Translate between English and Chinese by typing, speaking or pointing your camera, with or without internet.
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English
zhHello.
你好。
Camera Translate
Point at text to translate it
Voice Translate
Speak to translate
Mandarin Chinese has more native speakers than any other language, so an English to Chinese translator comes up in business trips to Shanghai, holidays in Taipei and chats with family on WeChat. Mainland China and Singapore write Simplified characters, while Taiwan and Hong Kong write Traditional ones, and TapTranslate translates into both.
Mandarin is tonal: mā, má, mǎ and mà are four different words, so the tone marks in pinyin matter when you read a phrase aloud. Written Chinese also has no spaces between words and no verb endings for tense or plural.
Mandarin, the standard form of Chinese, has more than 900 million native speakers in mainland China, Taiwan and Singapore.
Written in Chinese characters, Simplified in mainland China and Singapore and Traditional in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, usually left to right in modern text.
Type or paste English and read it in Chinese, or the other way around. Works online, and offline with a downloaded pack.
Speak in turns and hear each translation read aloud, when your iPhone supports Chinese speech.
Point at printed Chinese on a menu, a sign or a label and read it in English, drawn over the original.
Type in English in any app and send it in Chinese with one tap.
Scan a letter or open a PDF and read every page translated, with the layout kept.
Everyday phrases and how to say them. TapTranslate translates anything else you need.
| English | Chinese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Hello. | 你好。Nǐ hǎo.Say 您好 (nín hǎo) to older people or to show extra respect. | Nǐ hǎo. |
| Do you speak English? | 你会说英语吗？Nǐ huì shuō Yīngyǔ ma? | Nǐ huì shuō Yīngyǔ ma? |
| Where is the bathroom? | 洗手间在哪里？Xǐshǒujiān zài nǎlǐ? | Xǐshǒujiān zài nǎlǐ? |
| How much is this? | 这个多少钱？Zhège duōshao qián? | Zhège duōshao qián? |
| Can I pay with WeChat Pay? | 可以用微信支付吗？Kěyǐ yòng Wēixìn Zhīfù ma? | Kěyǐ yòng Wēixìn Zhīfù ma? |
| Not spicy, please. | 不要辣，谢谢。Bú yào là, xièxie. | Bú yào là, xièxie. |
| Could we have the check, please? | 麻烦买单。Máfan mǎidān.麻烦 (máfan) softens the request, like "sorry to trouble you". | Máfan mǎidān. |
| I don't understand. | 我听不懂。Wǒ tīng bu dǒng.For something written, say 我看不懂 (wǒ kàn bu dǒng). | Wǒ tīng bu dǒng. |
| I'm allergic to peanuts. | 我对花生过敏。Wǒ duì huāshēng guòmǐn. | Wǒ duì huāshēng guòmǐn. |
| Thank you very much. | 非常感谢。Fēicháng gǎnxiè. | Fēicháng gǎnxiè. |
Readers in mainland China and Singapore expect Simplified characters; readers in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau expect Traditional. Many characters look different between the two (门 and 門 for door), so pick the script your reader uses.
The wrong tone can turn one word into another: mǎi (买) is to buy and mài (卖) is to sell. If you are unsure of your pronunciation, show the screen instead of reading it aloud.
Chinese verbs do not change for past or future, so a short sentence can read either way. Add a time word in English, such as yesterday or next week, when the timing matters.
Answers specific to this language pair.
Yes. Choose Simplified Chinese for readers in mainland China and Singapore, or Traditional Chinese for Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. With Pro, both work offline once you download the pack; offline packs need iOS 27 and an iPhone with at least 4 GB of memory.
Yes. Camera Translate reads printed Chinese in Simplified and Traditional characters and draws the English translation over the text, so menus, street signs and packaging make sense at a glance.
Yes. The TapTranslate keyboard works in any app, WeChat included. Type in English and it replaces your text with the Chinese translation, or copy a Chinese message to translate it into English. Translate-as-you-type is part of Pro.
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