Does qin1 cai4 translate to bok choy? I'm pretty sure celery is 芹菜. qin2 cai4

I heard people referring to bok choy as qin cai as well, but I believe it was qin1 cai4. Is this correct? When I look up bok choy, it is 白菜 bai2cai4 which sounds phonetically similar to bok choy.

You probably mean qing1 cai4 (青菜). It is used for green vegetables in general, but is also used for Chinese cabbage.

现代汉语规范词典 has this to say:
1.
名
一般指小白菜或油菜。
2.
名
泛指蔬菜。

小白菜 is typically translated as Chinese cabbage or bak choy in dictionaries and also used like this in  many places in China, in other places people often mean baby bak choy when they use 小白菜.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_cabbage#Commercial_variants_of_Chinensis has this to say:

Baby Pak choi, Shanghai Pak choi, or mei quin choi (Chinese: 上海白菜; pinyin: Shànghǎi báicài; Japanese: 青梗菜, chingensai) refers to greener varieties where the varioles are also green. It is simply a less-mature version that could develop into the white-stemmed variety with more time to grow before being harvested. In Shanghai and other eastern China provinces, it is simply called qīngcài (青菜; literally blue/green vegetable) or qīngjiāngcài (青江菜; literally "blue/green river vegetable").


Help with a Taiwanese expression I had friends from Taiwan many years ago who often used an expression that seemed to mean something like "praising an idol, or bowing down" not sure. Sometimes said with a bowing down motion. It was always meant to be funny when I said something funny, clever or stupid. It sounds like "Oh mee doe voh" Stress or high tone was on "mee". I have always wondered what exactly it meant in Chinese. I just never bothered to ask.  Any native Taiwanese help would be appreciated. Thanks.

It refers to 阿彌陀佛, the Amitabha Buddha.

You describe the colloquial usage of the term quite accurately.

Most of the time, the term is used not to refer to the Buddha itself, but to create comedic effect in speech.


What is the nuance of 很好? Beginning textbooks say 很好 means "very good," but soon add that 很 is usually just there to balance the phrase and does not really mean "very" in this context. S.Rhee's comment cites a much fuller explanation of this grammatical point.

Can 很好 be used, for example, to simply say a young student's behavior is "good enough" without saying "really good"?  For comparison I think of the French phrase "assez bon" which a dictionary will say means "good enough," but in fact it is a criticism meaning "hardly good at all."

Actually grammarians have a concept of dubitative particle, for a word that makes a superficially affirmative sentence express doubt.  The French "assez" often does this.  I wonder if 很 does this in Chinese, by highlighting that you have not said 非常 or 真的 or other things you could just as easily say.

I do know that when people say 你普通话说得很好 it is a compliment, not an implied critique.  But of course when they say it to me it is merely kind, not true at all, and it never means 真的好.

Question Question about "很好" deals with this phrase but only in the context of a greeting and reply.

I made mention of this on my answer to a different question here (which I'll repeat here for your benefit): https://chinese.stackexchange.com/a/890/166

In general, adjectives in Chinese do not need to have 很 to be used predicatively (and thus 很 is not be considered a copula); however the lack of 很 gives the implication of contrast by default. Chinese: A Comprehensive Grammar by Yip Po-Ching and Don Rimmington explains it in this way:

  The presence of these degree adverbs and complements removes any implication of contrast that is latent in an unmarked predicative adjective.

  If somebody says:

    这本字典好。 zhèi běn zìdiǎn hǎo. This dictionary is good.

  the speaker must be understood to be implying that some other dictionary is not as good as this one. In fact the degree verb 很 hěn 'very', unless it is emphasised, does not really mean 'very', and its integration into adjectival predicative is more often than not to counteract an implication of contrast.


Use of 如何 versus 怎麼樣 This is kind of a two-part question: 1) If you say "你如何喜歡你的菜?" are you asking, "how does the food taste to you" or "how do you prefer your food to be cooked"? To me it seems that if you are asking the first question it would be better to say "你的菜怎麼樣" and if you are asking the second question you should say "你如何喜歡你的菜". Or is it basically the same question either way?
2) Is there a difference between 如何 and 怎麼樣 in either meaning or usage? I feel like there is but I can't quite define what it is. (If the second part of this question is to broad, I'm happy just getting an answer to the first part.)

1.Do you like this dish?

你觉得这道菜怎么样？

Question 2 would normally not be asked in China I'm told, unless maybe you have servant.

How would you like this dish prepared?

您要我怎么做这道菜？


Chinese Idiom puzzle 13 (中文填字遊戲) Please solve the following puzzle

A grain of rice in the sea. A metaphor for something small and insignificant

To bluff

Disappear without a trace, no news, or nothing to follow

Idiom

The multi-level gates are tightly locked. Describes that the protection and blockade are very tight

A metaphor for situations that makes people suspicious.

Elite newcomer

adopted son

A long time

Repay a favor

Male matchmaker

Never miss the target

Age 50

A long long time (like eternality)

Depend on others and cannot be independent

Self-taught

Expression doesn't change (doesn't seem to be affected or care)

Walking instead of riding transportation

Bicycle

Only change the form, but the content and essence stay the same

The gain does not compensate for the lost

A hermit's life

Ability to tolerate and forgive others

Time changes

A. Even the stubborn stones are convinced
B. You can see a person's appearance but you cannot see what is in his heart
C. A praise for 関羽
D. Melon seeds
E. Change the appearance completely
F. After a long time, things change beyond recognition
G. The plum tree was bitten by insects and died instead of the peach tree, which satirizes the brothers’ inability to help and love each other
H. The area between the nose and the upper lip
I. Time does not wait for us. Metaphor for missed the opportunity, regrets too late
J. Only under the top boss (above everyone else)
K. The title of heir of the kingship or lordship in ancient time
L. Have students all over the world
M. sleeping pill
N. dispute
O. Sincere and affectionate words
P. At the pinnacle of one's popularity and power
Q. Been through a long time
R. Waterwheel
S. 11:00 PM - 1:00 AM
T. Unintentional mistake
U. A battle-hardened elite army
V. Easy
W. Gain fame quickly
X. Did something wrong and now suffer the consequences (You asked for it)
Y. Having inner and outer beauty
Z. Extremely numerous

The second version, corrected. Thank you~.


Why the name 中元节 for hungry ghost festival? Today is Hungry Ghost festival day and people prepare the food and put out in the street for the hungry ghost. I know today fest name is 鬼节 and I understand this (鬼 = ghost).
Where does the other name 中元节 come from? I heard it has something to do with I-ching but my Chinese is not good to full understand baidu baike page.
Please can you explain it simply?

Baidu:

中元节  ...而被称为“中元节”，则是源于东汉后道教的说法。道教有“三元说”，“天官上元赐福，地官中元赦罪，水官下元解厄，“中元”之名由此而来...

三元说 ...正月十五日为上元节，七月十五日为中元节，十月十五日为下元节...

地官中元赦罪 = Underworld officer grants amnesty on 15th July
Ghosts in hell are basically prisoners in jail, on 15th July every year, they are allowed to leave the underworld and visit their family in the world of the living
Other names for 中元节 are 七月半、七月十四、祭祖节、盂兰盆节、地官节 are all based on this story
It is called 鬼节 because it is a festival for the ghosts, not hungry ghosts (饿鬼). 饿鬼 were the most sinful people before they died, and they are never allowed to leave the hungry ghost hell


Pinyin vs. Pronunciation of 嗯? I've seen the word "嗯" many times in conversations and songs. I know that it pronounces like "hm", expressing curiosity. But when I check the pinyin of it, according to Wiktionary, it is like such:

  ńg, ń, en

which for me doesn't seem to sound like the way it pronounces. Why do they differ?

And what's more, I've never seen the pinyin like "ńg, ń", particularly for the tone mark, which should be placed on top of vowels instead of consonants. They seem to pronounce like "éng, én", which are valid nasal finals. Are those pinyin valid? If so, why it's not written as such: "éng, én"?

Very interesting question!

嗯 is pronounced as ǹg，ńg，ňg，ǹ，ń，ň.

ńg, ń: means what？, or 什么？It expresses surprise or raise a question.

ǹg，ǹ: means I get it, I know it, or 好，我知道了

ňg，ň: means no, I don't want that, we say 嗯，不是，...

The way to pronounce ǹ，ń，ň is that you put your tongue in the place while you pronounce the phonetic notation /n/ in English and then apply the tones.

To pronounce ǹg，ńg，ňg , put your tongue in the place while you pronounce [ŋ] and then apply the tones.

