Learn Hardcore Chinese: jīntiān de zhòngdiǎn shì fùxí zhèxiē shēngcí. - The main focus today is to review these new words.

今天的重点 literally means today’s focus.
- That whole phrase is the grammatical subject of the sentence.
- So the structure is:
  - Subject: 今天的重点 (today’s focus)
  - Predicate: 是复习这些生词 (is to review these new words)

Who the focus belongs to (our / this class’s / my focus) is understood from the situation, so Chinese doesn’t need to say it.

You can make it explicit if you want:

我们今天的重点是复习这些生词。 – Today our focus is to review these new words.
这节课今天的重点是复习这些生词。 – Today the focus of this class is to review these new words.

But the shorter version is completely natural and usually preferred in real conversation or classroom instructions.

What exactly is the function of 的 after 今天 in 今天的重点?

Here 的 is the standard marker that turns 今天 (today) into an attributive (a modifier) of 重点 (focus).

Pattern: [modifier] + 的 + [noun]
- 今天的重点 = today’s focus
- 明天的计划 = tomorrow’s plan
- 老师的书 = the teacher’s book
- 中国的历史 = China’s history

So 的 is not “of” or “’s” by itself; it’s the grammar word that links a describing part to a noun.

In this sentence:

Without 的: 今天重点 – sounds more like “today focus” (colloquial but possible, see below).
With 的: 今天的重点 – a clear noun phrase “today’s focus”.

In careful speech and writing, 今天的重点 is the default. In casual spoken Chinese, people do sometimes say 今天重点 and drop 的, but that feels more informal and “tight.”

What does 重点 mean exactly? How is it different from 重要 or 主要?

重点 (zhòngdiǎn) is a noun meaning:

key point / focus / emphasis / main point / priority

So 今天的重点 = today’s key point / today’s main focus.

Compare:

重要 (zhòngyào) – an adjective, “important”
- 这个很重要。 – This is very important.
- You can’t say 今天的重要是… (ungrammatical).
主要 (zhǔyào) – usually an adjective, “main / primary”
- 今天的主要内容是… – Today’s main content is…
- As a noun in 主要是…, it’s “the main thing is…”
重点 (zhòngdiǎn) – a noun, “focus / key point”
- 上课要抓重点。 – In class, you should grasp the key points.
- 考试有几个重点。 – There are several main points for the exam.

In your sentence, 重点 is perfect because we’re naming the focus of today’s lesson.

What is the role of 是 in 今天的重点是复习这些生词? Is this a special sentence pattern?

Yes. This is the very common “A 是 B” structure:

A 是 B = A is B

Here:

A: 今天的重点 (today’s focus)
是: is
B: 复习这些生词 (to review these new words)

So the sentence literally is:

Today’s focus is (to) review these new words.

This A 是 B pattern is used for:

definitions: 我是老师。 – I am a teacher.
identifications: 那是图书馆。 – That is the library.
explanations: 问题是时间不够。 – The problem is (that) there isn’t enough time.

In your sentence, it links a topic/subject (今天的重点) to its content (复习这些生词).

Can I drop 是 and just say 今天的重点复习这些生词?

Normally, you should keep 是 here. Without 是, 今天的重点复习这些生词 feels incomplete or awkward in standard Mandarin.

More natural variations:

今天的重点就是复习这些生词。
- 就是 adds emphasis: “Today’s focus is exactly / just reviewing these new words.”
今天重点是复习这些生词。
- Drops 的: more colloquial, still correct.
今天我们重点复习这些生词。
- Here 重点 is used like an adverbial: “Today we will focus on reviewing these new words.”
- Structure: 今天 + 我们 + 重点 + 复习 + 这些生词

So:

If 重点 is being used as a noun (“the focus”), then:
- 今天的重点是…… is the normal pattern.
If you restructure and use 重点 more like “to focus on (verb/adverb)”, then you can say:
- 今天重点复习这些生词。 – Today we mainly review these new words.

Why do we use 复习 here instead of 学 / 学习? What’s the difference?

These verbs differ in meaning:

学 / 学习 (xué / xuéxí) – to learn / study (something new)
- 学习汉语 – learn/study Chinese
- 学新生词 – learn new vocabulary
复习 (fùxí) – to review / go over again
- 复习生词 – review vocabulary
- 复习昨天的内容 – review yesterday’s material

Your sentence:

复习这些生词 = review these new words (we’ve already learned them before; now we’re going over them again).

If the idea were “Today’s focus is to learn these new words,” you’d say:

今天的重点是学习这些生词。
or more casually: 今天重点学这些生词。

There’s no word for “will” or “is going to”. How does this sentence show it’s about today’s plan rather than something happening right now or in the past?

