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Firefly–Serenity Chinese Pinyinary
Chinese translations with standard Hanyu Pinyin romanization and Chinese characters for Firefly the TV series and Serenity the movie and comic books

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Chinese Dialog

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Na4 mei2 guan1xi5.

Simplified characters: 那没关系。 / Traditional characters: 那沒關係。
Back-translation of Mandarin: That has no relevance.
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): Nah mei guan-shee.
Translated from script English: That has nothing to do with it.
Context: “Safe,” Gabriel (Tam), amusedly accepting dinosaur excuse for Young Simon’s strong language

na4

that

mei2 guan1xi5

to have no relevance

mei2: [abbreviation] →
mei2you3 没有 (traditional: 沒有 ): to have no (something), -less
1. mei2: not
2. you3: to have, there is
guan1xi5: a consequence, a relation
1. guan1: to involve, to have to do with
2. xi4 [for this meaning, used only in compound words]: to involve, to relate to

Note:

Also: Mei2 guan1xi5.: It doesn’t matter, Never mind

ng5gaa1pei4

Simplified/Traditional characters: 五加皮
Back-translation of Cantonese: ngkapei (acanthopanax-bark liquor)
Comics borrowed term (phonetic for English speakers): un-ga-pae
Context: Serenity: Float Out, Tagg, p. 22, to Zoe

English (Borrowed Cantonese) ↓

[see Note 1 below]

ngkapei →

ng5gaa1pei4: [traditional Chinese medicine] acanthopanax bark, acanthopanax-bark liquor [see Note 1 below; Mandarin pronunciation: wu3jia1pi2]

ng5gaa1: the acanthopanax plant [Eleutherococcus gracilistylus; Mandarin pronunciation: wu3jia1]
1. ng5: five
2. gaa1: to add up
pei4: bark (the plant covering) [Mandarin pronunciation: pi2]

Notes:

Ngkapei: The comic book has un-ga-pae as English (no Chinese characters or Latin letters in italics / quotation marks). Ng5gaa1pei4 (Mandarin pronunciation: wu3jia1pi2) is a Chinese distilled alcoholic beverage (from rice, sorghum, or other grains) soaked in the branch bark or root bark of the herb acanthopanax (Eleutherococcus gracilistylus) of traditional Chinese medicine.

The literal translation ‘five add up’ refers to the plant’s five-part leaves. More on acanthopanax (provided for information purposes only): Complementary and Alternative Healing University
Also: wu3jia1pi2jiu3 五加皮酒 : [traditional Chinese medicine] acanthopanax-bark liquor; wu3jia1pi2: acanthopanax bark, acanthopanax-bark liquor [see main entry above]; jiu3: liquor, spirits

See also:

Qing3 zai4lai2 yi1 bei1 ng5gaa1pei4? (“The Train Job”)

Ni3 bu4 gou4ge2, ni3 hun2qiu2.

Simplified characters: 你不够格，你混球。 / Traditional characters: 你不夠格，你混球。
Back-translation of Mandarin: You’re not good enough, you wretch.
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): Nee boo go guh, nee hwun chiou.
Translated from script English: You don't deserve her, you fink.
Context: “Our Mrs. Reynolds,” Kaylee, to Mal about his treatment of new wife

ni3 bu4 gou4ge2

you’re not good enough

ni3: you (singular)
bu4 gou4ge2: to be not good enough
1. bu4 [pronounced “bu2” before a 4th-tone syllable]: not
2. gou4ge2: [colloquial] satisfactory, qualified
  1. gou4: to be adequate, to be enough
  2. ge2 [for this meaning, used only in compound words]: qualifications, a standard

ni3 hun2qiu2

you wretch

ni3: you (singular)
hun2qiu2: [colloquial] [borrowed from non-Mandarin Chinese] a wretch, a no-good bastard (nonliteral), a scoundrel
1. hun2 [used only in compound words]: filthy, muddy
2. qiu2: a ball (spherical object)

Notes:

Kaylee sounds like “Nee boo goo gah, nee hwong chion” instead of Nee boo go guh, nee hwun chiou.
Thank you to Firefly Chinese translator Jenny Lynn for the gou4ge2 and -qiu2 before the script was published.
Also: bu4gou4 不够 (traditional: 不夠 ): not enough, not good enough

Ni3 gao4su5 na4 niu2 ta1 you3 shuang1 mei3mu4?