Of course, ǹg，ńg，ňg，ǹ，ń，ň are unusual pronunciations in Chinese.


When do we use 来 and 到 after a verb? I often see words 来, 到 after a verb.
For example:

wo hui lai le = 我回来了
ta mengdao ni = 他梦到你

When will we use "lai" and "dao" in sentences after a verb? Is there a list of verbs which can be followed by both of them?

Here's maybe a different way to think about 到. In the context you mentioned, 到 here means to have done said action. The state of the action has been brought into existence; it is now a fact. So think of it more like:

看到 = have seen
闻到 = have smelled
吃到 = have eaten/have tasted

That's why in English we say "I can see/smell/taste...", like "I can taste sweetness." It's not saying "I am able to taste" but rather my tasting of sweetness is now a fact. 到 can be used with almost any verb in this context.

In your example of 他梦到你, the 到 here has nothing to do with 你. The 到 here modifies 梦 to say that his dreaming of you (or anything) is a fact. You can't say 他梦來你, since it would not make any sense at all.

來(来) is more literal, denoting arrival at your current location. You don't say, 吃來 or 喝來. But you say, 回來 or 走來.

What might be confusing you with 來 and 到 is another use of 到, which also means arrival, but at any location.

我走到市場 -- I walk to the market (the market can be anywhere)
我走來市場 -- I walk to the market (and that is where I am currently)


How to correctly use "多" to say "more than"? I know a similar question has already been answered but I still have a lot of doubts.

To my understanding if a number is ≤9, you need to put "多" after the measure word (or after the name if it doesn't require a measure word), for example:

  两年多, 两个多小时, 两公斤多苹果, 四公里多

and if the number is >9, you need to put "多" before the measure word, for example:

  二十多年, 二十多个小时, 二十多公斤苹果, 四十多公里

When I told my friend "十一多年" he corrected me with "十一年多" saying that if the number ends with a number which is not 0 (like 1 or 2), you have to put "多" after the measure word, but if the number ends with a 0, you have to put "多" before the measure word (二十多年), except for 10, which requires "多" after the measure word (十年多).

I then asked for another example, this time with 天 instead of 年. In this case he said that both "十多天" and "十天多" are acceptable. The first one with the meaning of "from 10 to 20 days" and the second one with the meaning of "from 10 to 10.1/10.2/10.3/... days".

I thought of an example that was written in that other question I linked at the beginning. If you add "多" at the end it refers to a number with decimals:

  "$50.5"(五十元多) or "$55"(五十多元)

In fact apparently this is also the case of "小时"

  十个小时多=from 10 to 11 (10.3 / 10.8...) or 十个多小时=from 10 to 20 hours

If I understood correctly this would add to the rules I wrote above a third one: if the "多" is at the end of a sentence the number will gain the meaning of a number with decimals. But why this is not the case of 年? Also, because of that I guess it's not correct to say, for example, "两多张床", because you can't really count bed with a number with a decimal. How do I say "more than two beds" then?

Are there specific rules depending on the measure word?

In my opinion, all the measure words, including 年，小时，and etc, work the same way. Let's take 年 for example.

多年 should be used only after numbers x10, like 10, 20, 30, .... For
example, 十多年：teens; 20多年：twenties; 30多年：thirties; ... ...
90多年：nineties(90-99); Thus, you can't say 9多年，11多年，...
年多 can be used after any positive integer numbers like,
1,2,3,...,100,...; 年多 connotes a bit more than, usually less than
1 year. For example, 4年 > 3年多 > 3年.

The same thing for other measure words. Both 五十元多 and 五十多元 are correct, but mean differently. "十个小时多=from 10 to 11 (10.3 / 10.8...) or 十多个小时=from 10 to 20 hours" is correct too. But expressions like 55多小时 and 55多元 are incorrect.

As for the specific question "How do I say "more than two beds" then?", you can use 多于, 不止 or 比...多. More: 多; than: 比 or 于, so more than: 比...多, or 多于; For example, there are more than two beds in my home: 我家的床多于两张; 我家的床比两张多; 我家的床不止两张;


What does 常务 mean in an official title? I have already met this phrase on many occassions, I guess it means a ranking less than the No. 1 boss when it is used in an official title, like常务副校长 is less or lower than 校长.

But when I read a report made by a local government official at the 14th China-ASEAN Expo, I saw that he mentioned "中国国务院常务副总理张高丽“, but as far as I know, there is no such an official title like that for this man or this post in Chinese Cabinet. But perhaps he wants to make others notice this man is the important person, with a ranking higher than other vice premiers his colleagues.

This term "常务" is originally from a Japanese term "常務取締役". The Chinese and Korean are still using the direct translation. For Chinese, it's "常务董事".

In an organization, the "常务" is more like "Executive". As the title suggests, they need to participate the daily operation of the organization rather than just providing dispassionate and objective criticism.

Since "常务" seems closer to an organization from "someone within an organization"'s perspective. So usually "常务" rank higher than normal vice-title.


Books for learning characters through progression diagrams and glyph origins? Just as knowing PIE and etymology can assist with learning vocabulary, I desire to learn Chinese characters from fathoming e.g. progression diagrams and their glyph origins. Your book recommendations must befit tenderfoot Anglophones who know no Chinese like me, so the book must be mostly written in English.
If you're recommending more than one book, please stipulate the difficulty of each book. I don't know how serviceable the following books are.
On Dec 6 2018, Furio Petrossi recommended

Dileep Rajeev, Learning Chinese Characters : An Ideographic Approach
Peng Tan Huay, Chen Huoping, Fun With Chinese Characters (3 vol.)
J. Wu et al. The Way of Chinese Characters: The Origins of 670 Essential Words.

On May 25 2014, OneEye quipped that

Wieger's book [Chinese Characters: Their Origin, Etymology, History, Classification, and Signification: A Thorough Study from Chinese Documents] is interesting historically, it's a fun read, and at the time it was probably the best thing available in English/French. But it's badly outdated now, so I don't think anyone looking for real character etymology should bother themselves with that book. It can be a handy book for learning characters, but for that purpose I personally like Rick Harbaugh's Chinese Characters_: A Dictionary and Genealogy_ better. As I said here, it also gets a lot wrong, but it's the best thing in English right now. But actually, Wieger and Harbaugh would probably go together nicely.

Amazon recommended The Origins of Chinese Characters, The Origin of Chinese Characters: An Illustrated History and Word Guide.

I suggest you try to get a sample of the books first and then decide which serves better your purpose.
I think there are mainly two type of books:
Type I: Simple learning descriptions
They are focused mainly on Chinese learners, are less about etymologically accuracy and more about memorizing characters and stroke order with simple descriptions / stories. There are a large number of these books, but most of them appear to be similar. For example, I found:

Matthews, Alison. Matthews, Laurence - Tuttle Learning Chinese Characters (Hsk Levels 1 -3) Revolutionary New Way To Learn And Remember The 800 Most Basic Chinese Characters (2014, Tuttle Publishing):

Tan Huay Peng - Fun With Chinese Characters:

Type II: Etymological dictionaries
(Also see: Where to look for history and etymology of Chinese characters? For example 工)
They are more about the etymological origin of the words. I also posted some useful websites:

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ A free content dictionary website from the Wikipedia group.

HUMANUM by the Research Centre for Humanities Computing of the Research Institute for the Humanities (RIH), Faculty of Arts, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. In Mandarin.

https://www.yellowbridge.com/chinese/character-dictionary.php

Wu et al - The  way of Chinese characters: The  origins of 670 essential words. It seems complete but with few characters.

L. Wieger - Chinese Characters: Their Origin, Etymology, History, Classification, and Signification: A Thorough Study from Chinese Documents. The oldest reference (from 1965).

In addition: https://www.zdic.net/ probably has also some etymological description, but it is fully in Mandarin and I can not confirm it.

Note: I have not been able to access these other books:

Dileep Rajeev, Learning Chinese Characters : An Ideographic Approach.
The Origins of Chinese Characters.
The Origin of Chinese Characters: An Illustrated History and Word Guide.


Why 这么 / 那么 are placed before the action verb? I have some confusion with the use of 这么 (this, so) and 那么 (that, so). I found these examples (from Pleco):

大家都这么说。
Dàjiā dōu zhème shuō.
Everyone says this / so.

你不该那么做。
Nǐ bù gāi nàme zuò.
You shouldn't do that.

where 这么 / 那么 are placed before the action verb. Grammatically, I understand they are pronouns acting as the object of the verb. However, in Mandarin typically the object goes after the verb. What is the rationale for placing 这么 / 那么 before it? Are they an exception to the standard order of verb + object?

