Reading Medicine Labels and Calling the Pharmacy | Learn Chinese in English

Sentence explanations

1. 我在药房拿了这个药。

   I picked up this medicine at the pharmacy.

   我

   I

   在

   at; in

   药房

   pharmacy

   拿了

   picked up

   这个

   this

   药

   medicine

   More detail

   我 means “I” here, the first-person singular subject. Mandarin pronouns do not change for grammatical gender, and 我 is used whether the speaker is male or female. Example: 我是学生。 — “I am a student.” 在 introduces the place where an action occurs: 在 + place. In this sentence it marks the pharmacy as the location of picking up the medicine. It is not the verb meaning “to be” here. Example: 我在家学习。 — “I study at home.” 药房 means “pharmacy.” 药 means “medicine” or “drug,” while 房 contributes the place-related part of this compound; 药房 is learned as the word for a pharmacy. Example: 药房在哪里？ — “Where is the pharmacy?” 拿了 expresses the completed action “picked up” in this context. 拿 is the base verb, meaning “to take,” “to get,” or “to hold” depending on context. The 了 after the verb marks the action as completed or viewed as a bounded event; it does not itself mean “past” in every sentence. Mandarin verbs do not change form for person or number. Example: 我拿了书。 — “I picked up the book.” 这个 means “this” and identifies a nearby or contextually selected item. 这 is the demonstrative “this,” and 个 is a common classifier used with many nouns. In 这个药, the demonstrative phrase specifies which medicine is meant; it does not by itself state how many medicines there are. Example: 这个杯子很大。 — “This cup is big.” 药 means “medicine” or “medication.” It is a noun here, referring to the item picked up. The same word can occur in compounds such as 药房 (“pharmacy”), but its role in 这个药 is the noun being identified. Together, 我 gives the actor, 在药房 gives the location, 拿了 gives the completed action, and 这个药 gives the item. In the source order, the sentence says: “I picked up this medicine at the pharmacy.”

2. 药剂师说明怎么用了吗？

   Did the pharmacist explain the instructions?

   药剂师

   pharmacist

   说明

   explain

   怎么用

   how to use it

   了吗

   did ...?

   More detail

   药剂师 means “pharmacist.” It is a noun naming the person who prepares or dispenses medicines and gives medicine-related guidance. For example, 药剂师回答了问题。 means “The pharmacist answered the question.” 说明 is the verb “to explain” here. Its base form does not change for person or number in Mandarin; time and completion are shown by context or particles. It can also be a noun meaning “explanation” in other contexts, but here it is the action performed by the pharmacist. 怎么用 asks “how to use it.” 怎么 means “how,” and 用 is the verb “use.” The object of 用 is understood from the medicine-related context rather than repeated in this phrase. A reusable pattern is 怎么 + verb, as in 这个字怎么读？ — “How do you read this character?” 了吗 combines 了, which marks the event as completed or newly achieved in this question, with sentence-final 吗, which makes a yes-or-no question. The combination asks whether the explaining has happened: “Did ...?” 了 is not a person- or number-based verb ending in Mandarin. Together, 药剂师 is the subject, 说明 is the explaining action, and 怎么用 specifies what was explained: how to use the medicine. The completed-event question 了吗 gives the whole utterance: “Did the pharmacist explain the instructions?”

3. 标签上写着要饭后服用。

   The label says to take it after meals.

   标签

   label

   写着

   says; is written

   要

   should; need to

   饭后

   after meals

   服用

   take (medicine)

   More detail

   标签 means “label.” It is a noun for a label or tag, especially the label attached to a product. Example: 看一下标签。 — “Take a look at the label.” 写着 means that something is written or states something. The form 写着 uses 着 to present the writing as an existing, relevant state: the label has words on it that say the following instruction. 写 by itself is the verb “write,” while 写着 focuses on the resulting written content. Example: 门上写着“请勿入内”。 — “The door says ‘Do not enter.’” 要 here introduces an instruction or requirement: “should” or “need to.” In the pattern 要 + verb, it comes before the action that is required. This use is different from 要 meaning “want” in a sentence such as 我要水。 — “I want water.” 饭后 means “after a meal” or “after eating.” It is a time expression: 饭 is “meal/food,” and 后 means “after” when it follows a time reference. The contrasting pattern 饭前 means “before a meal.” Example: 请饭后休息。 — “Please rest after eating.” 服用 means “take” when the object is medicine or another medicinal product. It is more formal and specific than the general verb 吃, which can mean “eat.” Example: 请按说明服用此药。 — “Please take this medicine according to the instructions.” In 标签上, 上 marks the surface or location: “on the label.” The construction 标签上写着... therefore means “the label says...” or literally “on the label, it is written that...”. The content introduced by 要 is 饭后服用: taking the medicine after a meal is presented as the required action. Together, 标签上写着要饭后服用。 means “The label says to take it after meals.”

