How to Say “Can you pull over?” in Chinese
Getting around · HSK 3
"Can you pull over?" in Chinese is 能靠边停一下吗？ (Néng kàobiān tíng yíxià ma?). 靠边 (kàobiān) means 'pull to the side,' and 一下 (yíxià) softens the request; literally 'for a moment.' Chinese taxi drivers are called 师傅 (shīfu, 'master'), not 司机 (sījī), which sounds cold and distant.
Primary translation
能靠边停一下吗？
Néng kàobiān tíng yíxià ma?
Traditional: 能靠邊停一下嗎？
Variants by register
Formal
师傅，麻烦您靠边停一下
Shīfu, máfan nín kàobiān tíng yíxià
Casual
靠边停一下
Kàobiān tíng yíxià
When to use it
靠边 (kàobiān) means 'pull to the side,' and 一下 (yíxià) softens the request; literally 'for a moment.' Chinese taxi drivers are called 师傅 (shīfu, 'master'), not 司机 (sījī), which sounds cold and distant. Saying 师傅,麻烦您... is the polite Mainland standard. For ride-hailing apps like Didi (滴滴), you can also say 前面路口停 (Qiánmiàn lùkǒu tíng, 'stop at the next intersection') since stopping mid-block is often illegal. Adding 一下 everywhere is a hallmark of natural, non-robotic Mandarin.
Example sentences
师傅，前面那个便利店靠边停一下。
Shīfu, qiánmiàn nàge biànlìdiàn kàobiān tíng yíxià.
Driver, please pull over at that convenience store ahead.
能在红绿灯前靠边停吗？我要下车。
Néng zài hónglǜdēng qián kàobiān tíng ma? Wǒ yào xiàchē.
Can you pull over before the traffic light? I need to get out.
不好意思，这里不能停车，往前一点。
Bù hǎoyìsi, zhèlǐ bùnéng tíngchē, wǎng qián yìdiǎn.
Sorry, you can't stop here; go a little further.