Simplified characters: 你告诉那牛它有双美目？ / Traditional characters: 你告訴那牛牠有雙美目？
Back-translation of Mandarin: You tell that cow it has beautiful eyes.
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): Nee GAO-soo NA niou, TA yo shwong mei-moo?
Translated from script English: Why don't you tell the cow about its beautiful eyes?
Context: “The Message,” Kaylee (off-screen), after Simon compliments her eyes then jokes that she’s the only woman available

ni3 gao4su5

you tell

ni3: you (singular)
gao4su5: to tell, to inform
1. gao4 [for this meaning, used only in compound words]: to tell, to inform
2. su4 [used only in compound words]: to tell, to inform

na4 niu2

that cow

na4: that, those
niu2: a cow

ta1 you3

it has

ta1: it
you3: to have

shuang1 mei4mu4

beautiful eyes

shuang1: two, a pair
mei3mu4: beautiful eyes
1. mei3: to be beautiful, to be pretty
2. mu4 [used only in compound words]: an eye

Ni3hao3?

Simplified/Traditional characters: 你好？
Back-translation of Mandarin: Hello?
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): [(Not in script) Nee hao?]
Translated from script English: [Not in script]
Context: “Ariel,” Agent McGinnis [captions (region 1 DVD): Agent McGuinness], answering vid-phone call from Jayne

ni3hao3

Hello, How are you?

ni3: you (singular)
hao3: to be good, well [adverb]

Notes:

The captions (region 1 DVD) correctly have Ni hao?
Agent McGinnis mouths ma5 [marker for questions], so before correction he said “Ni3 hao3 ma5?” 你好吗？ (traditional: 你好嗎？) ‘How are you?’ instead of “Ni3hao3?” ‘Hello?’
The current standard hello on the telephone is wei4 喂, the Hey! from “Shindig.”

Ni3men5 dou1 bi4zui3!

Simplified characters: 你们都闭嘴！ / Traditional characters: 你們都閉嘴！
Back-translation of Mandarin: All of you shut up!
Script Mandarin translation (Hanyu Pinyin romanization): Ta ma de! Nimen de bizui! [sic (see notes below); phonetic for English speakers: Nee-mun doh bee-tzway!]
Translated from script English: Everybody shut the hell up!
Context: “Serenity, Part 2,” Mal, as folks argue about killing

ni3men5 dou1

all of you

ni3men5: you (plural)
1. ni3: you (singular)
2. men5: [suffix for human plural words]
dou1: all

bi4zui3

[slang] Shut up!

bi4: to shut, to close
zui3: [colloquial] a mouth

Notes:

Pronunciation: Mal sounds like “Nee mun doh bih-zway!” instead of “Nee-mun doh bee-tzway!”
Script version: Ta ma de! [phonetic for English speakers: TAH-mah-duh!]: Ta1ma1 de5! 他妈的！ (traditional: 他媽的！): [offensive] Damn!, Damn it!, S***!, F***!; [literally: his mother’s]; ta1ma1: [literally: his mother] (ta1: he [understood: de5: [noun-modifier marker] [here: possessive (genitive), ’s, of]]; ma1: [colloquial] a mom, a mother); de5: [noun-modifier marker] [here: possessive (genitive), ’s, of]

Nimen de bizui! [phonetic for English speakers: Nee-mun duh bee-tzway!”]: Ni3men5 de5 bi4zui3! 你们的闭嘴！ (traditional: 你們的閉嘴！): you (plural) just shut up; ni3men5: you (plural) [see main entry above]; de5: [marker of a subject noun that is irrelevant to the situation at hand]; bi4zui3: [slang] Shut up! [see main entry above]

See also:

Bi4zui3. (“Serenity, Part 1,” Serenity: Better Days #1 & #2)
Bi4zui3 nin2 hen3 bu4ti3tie1 de5 nan2sheng1! (“Objects in Space”)
Bi4zui3. Rong2 wo3men5 fa1cai2. (Serenity [movie])

Ni3men5 dou1 shi4 sha3gua1.

Simplified characters: 你们都是傻瓜。 / Traditional characters: 你們都是傻瓜。
Back-translation of Mandarin: All of you are idiots.
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): Nee-mun DOH shr sagwa. [Taiwan Mandarin pronunciation (FAQ: Variety of Chinese)]
Translated from script English: Idiots. All of you.
Context: “Trash,” Inara, addressing those going along with Saffron’s plan

ni3men5 dou1

all of you

ni3men5: you (plural)
1. ni3: you (singular)
2. men5: [suffix for human plural words]
dou1: all

shi4 sha3gua1

are idiots

shi4: to be
sha3gua1: [insult] a fool, a damned fool, an idiot
1. sha3: to be foolish, to be stupid
2. gua1: a melon, a gourd

Ni3 ta1ma1 de5. Tian1xia4 suo3you3 de5 ren2. Dou1 gai1si3.