[这么 +v ] = [v + like this/ this way]
[那么 + v] = [v + like that/ that way]
Example:
大家都[这么][说] = everyone [says it] [like that]
你不该[那么][做] = you shouldn't [do it] [like that]
~
[这么 + adj ] = [ this + adj]
[那么 + adj ] = [ that + adj]
Example:
[这么][坏] = [this][bad]
[那么][好] = [that][good]


is 尿 still pronunced `yao` in 江西话? 《广安方言与民俗词典》 says:

【yào】尿“niao4”的音变。此为江西话在广安一些地方的遗存。在实际语言运用中，要注意区分“要来了”与“尿来了”、“我要”与“屙尿”等相似音。
俗语：“打尿噤”，指因尿急身体突然颤动一两下。
“口水多，无尿屙”，讽刺话语特别多的人。
“你娃儿沟子一翘，老子就晓得你要屙尿”，比喻十分清楚对方的意图。
歇后语：“鸡公不屙尿——各有各的道”，指公鸡饮水但不排尿，自有它排尿的去处。比喻环境不同，人的际遇也就不同。

Specifically 【yào】尿“niao4”的音变。此为江西话在广安一些地方的遗存。.
Does this pronunciation still exist in modern-day 江西话?

I'm a zh-Gan native speaker from 吉茶片 永新小片. This prounciation of 尿 still do exist now in my hometown.

Example:'屙尿(ó yào)'


Implied erhua in writing? I often see, what I refer to as, implied erhua written in shop names, advertisements, on menus, etc. Take the following for instance:

嗝屁

You'd rarely ever hear gé pì read without erhuaization. So the idea is that, although 儿 is not written, it is certainly implied.

Technically it would be considered to be written incorrectly, as the example above should be written 嗝儿屁. But is this some kind of phenomenon that I'm half aware of?

There is such text in the 凡例 section in 《现代汉语词典》：

书面上有时儿化有时不儿化，口语里必须儿化的词，自成条目，如【今儿】、【小孩儿】。书面上一般不儿化，但是口语里一般儿化的，在释义前面加‘（~儿）’，如【米粒】条。……

The text shows how 儿化 is shown in the entries and explanation. The words with 儿化 are mainly divided into two groups: 1. Words that are sometimes written with 儿 and sometimes not, but are always pronounced with 儿化 2. Words that are usually not written with 儿, but are usually pronounced with 儿化.
It shows that there are words that would not be written with 儿化, but would be pronounced with 儿化. Each word has its own tendency as whether it would be written with 儿.
(Note: all 儿 in the quoted text showing 儿化 are in small font in 《现代汉语词典》.)


Why can't 去 or 回来 be used with 在 or 正在 to become progressive So first off, I feel I should specify I am a beginner at Chinese. In my Chinese class, we were asked to write down a progressive question, using the 在...(呢) format. My question was, 你们没在去吗？ which I interpreted as, "aren't you going?". Another student asked a similar question, with the verb 回来. My teacher said that in Chinese, 去 and 回来 are not used with 在 to become progressive. Why are these verbs exceptions and what other verb have the same exception?

The answer is "habit".
Because we don't write or talk in that way.

For example, both 肥 and 胖 mean "fat".
We call a fat person as 胖子.
肥子 is not usual because we don't have the habit.

He is going to school.
We translate it into 他在去學校的途中.
We don't have the habit to say 他在去學校.

That fat guy is going to school.
那胖子在去學校的路上。
??? 那肥子在去學校。 ???

Besides 去 and 來, 返, 歸, 往 and 到 are also included.
These verbs are used together with something like "on the way (途中／路上)" to express the progressive tense.

回 is acceptable. For instance,
Q: "他有沒有回電話？" (Did he call back?)
A: "他正在回。" (He is calling back.)


How to display the "left hand" radical as Unicode text? I want to display the two parts of the 右 character in a document. The first part, 口, is easy. The problem lies in the second part, which some sources call "left hand" radical.

This video calls it a character derived from the 十 (ten) radical. However, the drawing in the video is different from the one found in zhongwen.com, which is more similar to the original drawing (but at zhongwen.com it's an image, and I want an Unicode character).

Actually I've (probably) found the character I want (?) from here. But, even after I installed some 10 different Chinese fonts in my Debian system, it still displays as a square with numbers on it, and sometimes as a large blank space. I've updated the font cache, and still nothing. So, do I need some very specific font or what?

Just FYI, the top left part of「右」and the top left part of「左」have different origins. Also, neither of them have anything to do with「十」.

The top left part of「右」as a stand-alone character is now written as「又」. It was originally a picture of a right hand.

商甲後2.5.15合集24506秦簡睡・日甲36　今楷

The「口」in「右」was added later to distinguish between the meaning right hand (anatomy) and right side.

西周金夨令方彝集成9901秦簡睡・封21　今楷

The top left part of「左」, unsurprisingly, was originally a picture of a left hand. As a stand-alone character, it is now written as「」.

商甲粹950合集28882西周金三年師兌簋集成4318今楷

The「工」(picture of a tool) in「左」was added later to bring out the meaning of assistance, help, now written as「佐」.

西周金虢季子白盤集成10173篆說文解字　今楷

The top left component of「右」and「左」look very similar in the modern script, but the original components meant different things and had different pronunciations. For example,「又」, being the top left component of「右」, is also found at the top left part of both of the following characters, where it contributes both meaning and sound:

「有」(yǒu; picture of a hand「又」yòu holding a piece of meat「⺼・肉」> to have [something])
「友」(yǒu; picture of two right hands「又」yòu > friend)

References:

小學堂
國學大師

郭沫若《甲骨文合集》
中國社會科學院考古研究所《殷周金文集成》


What does 是是 mean beyond 是? Is it just a typo? This question relates to the following snippet:

  不约而同是一个成语，读音是是bù yuē ér tóng，意思是指事先没有约定而相互一致。
  Baidu Baike，不约而同

It introduces the chengyu (idiom) 不约而同, which means something like "doing something consistently, but without prior arrangement".  I'm just wondering why 是是 is used here---I haven't seen this before, so maybe it just means 是? Or maybe it's a typo?

Question: What does 是是 mean beyond 是?  Is it just a typo?

Putting 是是 into YouDao gives this example: 你认为将会是是错误的决策.  Maybe it's more tentative than plain 是, like 看看 perhaps.  I'm not clear on this.

It is a typo here, but in some dialects 是是 means 是不是, which is another story.


How is it decided where 了 goes in 这时他得到了公众的支持? In the Chinese wikipedia entry for Julius Caesar (the play), there is this sentence:

  凯撒死后，布鲁塔斯进行演讲为自己辩护，这时他得到了公众的支持

Firstly, 进行演讲 means "to make a speech"/"to carry out a speech". Why is 了 not placed after the verb 进行? I suspect it is because the sentence is not finished and the tendency is to place 了 after the final verb in the sentence (in this case, 得到), but please tell me if I'm wrong.

Secondly, I don't understand when 了 is meant to come after the verb or at the end of the sentence. E.g. what is the difference between 这时他得到了公众的支持 and 这时他得到公众的支持了?

My take on this is that, as you say, the aspectual 了 is placed after the final verb of the sentence, but I'm not aware of the existence of a hard rule for that. I would say it is mainly a matter of style. Maybe there are linguists here who can confirm this.

As for how to use 了 and where to position it in a sentence, this has been asked many times and you can find some pretty good and accepted answers here:
Tense and use of 了

  what is the difference between 这时他得到了公众的支持 and 这时他得到公众的支持了

The first one 这时他得到了公众的支持  is describing a completed action and sets the time in the past --> That time he obtained the support of the crowd.

The second one 这时他得到公众的支持了 describes a change of state (and tells nothing about time) --> This time he's got the support of the crowd.
Which implies that he usually doesn't have it.

However, since this last one example describes a change, the sentence with 得到 - which I perceive as a punctual event - plus the absence of a context sounds a bit weird to me.

So I'd prefer the first version any way.


Explanation for simplification of 遙 Why is 遙 simplified into 遥? The second does not really look simpler - except in this unfortunate digital form that I now see that certainly was of no consideration to those who enacted simplification - and it takes the same number of strokes to write. It seems an awful lot of effort to enact such a change for the little apparent return in simplicity.
More specifically, what criterion was followed for this simplification?

People outside Chinese region may think any type of character form change in Mainland China are "simplifications", which is not true. The example in your question is actually glyph differences, which are called "New Character Forms" or "Xin Zixing". It regulates the orthodox form of parts of glyphs, while "simplification" deals with "which parts are used to form a character".


