qǐng xiān qǔhào.

Yes. In this sentence, 请 is the polite marker please.

It is commonly used before a verb phrase to make an instruction sound polite:

• 请坐。 = Please sit.
• 请等一下。 = Please wait a moment.
• 请先取号。 = Please take a number first.

In signs and service situations, 请 often introduces a polite instruction rather than a request in the English conversational sense.

先 means first or before doing something else.

In Chinese, 先 usually comes before the verb it modifies:

• 先看 = look first
• 先吃饭 = eat first
• 先取号 = take a number first

So 请先取号 literally feels like:

• please + first + take-a-number

The idea is: before speaking to staff, before waiting for service, or before doing the next step, you should take a queue number.

取号 means to get/take a number, usually a queue number.

It is very common in places such as:

• banks
• hospitals
• government offices
• service counters
• busy restaurants

The 号 here is not just any number in the abstract. It usually means a ticket number, turn number, or queue number.

So in real life, 请先取号 often means:

• Please take a queue ticket first.
• Please get a number first.

号 can mean number, but its exact meaning depends on context.

Here, 号 means a queue number / service number / ticket number.

Some other uses of 号 are different:

• 电话号码 = phone number
• 几号 = what date
• 挂号 = register
• 排号 = line up for a number / wait for a turn number

So yes, it is the same basic idea of number, but in 取号 it specifically refers to the number you take in order to wait your turn.

It is best understood as a verb-object structure:

• 取 = take, get
• 号 = number

So literally it is take a number.

In everyday use, though, 取号 is very commonly treated as a fixed expression, especially in service contexts. Learners can safely remember it as a chunk meaning take a queue number.

Because it is verb-object in origin, you may also see related patterns such as:

• 取个号 = take a number
• 取一下号 = take a number for a moment / just take a number
• 先去取号 = first go get a number

Chinese often leaves out the subject when it is obvious from context.

On a sign or when staff are speaking to a customer, the implied subject is you:

• (你) 请先取号。

English often needs the subject less in commands too:

• Please wait here.
• Take a number first.

So the sentence is natural even without 你.

It is pronounced:

• 请 = qǐng (3rd tone)
• 先 = xiān (1st tone)
• 取号 = qǔ hào (3rd tone + 4th tone)

Written with spacing between words, you will often see:

• qǐng xiān qǔ hào

The version qǔhào just shows the pinyin for the phrase together, but when learning pronunciation it is clearer to hear it as two syllables:

• qǔ
• hào

A rough pronunciation guide:

• qǐng: similar to ching, but with the Mandarin q sound
• xiān: like shyen with a high level tone
• qǔ: a rounded ü sound after q
• hào: like how with a falling tone

You can absolutely understand 取 here as take or get.

But 取号 is the standard expression in this context. It sounds natural on signs and in formal service situations.

拿号 might be understandable, but it is generally less standard than 取号 for queue-ticket language.

So for learners, the safest and most natural choice is:

• 取号 = get a queue number

It is a polite instruction.

Because it begins with 请, it sounds courteous, but it is still telling the listener what to do. This is very common on public signs and in customer-service situations.

It is not especially soft or casual; it is more like a standard polite directive:

• 请排队。 = Please line up.
• 请出示证件。 = Please show your ID.
• 请先取号。 = Please take a number first.

So it is polite, natural, and slightly formal.

Yes. Some common variations are:

• 请先取号再等候。 = Please take a number first, then wait.
• 请先去取号。 = Please go get a number first.
• 先取号。 = Take a number first.
  
  • Less polite because 请 is removed.
• 麻烦先取号。 = Please take a number first.
  
  • Slightly conversational; 麻烦 can soften the tone.

But 请先取号 is short, standard, and very common on signs.

Most often in places where service is organized by queue numbers.

For example:

• At a bank entrance, near a ticket machine
• At a hospital registration desk
• At a government office
• At a customer service center
• At a busy clinic or pharmacy

A typical real-life sequence might be:

1. You enter.
2. A sign says 请先取号.
3. You press a machine and get a numbered ticket.
4. You wait until your number is called.

So this sentence is strongly tied to modern queue-management systems.