How to say “Please write it down” in Chinese
“Please write it down” in Chinese is 请写下来。, written in pinyin as Qǐng xiě xiàlái.
请写下来。
Qǐng xiě xiàlái.
Please write it down.
Word by word
What each part of 请写下来。 actually means.
- 请qǐngplease
- 写xiěto write
- 下来xiàláidown / on paper
When you use it
- Say it the moment a conversation stops being about words you know — a pharmacy counter, a ticket window, a repair shop — and you need the answer in characters you can carry away.
- 写下来 puts the writing down on paper or on a screen, and that is the point: written characters become something to copy, photograph or type into a dictionary, instead of something you have to catch by ear.
Use 请写下来。 in everyday situations. Greetings, thanks and the small words you use all day.
Other ways people say it
The same idea, said differently. Roughly in the order you'll hear them.
请写在纸上。
Qǐng xiě zài zhǐ shang
Please write it on paper.
请写汉字。
Qǐng xiě Hànzì
Please write it in characters.
Asking for 汉字 rather than 拼音 is the difference between something you can read and something you can only sound out.
可以用手机打出来吗？
Kěyǐ yòng shǒujī dǎ chūlái ma?
Could you type it on your phone?
Typed characters are easier to copy than handwriting — most people reach for the phone anyway.
What usually trips people up
- 写下来 is one action with a result: 下 marks the thing as now written down, so it is not 请写字, which sounds like a schoolroom instruction to practise characters.
- Handwritten 汉字 from a stranger can be hard to read, while a typed line can be copied character by character — 打出来 (type it out) often gets you a clearer answer than 写下来 does.
- Characters you cannot read are still useful: photograph the screen or the slip and look them up later, because 这是什么意思 restarts the whole conversation in words you did not follow the first time.
What you might hear back
- 好的，我写给您。Hǎo de, wǒ xiě gěi nínOkay, I'll write it for you.
- 我不会写英文。Wǒ bú huì xiě YīngwénI can't write English.
- 您拍下来吧。Nín pāi xiàlái baTake a photo of it.
Common questions
- How do you say "Please write it down" in Chinese?
- "Please write it down" in Chinese is 请写下来。 — written in pinyin as Qǐng xiě xiàlái. It is an everyday phrase you would use in China.
- What does 请写下来。 mean in Chinese?
- 请写下来。 (Qǐng xiě xiàlái) means "Please write it down". Broken down word by word: 请 (qǐng) means "please"; 写 (xiě) means "to write"; 下来 (xiàlái) means "down / on paper".
- When would you use "Please write it down" in Chinese?
- Say it the moment a conversation stops being about words you know — a pharmacy counter, a ticket window, a repair shop — and you need the answer in characters you can carry away. 写下来 puts the writing down on paper or on a screen, and that is the point: written characters become something to copy, photograph or type into a dictionary, instead of something you have to catch by ear.
Where you'll use it
请写下来。 comes up in these situations, in this order.
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