Why Fiorentina is commonly translated as "佛罗伦萨" instead of "费奥伦庭那"？ Though “费奥伦庭那” is sometimes used, it is not nearly as common as "佛罗伦萨".
When the name of a place is translated into Chinese, why do people not use the most close pronunciation?
Another example is 亚特兰大, as a translation of Atlanta, is not as accurate as 阿塔兰塔 prononciation-wise.

Chinese 佛罗伦萨 fololunsa
Italian Firenze  [ˈfire̞nt̪s̠e̞]
English Florence /ˈflɒrəns/
Latin flōrentīna /fjo.renˈti.na/ etymology from flōrēns (“flowering”).

As above, 佛罗伦萨 is translate from English pronunciation.

Why not from Italian (翡冷翠,still in use today for some literary effect) or from Latin(费奥伦庭那 as you typed)?

  中国人谙英文者多,而习小语种者少,欧美许多非英语国家地名往往从英语转译,不是直接从该国语言译>来,例如慕尼黑由英文的转写(transliteration)munich而来,而非来自原名München[1]

详情请看翡冷翠 vs. 佛罗伦萨：译音及其原则, It's very long.

Why 亚特兰大 not 阿塔兰塔 ?

In fact, I think 鱫ai脦te兰lān踏tà is most close to English pronounciation. Completely transliterating results some weird words like 鱫脦兰踏. And for the perspective of specification, something like 英汉译音表 is a good choice.[2] . And the previous link is also helps a lot in this question.

Reference

http://www.cnki.com.cn/Article/CJFDTotal-YWJZ201002040.htm
(sorry you probably cannot download it)
picture comes from 世界人名翻译大辞典>附录二:译音表

notice, I am not professional.


Do '之后' and '后位' have the same meaning? According to MDBG and Ichiba, 后位 could mean after/post-something, so what's the difference of '之后' and '后位'?
Which one is correct:
- 葬礼之后
- 葬礼后位

Does 后位 have to follow a noun?

...之后 is a normal term to express "after...". So,  葬礼之后 is correct in this context.

后位 is short for 后面的位置. It refers to positioning, not timing sequence. It is only used in some particular areas. Someone had given enough examples above.

后位 could also be understood as:

皇后之位 in 宫廷剧 （Chinese royal opera);

Another 后卫： the back (defense position) in sports: soccer, American football, and etc.


What's the percentage of simplified characters in the most common characters? I've searched in here and elsewhere on the web and couldn't find the answer.

What's the percentage of the most common characters (say, top 5000) that underwent simplification?

Thank you!

according to http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_4d3f04b40100ffxk.html
有学者王鼎吉统计：以国家语委、国家教委1988年1月26日联合发布的《现代汉语常用字表》为例，在3500个常用字中，有简化字1116个，占31.9%，即不到三分之一
there are 31.9% character undergo simplification in the most common 3500 characters.


了 usage conflict "now" vs "completion" While learning about 了 usages, i confronted a headache conflict between it's usage or maybe it's an error so i need someone please to clarify this issue.

下雨了

If i go by it's use as action completion marker it mean it rained.
while in the course this example is for situation change meaning it rain now.

does it completely depend on context to figure out witch meaning ?
Thanks for your help.

了 (le / ㄌㄜ˙) has two meanings.

  放在动词或形容词后，表示动作或变化已经完成：写完～。

When it follows a verb or adjective, it's a perfect or past tense.

In this case we can use 过 or 曾经 to clarify its tense.
For example,

下过雨了 or 曾经下雨了
It has been rained.

昨天下雨了
It rained yesterday.

  助词，用在句子末尾或句中停顿的地方，表示变化，表示出现新的情况：刮风～。

(Particle) When it's used at the end of the sentence or as a pause in the sentence, it means something is changing, a new situation.

下雨了
It's raining.


What is the meaning of 屏幕前的你? In the following sentence:

  曾有朋友戏称，脱发已经成为了当代青少年担忧的最大问题！屏幕前的你，是否也在感概”头发都去哪儿了“？

I don't understand what 屏幕前的你 means. 屏幕 means "screen", but then I don't understand the part 前的你.

So what does the phrase and the whole sentence mean and how does it work grammatically?

屏幕前的你
Split it like this: 屏幕 前 的 你
屏幕：Screen
前：before

屏幕前 means "before the screen".
This means that 'The one (you) on the other side the screen'.
The sentence seems to be in an advertisement.
Translation:
Some friends (of the speaker) joked about baldness being the most worrying problem among adolescents.  And are you, who are on the other side of the screen, also worrying about where have your hairs went?


What is the meaning of 立体 in 立体还原一个地区地生态多样性？ When I look up 立体 at http://www.zdic.net/c/b/110/297322.htm I get:
(1) [solid]∶具有长、宽、厚的形体
立体图形
(2) [three-dimensional; stereoscopic]
(3) 包括地面、水、空中的
立体战争
(4) 指地面以上具有若干横向层次的
I guess, in this sentence, 立体 takes meaning (3), but I'm really not sure.

于是徐健成立了社会企业IBE，为保护区、政府等各类课题提供服务，他们的工作是建立野生动植物影像库，立体还原一个地区的生态多样性。

Maybe here 立体 just means 'completely'? Maybe 立体 is not 1 word here?
立体还原一个地区地生态多样性。
(to) completely reconstruct an area's ecological diversity
(to) reconstruct an area's land-, water- and airborne ecological diversity
What do they mean by 立体还原?

'In a multifaceted manner' seems like a good choice. In '立体还原', '还原' is a verb 'restore'  ; that makes '立体' an adverb

'立体还原'  can be translated as:  'restore in a multidimensional manner' or
'restore in a multifaceted manner' (having many aspects or phases)


Is e.g. 我与的朋友在二月份去中国 a colloquial way to say "I'm going to China with my friends in Feburary"? Is this a colloquial way to say this?

  我与的朋友在二月份去中国

or what about

  我二月份与的朋友在去中国

First, 的 is not needed and doesn't make sense. Omit it altogether (or make it 我的朋友).
Second, 在 is to express what is happening right now. It is close to "is doing ~" in English (e.g. 我在看书。). If you talk about what will happen in the future, 要 should be the word for it. So replace 在 with 要.

So, the one answer should be:

  我二月份要与朋友去中国。


Help with Buddhist meaning of 麼 麼 Occurs repeatedly in later Tang and early Song Dynasty Buddhist texts. Does anyone know of its Buddhist meaning, most translators disregard it. Thanks.

That character doesn't have a specific meaning, because it almost always used in a sequence of characters which represents the sound (not the meaning) of the original texts, that is usually in Sanskrit language.

It is like you call Jack by "杰克". The two characters mimic the pronunciation of the name Jack.


Backwards Translation: "Self-Willed" South China Morning Post (SCMP) ran an article recently called: "Online slang that found its way into leader's speech."

The article said (emphasis is my own):

  Online slang that found its way into leader's speech

  Use of trendy term proves a hit with internet users but baffles one official translator

  Premier Li Keqiang has caught the attention of mainland internet users with his use of the popular online term "self-willed" during his work report to the National People's Congress.

  Addressing the need to cut red tape, simplify administrative procedures and delegate authority to lower levels of government, the premier said yesterday that "those with power must not be self-willed".

  The remark became an instant hit with the online community, who shared it countless times.
  For all the latest news from China’s parliamentary sessions click here

  People's Daily's Weibo account quoted a source with knowledge of the drafting of the report as saying that Li had personally added the term.

  It is rare for casual internet expressions to find their way into the central government's work report, which is usually crafted with great care into formal language by a dedicated team of advisers.

  "Self-willed" has been a popular expression among mainland internet users since last year. They use it to refer sarcastically to the spoiled and wilful behaviour of the rich.

  Its popularity appears to trace back to a news story about a rich man who voluntarily transferred about half a million yuan (HK$630,000) to a group of fraudsters, even though he knew they were operating a scam, because he was interested in seeing how much they could swindle out of him.

  During a press conference for the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference on Monday, spokesman Lu Xinhua also used the term "self-willed" to refer to the public's firm stand on fighting corruption and the pursuit of the next big "tiger" - or corrupt top official.

  Lu's translator, apparently surprised by the turn of phrase, had to confirm with Lu exactly what he had said.

  Improvising and under great time pressure she initially translated it as "capricious".

  Lu is seen by many as a pioneer in his use of trendy internet catchphrases to brighten up the otherwise stiff annual parliamentary sessions.

