This study uses discourse theory to explore the teaching identities of a group of mainland Chinese pre-service teachers of English in a teacher education institute in Hong Kong. Exploring how the teaching identities are discursively constructed, the study reaches two conclusions. First, that the pre-service teachers negotiate their own positions within multiple positionings from peers, students on the teaching practicum and the broader enterprise of professional language teaching in Hong Kong; and second, that they discursively construct their teaching identity as English language teachers with particular linguistic and cultural backgrounds to gain legitimacy. The study extends understandings of the interconnected relations of discourse and identity in such contexts. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)