4. 那就不要在早餐前服用。

   Then do not take it before breakfast.

   那就

   then; in that case

   不要

   do not

   早餐

   breakfast

   前

   before; in front of

   服用

   take (medicine)

   More detail

   那就 links the sentence to the situation just mentioned: “then” or “in that case.” 那 points back to the relevant condition, while 就 marks the resulting action or conclusion. This is a reusable pattern: 那就 + action, meaning “then, …” or “in that case, …”. Example: 那就明天见。 — “Then see you tomorrow.” 不要 means “do not” when placed before a verb. It forms a negative command or instruction: 不要 + verb. Example: 不要开门。 — “Do not open the door.” Here it negates the following action, 服用, rather than the time phrase. 早餐 means “breakfast.” It is a noun and can be used in time expressions such as 早餐前 (“before breakfast”) and 早餐后 (“after breakfast”). Example: 我早餐后喝咖啡。 — “I drink coffee after breakfast.” 前 means “before” when it follows a time or event noun, as in 早餐前. It can also mean “in front of” in a spatial expression, but its meaning here is temporal. The contrasting time word is 后, “after”: 饭前 means “before a meal,” while 饭后 means “after a meal.” 服用 means “take” when referring to medicine or another substance taken as a dose. It is a formal, specific verb; unlike the broader 吃 (“eat”), it is commonly used in instructions about medication. Example: 请按说明服用。 — “Please take it according to the instructions.” Chinese verbs do not change form for person or time here, so 服用 remains the same form in this instruction. Together, 不要服用 gives the instruction “do not take it,” and 早餐前 specifies the time “before breakfast.” With 那就 connecting this instruction to the preceding situation, the whole utterance means: “Then do not take it before breakfast.”

5. 我不确定剂量是多少。

   I am not sure about the dose.

   不确定

   not be sure

   剂量

   dose

   是多少

   how much it is

   More detail

   不确定 means “not be certain” or “not be sure.” Here it describes the speaker’s state of uncertainty. The base form is 确定, “to be certain”; adding 不 negates it: 确定 / 不确定. Example: 我不确定。 — “I’m not sure.” 剂量 means “dose,” the amount of a medicine intended to be taken. It is a noun, so it names the thing whose amount is being asked about. Example: 请确认剂量。 — “Please confirm the dose.” 是多少 asks what an amount or number is. 多少 means “how much” or “how many,” and 是 links the unknown value to the noun being identified. In this sentence, the unknown value is the dose; the phrase does not itself state a quantity. Example: 费用是多少？ — “How much is the cost?” Together, 我 (“I”) + 不确定 (“am not sure”) expresses the speaker’s uncertainty, while 剂量是多少 identifies what is uncertain: “what the dose is.” The complete utterance therefore means “I am not sure about the dose.”

6. 如果标签不清楚，就给药房打电话。

   Call the pharmacy if the label is unclear.