What is the "self-willed" word in Chinese here that they are referring to?

任性 (caprice).
The internet slang 任性 is short for expression 有钱就是任性 (Baidu Baike), which refers to the phenomenon that rich people make "capricious" decisions because they can afford to make up any negative consequences with money, and sometimes they deliberately make poor decisions only as a setup to show off their power of wealth.
Another common variation of this phrase is 有钱，任性.
A popular English translation for this expression is "rich is bitch" or "rich as a bitch".
For the usage in Li's work report, here is a reference: http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2015-03-07/115431579527.shtml

“任性”从去年开始成为内地网民的流行语。他们用这个词来讽刺富人的娇生惯养和随性而为。
据香港《南华早报》网站3月6日报道，李克强总理在全国人大会议上作政府工作报告时使用网络流行语“任性”，引起内地网民的关注。
谈及简政放权时，李克强5日表示，“有权不可任性”。此话立刻引发网络热议，被网民无数次分享。

《人民日报》微博称，报告起草组负责人透露，这句表述是李克强亲自加入报告里的。
“有权不可任性”3月5日占据中国各大新闻网站的头条，成为多数媒体解读李克强政府工作报告的醒目标题。


How can "binary cross-entropy" be expressed in Mandarin Chinese? NOTE: "binary cross-entropy" is a terminology used in Machine Learning field.

交叉熵 seems to mean "cross-entropy" in Mandarin Chinese. According to this page however, it expresses the "binary cross-entropy loss" as 交叉熵损失.

Also, according to Keras documentation on Chinese (Keras is a popular deep learning library on Python):

  下面我们训练自编码器，来重构MNIST中的数字，这里使用逐像素的交叉熵作为损失函数，优化器为adam

However, it uses "binary cross-entropy" as a loss function.

Now, 交叉 means cross and 熵 means entropy. So there is no word for binary to be fit into. This page written in Chinese also shows it as "cross-entropy":

  交叉熵（Cross-Entropy）

So I wonder if it is no problem to just use 交叉熵 to mean "binary cross-entropy". Or is there any other word to specifically mean "binary cross-entropy"? How about other jargons, such as "categorical cross-entropy"? If I use 交叉熵, does it always mean "binary cross-entropy"?

I cannot find the Keras page you linked now. But I can still find the Keras document through search.

Binary cross entropy in the document is just a special case when the output can take only one of two classes. Make the context clear, there is no need to distinguish them in normal text. The mathematical formula of cross entropy just can deal with any number of classes (2 and above). So whether it is "binary" is implied in the problem you want to solve. There is no need to make it explicit.

So why the Keras documents explicitly distinguish them? This is because when the output can take only two classes, the input can take a different format than when there are multiple classes, and may save some space. So they have "binary_crossentropy" and "categorical_crossentropy", which deals with different input. Note that even you have only two classes, you can still use "categorical_crossentropy" by manipulating your input format to fit the requirements of "categorical_crossentropy".

As the translation, you may use "二类的交叉熵" and "多类的交叉熵". But these are only words that I coined up. There is no specific term for this, as this is only a software thing.


In what instances can use you use 干嘛 over 干吗 (and vice versa)? I noticed that 干嘛 appears used in various forms of media, such as newspapers, magazines, and movie subtitles.

From a pronunciation standpoint, 嘛 and 吗 are different (neutral tone vs. second tone, respectively), but from a practical standpoint they seem to be similar.

Is there an appropriate instance to use one over the other? Or are they (generally) interchangeable?

Different sources seem to have to different opinions.

Most websites (for example http://zhidao.baidu.com/question/84845451.html and http://zhidao.baidu.com/question/219005473.html) say that the 吗 in 干吗 has a neutral tone and "干吗" has the same meaning as 干不干 (or 做不做）. For example: 咱们干吗？ (will we do it?)

According to these websites 干嘛 on the other hand means "干什么", asking why are are doing (with mostly a negative meaning). This 嘛 has second tone. An example: 你干嘛呢？ (what are you doing?)

If you however check dictionaries, you get a different answer.
Of course if 吗 "干吗" as a neutral tone, it still has the meaning of 干不干. But according to these the dictionaries in the other meaning it should also be written 干吗. But with this meaning he pinyin of 干吗 is gànmá, so the ma has a second tone here. The only dictionary that has 干嘛 is MDGB, but that not a reliable one (it's one made by the Internet community and it contains many errors).

For example 现代汉语词典 has

  干吗: gànmá 干什么：您干吗说这些话？ㄧ你问这件事干吗？

您干吗说这些话？ can be translated as "Why are you saying this?" and 你问这件事干吗？ as "Why are you asking this"?

现代汉语规范词典 writes

  干吗 [gànmá]
  1. 代 [口] 做什么 你早干吗了，现在才说
  2. 代 为什么 你干吗不早说？

你早干吗了，现在才说 can be translated as "What where you busy doing before that you only say it now" and "你干吗不早说？" as "Why didn't you say before".

现代汉语规范词典 also adds 不宜写作"干嘛". In other words, you can't write it as 干嘛.

This being said, especially on the Internet you more often see 干嘛 than 干吗 and I guess in the future both will be probably become accepted forms.


(Literally) Seeing Through Things Earlier today, I ended up in a discussion which somehow involved people who were (literally) transparent. I was somewhat at a loss for how to say "Can you see through him?".

After some research, I've come across a few different expressions, but I need some clarification:

  通过 X 看 Y — See Y by means of X (e.g., see a planet through a telescope)
  透过 X 看 Y — See Y (physically) through X (e.g., see something through a hole in the wall)
  看穿 X — See through X (either metaphorically or literally)
  看透 X — See through X (either metaphorically or literally)
  识破 X — See through X (metaphorically only, as in "see through your clever plan")

I would like some clarification/confirmation:

Are 看穿 and 看透 totally synonymous?
Did I make any mistakes above?
Should I have said "他是能看穿的吗？" this morning?

看穿 and 看透 are hardly used in the literal way. They are almost synonymous as I can't think of any instances where they're not interchangeable. 看穿 has a slightly more derogatory tone as it's often used against tricks or lies. 看透 can be used against philosophical subjects such as the meaning of life.

I think the most natural thing to say about an invisible man in Chinese is that he is transparent or invisible: “他的身体是透明的。”

Update:

If you want a phrase akin to "seeing through", it should be (透过[X])看到[something inside/behind X]. It sounds natural but the focus is on the object being seen rather than the transparent medium. When you try to emphasize the medium, this phrase feels like explanation or development for a previous declarative (such as "he is transparent") rather than a standalone one. Also this phrase doesn't necessarily mean [X] is transparent; alternatively [X] can be a fishnet or the viewer has supernatural vision.

Examples (all of them are optimized for natural-ness and fluidity rather than syntactic completeness, but I asure you they're all grammatical correct):

蒸馏水冻成的冰块是透明的，人们可以*看见*里面的气泡。
当他穿上隐身衣的时候，你可以*透过*他的身体*看到*后面的东西。
*透过*云层，我隐约*看到*星空。
他*透过*窗静静地*看着*外面的世界。

[Advanced tips] There is a widely known phrase 透过现象看本质 (commonly translated into "see through appearance to perceive the essence"; 看 here is more 'find', 'seek' than 'can see'.) which sounds very serious and has a strong textbook tone. If you say 透过[XX]看[YY] where XX and YY are both two-character words, depending on the context it may (unintentionally) either inherit the seriousness, or become sarcastic, or sound like a ragged verse. This can be avoided by simply not using two-character words or replacing 看 with 看到/看见 or add fillers in between of the sentence to break the similarity.


Is 栖 pronounced xi or qi as in 两栖？ I checked several dictionaries it's [liǎng qī].
But it's pronounced xi in this  video.

栖 is the simplified character of 棲
棲 has two different pinyin

棲 /qi1/

(of birds) perch; roost

dwell; stay; reside; settle

~

棲 /xi1/

[adj] restless; fidgety

兩棲  /liang3 qi1 / amphibious; dual-talented; able to work in two different lines
The video use  /xi1/ instead of /qi1/, which doesn't match the dictionary. And base on the context, the dictionary is the correct one here


How do you translate 养得汞儿性圆，等待他铅儿花现 in a text about 睡仙气功? I'm currently translating a poem from a Tai Chi Manual about "Sleeping Immortal" (睡仙歌）, a related style of Qigong. The following passage seems to contain a lot of alchemical symbolism, and my current translation is as follows：

养得汞儿性圆，等待他铅儿花现。

“Cultivate Mercury, with a circular nature.
Wait for his Lead to appear like a blossom."

