英语(yīng yǔ) - English, the English language in Mandarin

英语 (yīng yǔ) is English, and the pattern behind it repeats across the language: country abbreviation plus 语 (yǔ). 法语 (fǎ yǔ) French, 德语 (dé yǔ) German, 日语 (rì yǔ) Japanese, 汉语 (hàn yǔ) Chinese. Learn the frame and you have a dozen words.

The complement structure is where beginners trip. To say someone speaks English well you need 得 (de): 他英语说得很好 (tā yīng yǔ shuō de hěn hǎo), or 他说英语说得很好 (tā shuō yīng yǔ shuō de hěn hǎo) with the verb repeated. Dropping the 得 (de) and saying 他说英语很好 sounds wrong to a native ear.

There is also a 文 (wén) series alongside the 语 (yǔ) one: 英文 (yīng wén), 中文 (zhōng wén). In practice the two are used interchangeably for the language as a whole, with 语 (yǔ) leaning slightly towards the spoken side and 文 (wén) towards the written. Nobody will misunderstand you either way.