qǐng tīng wǒ de huà.

possessive particle

Breakdown of qǐng tīng wǒ de huà.

• 听tīng: to listen
• 我wǒ: me
• 请qǐng: to ask (politely)

Questions & Answers about qǐng tīng wǒ de huà.

What does 请 mean in this sentence?

Here 请 means please. It is placed before a verb to make a request more polite.

So:

• 请听我的话 = Please listen to me / Please do as I say

A few extra notes:

• 请 can also mean to invite or to treat someone, as in 请你吃饭 = I’ll treat you to a meal / Please come eat
• But in this sentence, it is simply the polite-request word please

Why is there no word for you in the sentence?

In Mandarin, the subject is often left out when it is obvious from context, especially in commands and requests.

So English might say:

• Please listen to me

But Mandarin can simply say:

• 请听我的话

The you is understood. If you want, you can add it:

• 请你听我的话

That sounds a bit more explicit, but the version without 你 is very natural.

What does 听我的话 mean literally, and what does it really mean in use?