   如果 … 就

   if … then …

   标签

   label

   不清楚

   unclear

   药房

   pharmacy

   打电话

   make a phone call

   More detail

   如果 … 就 … is a reusable conditional pattern: 如果 introduces the condition, and 就 introduces the result or recommended action. Here, the condition is “the label is unclear,” and the action is “call the pharmacy.” Chinese often omits the subject when it is understood from the situation. Example: 如果不舒服，就休息。— “If you feel unwell, rest.” 标签 means “label.” It is a noun for the identifying or informational text attached to a product. Example: 标签上写着日期。— “The date is written on the label.” 不清楚 means “unclear” here. 清楚 means “clear” or “understood”; adding 不 makes the state negative. In this sentence, the label’s information is not clear, rather than the speaker saying that they personally do not understand it. Example: 说明不清楚。— “The instructions are unclear.” 药房 means “pharmacy,” the place being contacted. It is a noun formed from 药 (“medicine”) and 房 (“room/place”) in this fixed word; treat 药房 as the reusable vocabulary item. Example: 我去药房。— “I am going to the pharmacy.” 打电话 is the common verb construction “make a phone call” or “call.” 打 has many uses, so here it does not mean physically hitting; together with 电话, it means making a telephone call. Example: 请给医生打电话。— “Please call the doctor.” The remaining connector 给 marks the recipient or destination of the call: 给药房打电话 means “call the pharmacy,” literally organizing the action as making a phone call to the pharmacy. Combining the parts, 如果标签不清楚 gives the condition “if the label is unclear,” and 就给药房打电话 gives the resulting recommendation “then call the pharmacy.” The whole utterance therefore means: “Call the pharmacy if the label is unclear.”

7. 这样比猜更安全。

   That is safer than guessing.

   这样

   this way; like this

   比

   than; compared with

   猜

   guess

   更安全

   safer

   More detail

   这样 means “this way” or “like this.” Here it points to the course of action under discussion, without naming it again. In Chinese, 这样 can describe a manner or way of doing something; it does not itself specify a person or object. Example: 这样做更快。— “Doing it this way is faster.” 比 introduces the thing used for comparison. The reusable pattern is A 比 B + adjective: “A is more [adjective] than B.” It is followed here by 猜, so the comparison is between 这样 and guessing. Example: 走路比开车慢。— “Walking is slower than driving.” 猜 is the verb “to guess.” In this sentence it is a bare verb used as the activity being compared: “guessing.” Chinese commonly uses a verb directly in this way when referring to an action. Example: 不要猜，先查一下。— “Don’t guess; check first.” 更安全 means “safer.” 安全 is the adjective “safe,” and 更 is placed before it to mark a higher degree: 更安全, “safer” or “more safe.” The comparison is expressed by 比, while 更 marks the comparative degree of 安全. Example: 这样做更安全。— “Doing it this way is safer.” Together, 这样 is the first side of the comparison, 比 marks the standard, 猜 supplies the compared activity, and 更安全 describes the result: “That is safer than guessing.”

8. 药剂师可以在你服药前告诉你正确的剂量。

   The pharmacist can tell you the correct dose before you take it.

   药剂师

   pharmacist

   可以

   can; be able to

   在 … 前

   before a clause

   你

   you

   服药

   take medicine

   告诉

   tell

   正确的

   correct

   剂量

   dose

   More detail

   药剂师 means “pharmacist,” the person who performs the main action. It is a noun. Example: 药剂师回答问题。— “The pharmacist answers the question.” 可以 expresses ability or possibility here: “can tell.” It is a modal placed before the verb phrase. The pattern 主语 + 可以 + 动词 is reusable. Example: 你可以问药剂师。— “You can ask the pharmacist.” 在...前 places one event before another. Here, 在你服药前 means “before you take the medicine.” The reusable pattern is 在 + clause + 前. Example: 在你出门前，检查钥匙。— “Before you leave, check the keys.” 你 means “you.” This form can refer to one person; the usual plural form is 你们. In this sentence, the first occurrence is the subject of 服药, while the second occurrence is the person receiving the information from 告诉. 服药 means “take medicine.” It is a compound verb used for taking medicine. Example: 请按时服药。— “Please take the medicine on time.” 告诉 means “tell” or “inform.” It commonly introduces the person being told, followed by the information: 告诉 + person + information. Example: 请告诉我答案。— “Please tell me the answer.” 正确的 means “correct.” 正确 is the adjective, and 的 marks it as modifying the following noun: 正确的 + noun. Here it describes 剂量. 剂量 means “dose,” the amount of medicine to take. It is a noun. Example: 请确认剂量。— “Please confirm the dose.” Together, 药剂师可以 gives “the pharmacist can,” 在你服药前 gives “before you take the medicine,” and 告诉你正确的剂量 gives “tell you the correct dose.” The whole utterance means: “The pharmacist can tell you the correct dose before you take it.”