable, expected, or the right thing to do: “should/ought to.” It normally comes before the action it modifies, giving the pattern 应该 + verb phrase. Example: 你应该休息。 — “You should rest.” 跟着 means “follow” in the sense of moving along with or following a person, route, or guide. The pattern 跟着 + object + verb is useful when the object indicates what is being followed. Example: 请跟着我走。 — “Please follow me.” 指示牌 is a noun for a sign or signboard that gives directions or instructions. The compound combines 指示 (“indication/instruction”) with 牌 (“sign/board”), but the whole compound is the natural word for this kind of directional sign. Example: 出口在指示牌的右边。 — “The exit is to the right of the sign.” 走 basically means “go” or “walk.” In this sentence it means to proceed or go along the route, rather than specifically emphasizing the physical act of walking. Example: 我们从这里走。 — “We’ll go from here.” Together, 那 sets up the consequence, 我们 supplies the subject, 现在 places the action at the present time, and 应该 marks it as the advisable action. 跟着指示牌走 means “follow the signs and proceed,” so the whole utterance is: “Then we should follow the signs now.”

5. 我们有足够的时间到那里吗？

   Do we have enough time to get there?

   我们

   we; us

   有

   have

   足够

   enough

   时间

   time

   到

   go to; reach

   那里

   there

   吗

   yes/no question marker

   More detail

   我们 means “we” or “us” here: the speaker includes themself and at least one other person. This pronoun does not mark gender or grammatical case. Example: 我们现在走。— “We’re leaving now.” 有 means “have” in this sentence. It can also express existence, as in 有问题 (“there is a problem”), so its exact English translation depends on the construction. Here, 我们有... presents something as available to the group. 足够 means “enough” or “sufficient.” It comes before the noun it describes: 足够的时间 means “enough time.” The 的 is commonly used when an adjective-like modifier such as 足够 directly modifies a noun, though some fixed combinations can omit it. Example: 这些钱足够。— “This money is enough.” 时间 means “time.” It is a noun and can be used in quantity or sufficiency expressions, such as 足够的时间 (“enough time”) and 没有时间 (“not have time”). 到 means “reach” or “get to” when it introduces a destination. In 到那里, it links the action of reaching with the place “there.” It is different from 来 (“come”) and 去 (“go”): 到 focuses on reaching a destination, while 来 and 去 primarily express movement toward or away from a reference point. Example: 我们到车站了。— “We’ve reached the station.” 那里 means “there,” referring to a place identified by the situation. Its exact place is not named in the fixed sentence; the surrounding context supports understanding it as the destination being discussed. Example: 你可以坐在那里。— “You can sit there.” 吗 is placed at the end of a statement to turn it into a neutral yes/no question. Without 吗, 我们有足够的时间到那里。would be a statement: “We have enough time to get there.” 吗 does not itself add a question word such as “where” or “when.” Together, 我们有足够的时间到那里吗？has the structure “we + have + enough + time + reach there + yes/no question marker.” The sentence asks whether the group has sufficient time to reach the relevant destination: “Do we have enough time to get there?”

6. 如果现在走，就来得及。

   We do if we leave now.

   如果 … 就

   if … then …

   现在

   now

   走

   leave; go

   来得及

   have enough time; be in time

   More detail

   如果……就…… introduces a condition and its result: “if …, then …”. In this sentence, 如果 begins the condition and 就 marks what follows as the result. Chinese often leaves the subject unspoken when context makes it clear; here the intended subject is “we,” as reflected in the fixed translation. 现在 means “now” and sets the time of the action. It can be placed before a verb phrase: 现在出发 means “leave now.” 走 is the verb “to leave” or “to go.” Here it means leaving now, in the context of getting to the destination. A reusable contrast is 来 “come” versus 走 “go/leave,” with the choice depending on the direction or viewpoint. 来得及 is a fixed expression meaning that there is still enough time to do something or arrive in time. Its opposite is 来不及, “not have enough time” or “be too late.” For example, 现在出发还来得及。 means “Leaving now is still in time.” The expression itself does not state a numeric amount of time; it evaluates whether the available time is sufficient. Together, 如果现在走 means “if we leave now,” and 就来得及 means “then we will make it in time.” The complete utterance therefore means: “If we leave now, we’ll make it in time.”