Chinese usually doesn’t use verb tense the way English does. Instead, it relies on:

time words (今天, 明天, 现在, 已经, etc.)
context
sometimes aspect particles (了, 过, 着) or adverbs (会, 要, 正在, etc.)

In 今天的重点是复习这些生词:

今天 sets the time frame for the whole sentence.
The copula 是 just states a fact: “Today’s focus is X.”
In a classroom context, that naturally means “what we’ll be doing today / today’s plan.”

If you really want to emphasize “going to” or “will,” you could say:

今天我们要复习这些生词。 – Today we’re going to review these new words.
今天我们会重点复习这些生词。 – Today we will mainly review these new words.

But the original sentence is already understood as talking about today’s agenda.

Why is it 这些生词 and not just 这些? What does 些 add compared with 这?

Breakdown:

这 (zhè) = this
些 (xiē) = a general plural marker / “some”
这些 (zhèxiē) = these (ones)
生词 (shēngcí) = new/unknown words

So:

这生词 – not natural here; 这 usually needs a classifier or 些 before a count noun.
这些生词 – these new words (a specific small group you both know).

些 doesn’t give an exact number; it just means “more than one” – a small set.

Compare:

这个生词 – this (single) new word
这几个生词 – these few new words (个 is the classifier; 几个 suggests a small number)
这些生词 – these new words (plural, unspecified number)

Do I need a measure word between 这些 and 生词? Why isn’t it 这些个生词 or something similar?

Normally in Chinese, demonstrative + classifier + noun is the pattern:

这 + 个 + 人 – this person
那 + 本 + 书 – that book

But 些 itself functions like a kind of classifier / plural word, so:

这些 + noun is complete by itself; no extra measure word is needed.

So:

这些生词 – correct and natural.
这些个生词 – possible in some dialects / informal speech, but can sound redundant or dialectal in standard Mandarin.

If you want to use a regular measure word with 生词, you usually don’t use 些:

这几个生词 – these few new words
这十个生词 – these ten new words

What exactly does 生词 mean? Is it just “new word”? How is it different from 新词, 词, or 单词?

生词 (shēngcí) literally means “raw word” / “unfamiliar word” and is used from the learner’s perspective:

生词 = vocabulary items that are new or unknown to the learner, usually in a textbook or lesson.

Other related words:

新词 (xīncí) – newly coined word / neologism in the language, not necessarily new to you.
- Example: internet slang, new political terms.
词 (cí) – word (often a 2‑character word) or “phrase” in a broader sense.
单词 (dāncí) – usually used more in the sense of individual vocabulary items, especially in foreign language learning (often influenced by English usage). More common in Mainland China for English words, etc.

So in a Chinese class:

The textbook’s vocabulary list is called 生词表 – vocabulary list (of new words for learners).
Saying 复习这些生词 is very natural classroom language: “review these vocab items we learned earlier.”

Can I move 今天 to another position, like 重点是今天复习这些生词? Does that change the meaning?

Yes, you can move 今天, but small changes in emphasis/meaning happen.

今天的重点是复习这些生词。
- Neutral, standard: Today’s focus is to review these new words.
- Emphasis: focus of today.
重点是复习今天的这些生词。
- Now 今天的 modifies 这些生词:
- “The focus is reviewing these new words from today.” (Today’s new vocabulary, not some older list.)
重点是今天复习这些生词。
- Emphasis shifts to the time of the action:
- “The focus is that today we (will) review these new words.”
- This can contrast with some other day: maybe yesterday you didn’t review them; today you will.

All are grammatical; which you choose depends on what you want to highlight:

今天的重点… – the focus of today.
今天复习… – reviewing today (as opposed to some other time).
今天的这些生词 – these words from today.

In what kind of situation would a native speaker actually say 今天的重点是复习这些生词? Is it formal, casual, or classroom-only?

This sentence is very typical classroom language, especially from a teacher:

At the start of a lesson:
- 今天的重点是复习这些生词。
- “Today our focus is to review these vocabulary items.”

It’s:

Neutral in tone – neither very formal nor very casual.
Common in:
- school and university classes
- test-prep courses
- training sessions where there is a fixed syllabus

In more casual conversation, people might say:

今天我们重点复习这些生词。 – Today we’ll mainly review these vocabulary items.
今天主要复习这些生词。 – Today we mainly review these new words.

But the original sentence is perfectly natural and idiomatic whenever someone is outlining the plan or focus for today’s lesson or activity.