The Chinese language is very big. From time to time I become a bit depressed when I just learned a Chinese word for something, and then find out that it is a long row of alternative to say the same thing. Or if you look up a word in a dictionary and find 25 different proposal. Which one to choose? And which one is relevant to learn?
A funny paradox is that there are no clear translation for "Yes" and "No" in the Chinese language - words that is usually very clear defined in other language. In general the Chinese language is so different from for example English, that many phrases dont have any direct translation. Many Chinese sentences can have many translation, and need to be put into a situation to become understandable. It is funny to look in different "fast-guide-to-Chinese" that of course need to have translations of Yes and No. There are always different proposal, just because there are no exact translation available.
So - How to express Yes and No in Chinese?
There are a lot of different "Yes saying" and "Denying" phrases that express the meaning of Yes and No. Some example of words that can act as a "Yes"
好, hăo - OK (good)
行, xíng - OK
是, shì - To be
对, duì - Correct
可以, kěyǐ - Possible, Allowed
有, yǒu - Available, Have
To make corresponding phrases Denying - "No", you often add 不, bù or 没, méi before the phrases above.
不是, bùshì - Is not
没有, méiyǒu - Have not
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