Does “Yes” Really Mean Yes in China?

Recently updated on July 17th, 2016 at 11:53 am

In China, we have indirect ways to express our emotions. Some words that are considered to cause embarrassments are avoided, for instance, the word “No”. We seldom say “No”, instead, most people would say “Yes”, “Maybe” “Might” “I’ll try my best”.

Some circumstances below would help you understand whether “Yes” really means yes in China.

1.In the clothes wholesale market in Guangzhou.
Customer: Do you have this dress in stock?
Seller: Yes, we have all the colors and sizes in stock.

After you place the order, then they tell you some colors and sizes are out of stock and ask you to change.

Here “Yes” means “Maybe”. They say yes so as to get the orders first.

A wise way is pay after they prepare the goods or only pay a small amount of money in advance.

2.You are interested in the products of one factory, however, you only want to get some samples for test at first. They are disappointed to know that you only want samples.
Customer: Can I get two samples for test first?
Supplier: Yes…, it should… be ok. I’ll arrange it as soon as possible.

Then you wait and wait, there is no answer from them. You contact them and they give you the same answer “We’ll try our best to arrange them as soon as possible”. Sometimes you might never get the samples.

Maybe they do not have the samples in stock, they are unwilling to give away samples or there is something wrong with the factory. Anyway, they do not want to explain or refuse you directly coz they think it is embarrassing.

3.A Cantonese you just knew told you that 得闲一齐饮茶啊(Let’s drink tea together when we have time) or 我请你吃饭啊(Let me treat you to dinner) . Don’t take it seriously. They just say that. They don’t mean it. When it is time to say goodbye, saying 得闲一齐饮茶 is almost the same like “See you”.

4.You’re dating a Chinese girl. You invited her out for dinner on Sunday, and she said, “好吧(OK), I think…maybe…I can make it..” However, she never came up on that day.

Sometimes people say “Yes” just want to show respect that they are listening to you, however, it is none of your business whether they will take your words seriously or not.

A good tip to know whether they really mean yes is whether they speak in a firmly manner. If they speak in a hesitant and unsure way with some uncertain words then most of the time they mean “Eventually you’ll get tired of chasing me for an answer”.