Is this translation on the right track? I'm particularly not unsure whether “儿” in this phrase is supposed to be a diminutive suffix or not.

the verse quoted is, well, different from the original text, which is in 道藏輯要 三丰全集 玄要篇下：
蟄龍吟

睡神仙・睡神仙・石根高臥忘其年・三光沉淪性自圓・氣氣歸玄竅・息息任天然・莫散亂・須安恬・温養得汞性兒圓・等待他鉛花兒現・無走失・有防閑・眞火候・運中間・行七返・不艱難・煉九還・何嗟嘆・靜觀龍虎戰場戰・暗把陰陽顚倒顚・人言我是矇矓漢・我卻眠兮眠未眠・學就了眞臥禪・養成了眞胎元・臥龍一起便昇天・此蟄法・是誰傳・曲肱而枕自尼山・樂在其中無人諳・五龍飛躍出深潭・天將此法傳圖南・圖南一派儔能繼・邋遢道人張丰仙

in taoism, the lead (鉛) - mercury (汞), dragon (龍) - tiger (虎) are metaphor. depends on the alchemy (external or internal); and sects, these terms might be explained diversely.

Is this translation on the right track? I'm particularly not unsure whether “儿” in this phrase is supposed to be a diminutive suffix or not

on the right track? i believe not. “兒”, yes, a diminutive suffix.
try this page, in english, not too peculiar
https://deeptrancenow.com/exc_taoist_language.htm


Difference between 目的 and 目标 I don’t manage to grasp the difference between the two words 目的 or 目标.

I have seen some explanations stating that 目的 means purpose and 目标 objective but I don’t know if it is a cultural issue or not but there’s no difference for me between those two English words, which are mere synonyms...

If I have a purpose, I have an objective and vice versa... my end / main goal would be as much an objective as it would be a purpose so I really don’t get where the difference is...

To me, it all means the result I expect/ work on... if I meant the different steps to reach my goal, I’d use the word “step” for that so I’m quite confused by what their differences may be...

Would anyone mind to elaborate a bit more?

Thanks for your input.

目的: goal/ purpose (intention of reaching an outcome)
Example: 目的是杀死比尔 = the goal is to kill bill (kill Bill is an intention and desire)

~

目标: goal/ objective/ target (intention of accomplishing something)
Example: 目标是杀死比尔 = the goal is to kill Bill (kill Bill is an intention and also an achievement)

目标 can mean "target" ; 目的 cannot
Example:目标是金牌 (the target is the gold medal)
You cannot say 目的是金牌 (the goal is the gold medal), you have to say 目的是夺取金牌 (the goal is to take the gold medal) and you have to state an action that would lead to the outcome, e.g 他每天训练8个小时, 目的是夺取金牌 (he trains 8 hours a day, the goal is to take the gold medal)
One more example:

目标是创造一百万个新工作 (the goal/target is to create one million new jobs)
一百万 is the targeted number; 创造一百万个新工作 is an achievement

~

"政府向小公司提供十亿美元的补贴, 目的是创造新工作"
"The government offers one billion dollars subsidy to small companies, the goal is to create jobs"

Edit:
After reading the OP and others' comments, I would try to make it as simple as possible for the OP to understand the difference between 目的 and 目标

When using 目的 (intention/ goal)  you need to state specific means  that would lead to the fulfillment of the goal. Many examples have been stated by me and the others. e.g. 每天训练8个小时 (train 8 hours everyday) is a specific mean.

When using 目标 (target/ goal) You can omit the action. e.g. 我的目标是金牌 (my target is the gold medal). It implies you would achieve this goal by all means in general

Just remember 目的 = intention (need to state specific action before it); 目标= target (don't need to state specific action before it, it implies using 'all' or 'any' mean by default.)

You can still state specific action when using 目标, but it would just be one of many actions you specifically state. e.g. "我每天训练8个小时, 我的目标是夺取金牌"  can almost be treated as unrelated, separate sentences; while "我每天训练8个小时" and  "目的是夺取金牌" are definitely related


"She" (她) for inanimate objects in Chinese(?) She in English (as this is the main language of the site) sometimes has the following function:

Used in place of it to refer to certain inanimate things, such as ships and nations, traditionally perceived as female:

Here's a line from 天下四川人 by 陈世松 that is in the '99 pressing that I have (with emphasis being my own):

这一人口数量j仅有寥寥可数的几个国家可以匹敌，让你无时无刻不感受到她的存在价值。

I have yet to come across this type of using of 她 in Chinese.

Does "she" (她) work for inanimate objects in Chinese?

If so, how?

edit:
Everyone seems to disagree but here are some examples from dictionaries:
Guifan

2 代 称值得自己尊重和珍爱的事物
我爱祖国, 她永远连着我的心。

KEY

3 {formal} she (as a reference to one's country, party, flag, etc.)

Hanyu Da Cidian

2 指可敬、可爱的事物, 往往用“她”字。
蒋光慈 《月夜的一瞬》诗
月儿如玉盘一般的圆, 她的美丽的清光, 神秘的笑脸, 引得我起了无名的幻想。
何其芳 《听歌》诗
我听见了迷人的歌声, 它那样快活, 那样年轻, 就象我们年轻的共和国, 在歌唱她的不朽的青春。

Liang'an

2 稱代自己敬愛或懷念的事物。如故鄉、母校等。

No, referring to ships and nations as female is an English thing. If you see that being done in Chinese, the writer must be under too much English influence. By the way, if I remember correctly, ships and nations are fererred to as male in Russian.

Edit

I believe you can find a lot of examples that use "她" to refer to various things, but still it's not common practice. In fact, using "她" to mean "she" was not introduced into Chinese until very recently, just a little more than a centuary or so, when Chinese people started to get familiar with western culture. Today most Chinese people are quite comfortable with this character for referring a female person, but the infiltration is not complete:

you would still encounter people (especially elder ones) who use "他" to refer to both male and female people;
while there are "她" and "妳", the character "您" still doesn't have a female counterpart;
it is used for referring to a female person, not an object, in most cases;
"她" and "他" are pronounced exactly the same, so are "妳" and "你", so the distinction doesn't exist in oral Chinese.

Furthermore, this really is a cultural matter. When an American says "my country" I believe he/she must have a motherly figure in mind, but to most Chinese people, the word "祖國" just doesn't give them the same feeling.


Which term and which counter to use when ordering simple meals? When ordering food at a cheap simple eatery in China, which words with which counters should I use that would be something vaguely like English "serve", "serving", "helping", "plate", "bowl".

For instance in English I might say "Can we have one serve of fried rice and two bowls of soup?".

In English you don't always need the words that are a bit like counter words, you can say "two fried rices", "two bowls of fried rice", or "two servings of fried rice".

Sometimes you might know that it comes on a plate or in a bowl so that might help, other times you might not be so sure, where the English words would be "helping", "serve", "serving".

But I'm assuming that in Chinese you would always need at least the counter word or both a noun and a counter word. Sometimes you might point at a picture or a menu item you can't read, or at a dish another customer has. In English you would say "one of those" but in Chinese again you would still need a measure word and probably a noun too right?

When you don't know the measure word, the safest choice is 个. It is the most common measure word, is used for things that do not have specific measure words, and can sometimes be used even if another measure word is used:

“个”作为一个量词，它的使用范围十分广泛。它可以修饰没有专用量词的名词，如人、馒头、国家、苹果等等；同时，一些有专用量词的事物，如“一只耳朵”、“一所学校”、“一家工厂”等也都可以用“个”来修饰，成为“一个耳朵”、“一个学校”、“一个工厂”，因此，有人称“个”为“万能量词”。
http://www.pep.com.cn/xgjy/hyjx/hyxxzy/hyxx/yffd/201009/t20100901_855523.htm

For food servings, 份 can be used too, but note that it is most properly used on items that are served from a larger whole. For example, this includes rice as it is cooked in one large pot and served in multiple bowls.
Where you can though, try to use the most specific measure word, as it will sound more natural:

Use 碗 for things that are served in bowls, often (plain) rice or soup noodles
Use 盘 for things served in dishes
Use 道 as a generic measure word for food dishes


Need help understanding 爱慕虚荣 I came across this phrase 爱慕虚荣 today in a piece of writing. When I use Goggle translate it tells me 爱慕虚荣 means "vain", but 虚荣 by itself also means "vain" and when I search for "vain" and ask for the Chinese translation I only get provided with "虚荣".

So does adding 爱慕 at the front change either the meaning or connotation?

