How to say “I am from America” in Chinese

shì měiguó rén
I am from America

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Pinyin colour key: tone 1 (high flat), tone 2 (rising), tone 3 (dipping), tone 4 (falling), neutral.

Word by word

I
shì
am
měiguó
America (lit. beautiful country)
rén
person

Tone tip

美 dips, then 国 and 人 both rise, so the phrase ends on two rising tones. The pattern is 我是 + country + 人; 我来自美国 (wǒ láizì měiguó) is the other common way, 'I come from America'.

In a sentence

Wǒ shì měiguó rén, wǒ zhù zài niǔyuē.

I'm American, I live in New York.

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Frequently asked questions

How do you say "I am from America" in Chinese?+

"I am from America" in Mandarin Chinese is 我是美国人, pronounced wǒ shì měiguó rén. 美 dips, then 国 and 人 both rise, so the phrase ends on two rising tones. The pattern is 我是 + country + 人; 我来自美国 (wǒ láizì měiguó) is the other common way, 'I come from America'.

What does 我是美国人 mean literally?+

我是美国人 breaks down as 我 (wǒ) = I, 是 (shì) = am, 美国 (měiguó) = America (lit. beautiful country), 人 (rén) = person. Together it means "I am from America".

How do I get the tones right in wǒ shì měiguó rén?+

美 dips, then 国 and 人 both rise, so the phrase ends on two rising tones. The pattern is 我是 + country + 人; 我来自美国 (wǒ láizì měiguó) is the other common way, 'I come from America'.

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See all the phrases on the how to say things in Chinese index, or read how to learn Mandarin tones.