Simplified characters: 你他妈的。天下所有的人。都该死。 / Traditional characters: 你他媽的。天下所有的人。都該死。
Back-translation of Mandarin: F*** you. Everyone under heaven deserves death. [see Note 1 below]
Script Mandarin translation (Hanyu Pinyin romanization): Ni ta ma de. Tianxia suoyoude ren. Dou gaisi. [see Note 1 below; phonetic for English speakers: Nee tah-mah-duh. Tyen-shia suo-yo duh ren. Doh gai-ss.]
Translated from script English: Everyone under the heavens ought to die. [see Note 1 below]
Context: “Serenity, Part 1,” Mal, upon learning there’s a mole on board

ni3 ta1ma1 de5

[offensive] F*** you!

ni3: you (singular)
ta1ma1 de5: [offensive] Damn!, Damn it!, S***!, F***!; [literally: his mother’s]
1. ta1ma1: [literally: his mother]
  1. ta1 [de5]: his
    1. ta1: he
    2. [understood: de5 的 : [noun-modifier marker] [here: possessive (genitive), ’s, of]]
  2. ma1: [colloquial] a mom, a mother
2. de5: [noun-modifier marker] [here: possessive (genitive), ’s, of]

tian1xia4 suo3you3 de5 ren2 dou1

everyone under heaven, every person under heaven

tian1xia4: the world, under heaven
1. tian1: the sky, heaven
2. xia4 [for this meaning, used only in compound words]: under, below
suo3you3 de5 ren2 dou1: everyone, every person, all people
1. suo3you3 de5: all, every
  1. suo3 [for this meaning, used only in compound words]: that which
  2. you3: there is, to possess
  3. de5: [noun-modifier marker] [here: integrated adjectival clause (restrictive relative clause)]
2. ren2: a person
3. dou1: all [commonly used redundantly with suo3you3 de5]

gai1si3

[colloquial] be damned, to deserve death

gai1: ought to, to deserve
si3: to die

Notes:

Meaning: As a translation for the English Everyone under the heavens ought to die in the script, the Ni ta ma de (F*** you!) in Ni ta ma de. Tianxia suoyoude ren. Dou gaisi adds no meaning. But an unpublished version of the script gives the English as F*** everyone in the universe to death. Perhaps the English was changed to the tamer version without removing the Ni ta ma de from the Chinese. The taming of this English line, at least, is suggested in an interview with series creator Joss Whedon in a section about getting away with offensive language on American broadcast television. Whedon stated that on Firefly:

The one big restriction we had was, we couldn’t say anything actually really dirty in Chinese. Because they were like, “Mm, if this goes overseas, people will be able to understand what they’re saying, so you can’t cuss.” Originally, we had them cursing like sailors in Chinese, but they were like, “No, you have to say something that can be understood [without offending speakers of Chinese].”

(Joss Whedon, p. 9 of “Still flying: An interview with Joss Whedon.” By Abbie Bernstein. In Firefly: The official companion, vol. 2, Abbie Bernstein, Bryan Cairns, Karl Derrick, and Tara DiLullo [and television script writers], 6–13 [London: Titan, 2007]; brackets in original)

When the interviewer mentioned the F*** everyone in the universe to death of the script, Whedon said: Yes. Probably changed (p. 9).
Mal sounds like “Nee ta ma duh. Tyen-shia soy ya duh ren. Doh goy swa” instead of “Nee tah-mah-duh. Tyen-shia suo-yo duh ren. Doh gai-ss.”
The 2001 Mexican movie Y Tu Mamá También (And Your Mother Too, or “and so’s your mama!”) is known in Mandarin as Ni3 Ta1ma1 de5 Ye3shi4 《你他妈的也是》 (traditional: 《你他媽的也是》 ) : F*** you too; ni3 ta1ma1 de5: [offensive] F*** you! [see main entry above]; ye3shi4: to also be the same (ye3: also; shi4: to be).
Also:
- Gai1si3!: [colloquial] Go to hell!, Damn!, Damn it!
- gai1si3 de5: [colloquial] damned, wretched; de5 的 : [noun-modifier marker] [here: integrated adjectival clause (restrictive relative clause)]

See also:

Ta1ma1 de5. (“Serenity, Part 1”)
Ta1ma1 de5 hun2dan4. (“War Stories”)
Ye1su1, ta1ma1 de5— (“Jaynestown”)
Zhen1 ta1ma1 yao4ming4. Zhu4yi4. (“Serenity, Part 1”)

Ni3 zhao3si3 ma5? Ni3 yao4 wo3 kai1qiang1?