Is 爱慕虚荣 commonly used when speaking or is it better to just use 虚荣?

虚荣 is a noun as well, meaning vanity. Now it's easy to get what 爱慕虚荣 means -- pursuing superficial things. 爱慕虚荣 sounds more literary. When referring to the character of a person, it is fine to say both 她是一个爱慕虚荣的人 and 她是一个虚荣的人. Both are common. The choice of the word also depends on the actual construction of the sentence. If there are other two-character words used in parallel, such as "他虚荣,自负,贪婪", in which you wouldn't want to use 爱慕虚荣 because it'll break the (sort of) rhythm of the sentence.


What is the meaning of 省 in character breakdown I went on zdic.net to find out about 乔. It says in the 详细 section,

会意。从夭，从高省，高亦声。夭，象人(大)行走的样子。本义:高

To my understanding, when a character is of the 会意 type, part of the character might be both phonetic and symbolic. So according to this, 乔 is derived from 夭 and 高, where 高 also provides a phonetic component (since the traditional script writes 喬). What I don't understand is the usage of 省 in 从高省.
It must mean something, or else my understanding of the description could simply be written as 从夭，高亦声, so what am I missing?

「省」 means graphically reduced, i.e. not the entire structure of the component is incorporated.
The given definition largely comes from Shuōwén jiězì:

《說文》：“喬，高而曲也。从夭，从高省。《詩》曰：‘南有喬木。’”

and since Shuōwén jiězì descriptions are linked to Shuōwén small seal script shapes, by looking at these shapes the description would make more sense.

Basically, Shuōwén thinks that 「喬」 is 「夭」 on top of 「高」 with its top 「亠」 removed, hence its description of the 「高」 part as graphically reduced (省).

To my understanding, when a character is of the 会意 type, part of the character might be both phonetic and symbolic.

No, 「會意」 means compound semantic, that is, all components hint at meaning. If something is simultaneously a semantic and phonetic component, the literature normally says something like 「从Ｘ从Ｙ、Ｙ亦聲」, e.g.

《說文》：“墨，書墨也。从土，从黑，黑亦聲。”

By the way, that description

《說文》：“喬，高而曲也。从夭，从高省。《詩》曰：‘南有喬木。’”

is incorrect, 「夭」 does not give a meaning hint in 「喬」, and is the result of graphical corruption.


Good translation for song title “二泉映月”? I’m working on materials for a concert of Chinese music, with an audience of general people here in Texas (not for the Chinese community).  So, I want meaningful and lucid titles in English along with some information to introduce the song.

Can someone help me with “二泉映月”?  I get something along the lines of “Moonlight reflection in the second spring”, and I suppose they know what “the second spring” is supposed to mean — that is, it’s an idiom or cultural reference.  Is this even supposed to have the literal meaning?

The Wikipedia article on Abing says,

  Abing's most famous piece is entitled Erquan Yingyue (二泉映月, engl.: The Moon's Reflection on the Second Spring), which is named after a spring in Wuxi (which is today part of Xihui Park). It is still played as a standard erhu piece, although it necessitates a special set of strings that are tuned lower than normal erhu strings.

The entry on Xihui Park mentions:

  The Second Spring under Heaven was the inspiration for the blind erhu player Abing's most famous composition, the Erquan Yingyue.

Second Spring under Heaven

  The Second Spring or Second-best Spring under Heaven (Chinese: 天下第二泉, Tiānxià Dìèr Quán) is the name of a spring in Xihui Park at the foot of Mount Hui. The park is located in western Wuxi in eastern China's Jiangsu province.1

So the title is:

The Moon's Reflection on the Second Spring

where the "Second Spring" refers to the name of an actual spring The Second Spring Under Heaven, which can be found in Xihui Park, Wuxi, Jiangsu, today.

Also in the article for Second Spring under Heaven it talks about the English name of this piece and its translation:

  Hua Yanjun, a famous folk musician also called Blind Abing, spread the fame of the Second Spring in his song The Moon Over a Fountain 二泉映月.[8] Although the usual English translation does not clarify what "fountain" is meant, the more literal translation would be "The Moon Reflected in the Waters of the Second Spring."

Here you can also see possible name translations:

The Moon Over a Fountain
The Moon Reflected in the Waters of the Second Spring

I personally think that the aforementioned The Moon's Reflection on the Second Spring is the most faithful translation though. But, Moon over a Fountain gets a lot of Google hits and there are even recordings of this song on Spotify by said translation.


Please help to translate the Chinese script from this box Received this as a gift from a Chinese delegation who visited our office. Not sure what is it inside this box as still not able to figure it out.... Please translate and help.... Attached pic of the box

华拓金服(hua tuo Financial Services)-best business partner among the Chinese Financial Services companies


不自量力 can this be used to under estimate one’s capabilities also? I understand the meaning of 量 is measure, estimate. But how the capacity also was the meaning? any background, etymology?

量 liàng measure, estimate, capacity, quantity

不自量力 bùzìliànglì not have a proper measure of oneself, to overestimate one’s capabilities

can this idiom be used “to underestimate one’s capabilities? “

Words gain extended meanings all the time, 量 is no different. Most characters have more than one meaning and some even have ten or more
A common reason for a noun to gain the function of a verb is for convenience
Imagine after the noun 量 (amount) was coined, it was convenient to use it for the verb 'to measure' because we measure 'amount'. And the meaning of the noun 'amount' extended to mean 'capacity'
不自量力 is a common expression. It cannot be simply and literally used as "not measure one's own capacity". 不自量力 always implies 'most likely taking on more than one can handle' -- not overestimate or underestimate but not estimate at all, which is always a bad thing.
“to underestimate one’s own capabilities“ is 自視過低 (see oneself too low)
“to overestimate one’s own capabilities“ is 自視過高 (see oneself too high)
不自量力 and 不知自量 (not knowing one should measure oneself = not knowing one's own place) express a similar sentiment


What is the role of 在 in 您要在关闭文件前保存吗？ I was using a text editor in Chinese, when I tried to exit without saving the currently opened  file it showed me this sentence:

  您要在关闭文件前保存吗？

What is the role of 在 here? Is it related to the usage of (some event)前? Or can be omitted without altering the sentence meaning?

It is part of the construction:

在....前
'before....' (used as a conjunction).

Here it means 'Before you close the file, do you want to save it?' The 在 effectively indicates a point in time, i.e., 'at' a particular time. (Literally translated into English, this would become 'at [the time] before you close the file').
This is typical of constructions like:

在...前
'before'
在...时
'when'
在...后
'after'
当...时
'when'

This tends to be a written usage and is omitted in conversation (and often in writing).


Can I use 兼 for more than two positions? 兼 takes two objects that are in the same category. For example,

一般来说，在IT行业一个中小企业创始者担任CEO兼CTO是常见的。
在我的家庭，妈妈是个厨师兼清洁工。

However, can I add one or more, and make it more than two positions, such as:

我是个创始者，但是由于我的公司因没钱而不能雇佣，现在我担任CEO兼CTO兼CFO。

Or is it only for two positions?

No, grammatically speaking, you cannot use any conjunction between more than two elements.

CEO兼CTO兼CFO  (✘)
CEO、CTO兼CFO  (✔)
CEO和CTO和CFO  (✘)
CEO、CTO和CFO  (✔)

I believe it's the same in English, instead of saying Alice and Bob and Charlie, you would say Alice, Bob and Charlie, right?

Another suggestion: you can use the word 兼任. E.g.

我是个创始者，但是由于我的公司因没钱而不能雇佣，现在我兼任CEO、CTO和CFO。


What's this vegetable in Taiwan called? Please tell me what this vegetable in Taiwan is called in Chinese. (I also don't know its English name so can't look it up in a dictionary.)

It's called 秋葵 in Mainland China. So is it in Taiwan I guess.


Difference Between 计算机 and 电脑 What's the difference between 计算机 and 电脑？Does the meaning differ between regions?

In most cases, they're interchangable and both mean personal computer.

计算机 could be used for wider range. Such as,

大型计算机 (large (-scale) computer; maxicomputer)
中型计算机 (medium-size computer; midcomputer)
小型计算机 (minicomputer; small-size computer)
微型计算机 (microcomputer)


Chinese quotes for tattoo I am looking for Chinese quotes or phrases about love, yuanfen, destiny or something along those terms for a tattoo. It’s really hard to find sayings that are really used.


