SOURCE:ShenzhenDailyPUBDATE:2026-04-22
On April 19, the "City Language Watch" Monthly Challenge completed its fourth public signage checkup of the year, bringing together international and local volunteers and language enthusiasts at Shenzhen North Railway Station and the Shenzhen Art Museum (Longhua Division).
4月19日,2026深圳全民外文公示语纠错活动“城市纠错小分队”4月线下挑战赛在深圳北站和深圳美术馆(新馆)周边区域举行。参赛队伍由外籍志愿者及本地语言爱好者共同组成,他们立足国际视角,对深圳的公共外文标识进行了一次 “体检”。

Participants of the fourth "City Language Watch" Monthly Challenge take a group photo at the Shenzhen Art Museum (Longhua Division) in Longhua District on April 19. Wang Haolan
2026深圳全民外文公示语纠错活动“城市纠错小分队”4月线下挑战赛参与者在捕鱼达人在线 深圳美术馆(新馆)拍摄合照。王皓岚 摄
Father and daughter together to boost city's image
“深圳是我家”:父女携手为城市形象出力
Having lived in Shenzhen for over a decade, Mr. An considers himself a Shenzhener. He brought his daughter along, hoping to do their part in boosting the city's global image.
安先生在深圳生活了十余年,早已把自己当作一名深圳人。此次他特意带上女儿,希望为提升深圳的国际形象尽一份力。
"The APEC meeting will be held in Shenzhen in November. A lot of foreigners will be coming, so I wanted to bring my daughter to join in and contribute," Mr. An explained. He added that accurate English on public signs is important, as it serves as a window for international exchange. "It represents Shenzhen's public image and how convenient the city is," he said.
“APEC会议将于11月在深圳举行,那时会有许多外国人来到深圳。所以我想带女儿一起参加这个活动,贡献一点力量。”安先生解释道。他还表示,公共标识上英文的准确性十分重要,是国际交往的窗口。“它代表了深圳的公共形象和城市便利度。”

Young participants of the offline challenge take a photo together. Zhen Jianhong
“纠错小能手”完成深圳北站的挑战后合影留念。甄建宏 摄
"We visited the Bingo shopping mall and the Shenzhen North Metro Station. The public signs are very good for us and for people from other countries," said Mr. An’s 8-year-old daughter, who cheerfully answered questions in English from Shenzhen Daily. "We found an 'e' – its little tail is missing," she added.
“我们去了缤果空间、深圳北地铁站。这些公共标识对我们和外国朋友都很好。”安先生的8岁女儿接受了英文《深圳日报》的采访。“我们在一个指示牌上发现了一个字母e,它的小尾巴模糊得看不见了。”
Bilingual signs: Small details, big welcome
爱尔兰外教眼中的中英标识:小标识,大友好
Rosie, an English teacher from Ireland, joined the event together with her six-year-old daughter. Turning the challenge into a game, they carefully looked into the locations, from signs up over head and down on the ground to those on digital screens and stickers on walls or boards to check up the problems and words can be improved.
来自爱尔兰的英语教师Rosie带着六岁的女儿一同参加了活动。她们将这次标识巡检变成了一场趣味游戏,仔细查看车站周边和场馆内各类标识,有的高高悬挂着、有的在地面上,她们也仔细检查电子屏幕上以及墙面贴纸上的标语,寻找其中可能存在问题的或可以优化的词句。

Rosie takes a photo of a sign in the Bingo shopping mall near Shenzhen North Railway Station. Zhen Jianhong
Rosie检查深圳北站缤果空间的公示语标识。甄建宏 摄
“In general, the signage is pretty good. We've just found small things to fix, like spelling mistakes or words that might work better or sound more natural,” said Rosie.
“总体来看,这里的标识做得相当不错。我们只是发现了一些小问题,比如拼写错误,或者某些词可以换一种更贴切、更自然的表达。” Rosie说。
She was impressed with the signs in transport areas such as Shenzhen North Railway Station and its bus and Metro stations, which they visited that day. When people are in a hurry or under pressure, she said, clear signage can help them quickly find exactly where they need to go.
当天,纠错小分队走访了深圳北站及其周边的公交、地铁等交通区域。Rosie对这些区域的标识印象深刻。她表示,当人们行色匆匆或感到压力时,清晰醒目的标识能够帮助他们快速、准确地找到目的地。
Rosie uses the Shenzhen Chinese-English Public Signs Inquiry System WeChat miniprogram to submit her findings during the event. Zhen Jianhong
Rosie往公示语中英译写查询系统(深圳)小程序上传她发现的问题。甄建宏 摄
Rosie also pointed out that English signs are especially important for foreigners in China. Since very few foreigners understand pinyin and Mandarin, coming to China can feel a little bit intimidating. English signs could help them understand what's going on and where to go. "I think Shenzhen is doing a really good job with it," said Rosie.
Rosie还指出,英文标识对于在华外国朋友尤为重要。因为很少外国人能看懂拼音和中文,初来中国可能会感到些许不安。英文标识可以帮助他们了解周围环境、明确出行方向。“我觉得深圳在这方面做得非常好。”Rosie表示。
When talked about the signage in her home country, she said that those are all in English and Irish. "Irish is something that everybody learns and they put it on the signage essentially to keep the language alive and to keep culture and tradition going with in the country."
在Rosie的祖国爱尔兰,双语标识也得到了普遍的运用。她介绍,那里的几乎所有的公共标识都同时使用英语和爱尔兰语。“每个人都会学习爱尔兰语,这样做主要是为了保持这门语言的活力,传承国家的文化和传统。”
By comparison, she observed that almost all the signs in Shenzhen are in both Chinese and English, making the city more welcoming to the world.
她也观察到在深圳的公共场所,中英双语标识的运用非常普遍,这让这座城市对世界更加友好、更加开放。


The major guidance and warning signs at Shenzhen North Railway Station and the Shenzhen Art Museum (Longhua Division) are bilingual. Wang Haolan
深圳北站和深圳美术馆(新馆)的引导、警示用语都设置了中英双语标识。王皓岚 摄
Online and offline, everyone can help
线上线下齐参与
Now in its fourth straight month of offline challenges, the City Language Watch intiative has brought volunteers to transport hubs, key venues and commercial areas. By combining a global perspective, the team members use their sharp eyes to help make Shenzhen's public signage more international. 由深圳市外办、深圳报业集团英文《深圳日报》及深圳广电第一现场全媒体组织的2026深圳全民外文公示语纠错活动“城市纠错小分队”已连续四个月开展线下巡检活动,带领“纠错达人”走进交通枢纽、重点场馆和商圈。他们凭借全球化的视野和爱观察的眼睛,助力深圳的公共标识日益迈向国际化。 The online competition continues to open to the public. And please stay tuned for and participate in the following City Language Watch offline inspections, scheduled monthly through November. Come and be part of the effort to enhance Shenzhen's international language environment. 纠错活动的线上竞赛持续面向公众开放。也请持续关注“纠错小分队”的月度线下活动。欢迎加入小分队,共同助力提升深圳的国际化语言环境。

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