Simplified characters: 你找死吗？你要我开枪？ / Traditional characters: 你找死嗎？你要我開槍？
Back-translation of Mandarin: Are you looking to die? You want me to shoot?
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): Nee TZAO ss-MA? Nee-YOW wuh-KAI CHANG? [Taiwan Mandarin pronunciation (FAQ: Variety of Chinese)]
Translated from script English: You wanna bullet? You wanna bullet right through your throat?
Context: Serenity (movie), Mal, to Simon after getting punched [also described in Serenity (novelization), p. 81]

ni3 zhao3si3 ma5

[contemptuous] Are you looking to die?

ni3: you (singular)
zhao3si3: to court death
1. zhao3: to seek
2. si3: to die
ma5: [marker for questions]

ni3 yao4 wo3 kai1qiang1?

You want me to shoot?

ni3 yao4: you want
1. ni3: you (singular)
2. yao4: to want, wish
wo3 kai1qiang1: I shoot
1. wo3: I
2. kai1qiang1: to shoot, to open fire
  1. kai1: to set in motion; [literally: to open]
  2. qiang1: a gun

nian2qing1 de5

Simplified characters: 年轻的 / Traditional characters: 年輕的
Back-translation of Mandarin: young one
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): nyen ching-duh
Translated from script English: young one
Context: “Safe,” Patron, addressing River

nian2qing1 de5

young one / [slang] young’un

nian2qing1: to be young
1. nian2 [for this meaning, used only in compound words]: (a person’s) age
2. qing1: to be small in number
de5: [noun-modifier marker] [here: integrated adjectival clause (restrictive relative clause) (modified noun is understood or generic: young one)]

niao4 shi1 de5 du3gui3

Simplified characters: 尿湿的赌鬼 / Traditional characters: 尿濕的賭鬼
Back-translation of Mandarin: urine-soaked habitual gamblers
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): niao SE duh DOO-gway [Taiwan Mandarin pronunciation (FAQ: Variety of Chinese)]
Translated from script English: p***-soaked pikers
Context: “Heart of Gold,” Wash, referring to Rance’s men now trapped on Serenity

niao4 shi1 de5

to be urine-soaked

niao4: urine
shi1: to be soaked, to be wet
de5: [noun-modifier marker] [here: integrated adjectival clause (restrictive relative clause)]

du3gui3

a habitual/confirmed gambler

du3: to gamble
gui3: [suffix for insults]; [literally: a demon, a ghost]

Note:

Wash sounds like “niao say duh goo-ay” instead of the script’s niao SE duh DOO-gway (or Beijing “niao shr duh doo-gway”).

See also:

chou4 ma3-niao4 (Serenity [novelization])
gui3 (“Out of Gas”)
Jian4 ta1 de5 gui3! (“Safe”)
xiong2mao1 niao4 (“Jaynestown”)

Niu2fen4.

Simplified characters: 牛粪 / Traditional characters: 牛糞
Back-translation of Mandarin: Cow dung.
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): Niou fun.
Translated from script English: Cow poop.
Context: “Safe,” Simon, comments to self after stepping in same

niu2fen4

cow dung

niu2: a cow
fen4: excrement, dung

Note:

Simon sounds like “Niao-fff” instead of Niou fun.

See also:

niu2shi3 (“War Stories”)
Xi1 niu2 (“Ariel”)

niu2shi3

Simplified/Traditional characters: 牛屎
Back-translation of Mandarin: cow dung
Script Mandarin translation (phonetic for English speakers): NIOU-se [Taiwan Mandarin pronunciation (FAQ: Variety of Chinese)]
Translated from script English: cow dung
Context: “War Stories,” Mal, referring to Wash’s sabotage trick to go on the job

niu2shi3

cow dung

niu2: a cow
shi3: excrement, dung

Note:

Mal sounds like “niou-suh.” The captions have niou-se on the region 1 DVD.

See also:

gen1 hou2zi5 bi3 diu1 shi3 (“Heart of Gold”)
gou3shi3 (“Shindig,” “Safe” [Cut], “Out of Gas,” “The Message” [Cut], Serenity [novelization])
Niu2fen4. (“Safe”)
Xi1 niu2 (“Ariel”)
zheng1qi4 de5 gou3shi3dui1 (“Our Mrs. Reynolds” [Cut])