7. 我会把车票准备好。

   I'll keep my ticket ready.

   我会

   I will

   车票

   ticket

   准备好

   get ready

   More detail

   我会 contains 我 “I” and 会, which here expresses a future commitment: “will.” 会 does not change for person or number. In other contexts, 会 can express a learned ability or a likely event, so the surrounding verb and context determine the reading. Example: 我会游泳。 — “I can swim.” 车票 means “ticket,” specifically the ticket relevant to travel here. The word 票 can also mean a ticket more generally, while 车票 specifies a travel ticket. Example: 请出示车票。 — “Please show your ticket.” 准备好 means “get ready” or “prepare successfully.” 准备 is the verb “prepare”; 好 follows it as a result complement, showing that the preparation reaches a ready, satisfactory state. This is different from simply 准备, which only states “prepare” without emphasizing the resulting state. Example: 我已经准备好行李了。 — “I have got the luggage ready.” The full pattern is 我会把 + object + verb + 好. In 把车票准备好, 把 places 车票 before the verb as the item being handled, and 准备好 says that the handling results in the ticket being ready. Thus 我会把车票准备好。 means “I’ll keep my ticket ready.” The sentence expresses the speaker’s future commitment, without adding a specific time or a claim about how many tickets there are.

8. 把票放在手边，工作人员可能会在我们上车前检查车票。

   Keep it handy; staff may check it before we board.

   票

   ticket

   放在手边

   keep within reach

   工作人员

   staff member

   可能会

   may

   我们

   we; us

   上车前

   before boarding

   检查

   check; inspect

   车票

   ticket

   More detail

   票 means “ticket” here. It is a general noun; 车票 later makes the vehicle-ticket meaning more explicit. Chinese nouns do not normally change form for singular versus plural. 放在手边 means “keep/put within reach.” 放 is the verb “put” or “place,” and 在手边 describes the resulting location, literally “at hand.” A reusable pattern is 把 + object + 放在 + place: 把书放在桌上 means “put the book on the table.” Together, 把票放在手边 uses the 把 construction to foreground the ticket as the object being dealt with, then states where it should be kept. 把 itself is not a separate selected phrase, but it is important for understanding this pattern. 工作人员 means “staff member” or “staff.” It is a compound noun referring to people whose work is to provide service or carry out duties. The form does not itself mark whether there is one staff member or more than one. 可能会 expresses possibility: “may” or “might.” 可能 marks that the event is possible, while 会 presents the event as something that can occur in the expected future situation. It does not assert that the check will definitely happen. 我们 is the first-person plural pronoun “we” or “us.” In this sentence it is the subject of the following action, so the intended reading is “we board,” not a separately identified group beyond the supplied context. 上车前 means “before boarding.” 上车 is the verb phrase “get on/board a vehicle,” and 前 placed after a time event or phrase means “before.” For example, 出发前检查行李 means “check the luggage before departing.” 检查 means “check” or “inspect.” It is a verb and can be followed directly by the thing being checked, as in 检查证件 (“check the identification”). 车票 means “vehicle ticket,” commonly “ticket” for a bus, train, or similar journey. Here it is the object of 检查, so 检查车票 means “check the ticket.” Unlike the earlier 票, 车票 specifies the ticket’s travel-related type. The whole utterance is assembled as 把票放在手边 (“keep the ticket within reach”), followed by 工作人员可能会在我们上车前检查车票 (“staff may check the ticket before we board”). The sentence therefore tells the listener to keep the ticket accessible and says that a ticket check may occur before boarding, without asserting that it certainly will occur.