What is the difference between 老X and X老 as a term of address? Here is an exchange I saw in a WeChat group today:

李xx： 请大家为28号投票！
A： 谢谢您，李老！ 【抱拳】【抱拳】
B： 谢谢您，老李！ 【偷笑】
A： “李老”是尊称，“老李”是称呼！
C： 【强】

I'm fairly familiar with the usage 老X as a term of address. And I gather that X老 is a much more respectful term. I guess my question is, when would I ever actually use X老? I seem to recall hearing a story a long time ago about a foreigner trying to use X老, but the old man being addressed was "too young" and the effect was awkward.

Related questions:

"小王" 和 "老王" how to determine which to use?
What is a good form of address for a male friend who is too old to be 小, too young to be 老, and too humble to be called 大?
What is the polite/proper way to address elderly whom I am not familiar with?

Here's an explanation: In the case of people with good moral standing and high reputation (德高望重), you can add 老 after their surname, this is a very respectful (很恭敬的) address.

Screenshot from a book on Google Books. The relevant, very short sentence touching your question is highlighted (sorry, not very professional, but legible).

Here's another source explaining this (mentioning scientists, statesmen, old teachers as the circle to whom you can apply this):

  对德高望重的老科学家、老政治家、老教育家、老文学家，可以在姓之后加“老”字，以表示尊重。如“郭老”、“‘钱老”、“徐老”。


Difference of 余 and 我 余 and 我 both mean I. But I still can't understand the real difference. Also, I want an example sentence. When I use Google Translate and Bing Translator, the result is same.

As Stan said 余 is archaic and only found in literature. As in

余既为此志。——明· 归有光《项脊轩志》

我 is what modern-day Chinese use as the first-person pronoun.

我喜欢吃苹果。

I asked some Chinese friends and they only recognized 余 as a surname or meaning surplus or extra.


Is 出国时船过香港 coherent? 围城 第一章（6）

苏小姐笑道：“方先生，你想得真周到！一天的事全计划好了。”她不知道方鸿渐只在出国时船过香港一次，现在方向都记不得了。

Does that mean Fang had only passed through Hong Kong once on his way abroad?
Is 船过香港 coherent?

船过香港 in this context is short for (他乘的)船经过香港. It is not a common way to speak, (more literary than colloquial) but native speakers would have no problem understanding what it means
If you say 路过香港, we would not know you're on a boat and would presume you personally visited Hong Kong briefly
Similarly, we can understand 枪指众人 = 用枪指吓(向)众人; 车弃路旁 = 把汽车弃置在路旁


How to use the 让 character I don't understand the meaning of 让. I found out that it could be used to ask permission, but also to permit or authorize. This is really confusing to me because I never know what it means... Could anyone explain to me how to use well, and how to understand it well?
I found these exemples :

奥运会可以让世界认识中国。妈妈让弟弟做作业。上课的时候，老师不让 我们 说。

Thank you.

In general "让" means "Let"

"奥运会可以让世界认识中。" = Let...known
妈妈让弟弟做作业。 = Let
上课的时候，老师不让 我们 说。= Don't let.

The "Let" word in English, we may use it to ask for permission. However in Chinese, not only it can be used to ask for permission, it can also be used to describe a consequence of an act (Made me to).
Eg. 他让我用他的车 = He let me to use his car.
Eg. 他让我觉得尴尬 = He made me feel awkward.


A Golden Rule for When Chinese Repeat a Word Twice X Twice? 热热闹闹 I have come across several times reading Chinese that they repeat words twice and then again.

For an Instance what is the difference between 热闹　and 热热闹闹　？

what is the grammar meaning when words get multiplied in that manner？

As a native Chinese speaker, I've never learned the AABB "grammar rule" from book. This means it's never considered as a kind of grammar rule at least in my student age.

But I don't agree with @gcd0318. There is difference between AB and AABB. In Chinese, repeating usually means emphasize the AB word, or to make the sentence sounds good to phonology.

e.g. 勤恳（diligent and conscientious） vs. 勤勤恳恳
Although they have the same mean, but use 勤勤恳恳 always make the audience feel that the speaker is highly applaud one's diligent and conscientious. Use 勤恳 doesn't have the strong emotional feeling.

Back to your example, 热热闹闹, it's the same as usage of 勤勤恳恳. It emphasize how  bustling it is.

And see this great answer for usage of repeating words in Chinese.


Why is "quotient" translated as 「商」 in mathematics? Wikipedia defines "quotient" as:

  In arithmetic, a quotient (from Latin: quotiens "how many times", pronounced /ˈkwoʊʃənt/) is the quantity produced by the division of two numbers.[1]

Does the character 「商」 have the meaning of "how many times" from its origin?
Why is "quotient" translated as 「商」?

商甲河687合集24225

「商」 (to measure > calculate, approximate, discuss > (1) quotient, (2) commerce) was originally comprised of 「辛」 (picture of a chisel or torture weapon > hardship, difficulty) and 「丙」 (picture of a workshop table), indicating trade professions involving measurement (e.g. of raw materials and dimensions). This is one of the earliest and most literal meanings of the word 「商量」.

「口」 was later added as a proper noun mark, referring to the name of the Shang Dynasty.

商金商婦甗集成867戰國・楚金曾侯乙鐘集成290秦簡日甲145睡虎地秦簡今楷

  Compare the similar addition of 「口」 (or its derivatives 「甘」 and 「曰」) in the characters 「周」 (Zhou Dynasty), 「曹」 (State of Cao), 「曾」 (State of Zeng), etc.

To measure was later extended to mean approximation or calculation, and then specialised to mean quotient, derived from its use as a kind of jargon in rod calculus.

  See a rod calculus tutorial on computing the square root of 234567. The top row in this calculation layout is called 「商」.

References:

季旭昇《說文新證》
小學堂
國學大師

郭沫若《甲骨文合集》
中國社會科學院考古研究所《殷周金文集成》


What's the difference in use between 教 and 教给? At first it seemed like 教给 is just a verb and a preposition, but 教 can be used directly: 我可以教你。
Is that a separate piece of vocabulary?

We use "教" as "teach", e.g., "我可以教你" = "I can teach you", "他教数学" = "He teaches math", "(这道题)我教过你了" = "I have taught you (how to solve) this question."

When we say "教给" we usually mean "give", like "这件事/物品交给你了" = "This thing is given to you，(and from now on you should be responsible for it)", "把这本书教给Tom" = "Give/Bring this book to Tom". However, sometimes we can use "教给" as "teach", depending on "what" you give to someone. For example, "你来教他这个技术" = "(你)把这个技术/方法教给他" = "(You) teach him the technique/way (of doing ...)"


What do the Symbols ◒ and ◓ Signify In Old Chinese Poetry Books? I recently bought an old manual of how 詞 (classical lyric) are supposed to be "filled".  The pages look like this:

Naturally am curious about the meaning of the circle symbols next to each characters and suspect they are related to classical "平／仄" phonology.  Indeed ◯ seems associated exclusively with 平声 and ● appears to refer to anything but 平声: specifically 去／入／上声.

However I am baffled about the significance of ◒ and ◓.  Analysis of some 菩薩蠻 lyrics indicates that the half-symbols, intuitively enough, mean that either 平/not-平 is allowable in that position in the lyric. For example, the first line of such a lyric has the pattern:

◒◯◓●◯◯●,

And the following are legal tonal groups (based on a pull of some 词 and conversion of the lyrics to classically defined tonal categories):

平平入入平平入
or
去平平去平平去

In that case what is the difference between ◒ and ◓?  Since baidu-ing "circle things AND classical poetry" has not proven fruitful, so thought I would ask for help here.  What are those "circle things" even called, properly?

Seems to be 清浊音, with ◒、◓ representing 次清、次浊. There are no tones in old Chinese, so it can't be 平／仄, but the way the tones emerged can well be heavily related to the voice of the consonant.


What's the meaning of 娷? While inputting PinYin's shui, I got the character 娷 among others. Neither automatic translators nor dictionaries gave me an accurate translation of it. I can identify the radicals 女 (female) and 垂 (to hang, to dangle; to hand down, to bequeath; almost, near). Maybe someone stumbled upon that character and knows what it means? Thanks!

娷

“娷”字的【字海】释义
㈠拼音zhui4。
①推委。
②饥声。
㈡拼音shui4。
①古女子人名用字。
②姓。

Two readings here. The first is zhui4, which comes with the meanings: to shirk responsibility/to blame others and sound of hunger. The second is shui4, which was just a character used in feminine names.


How do you say "to stay" or "to visit" a business instead of a person or vacation destination? How do you say 'to stay' or 'to visit' a business?

For example:
"How long do you plan stay at the coffee shop?" or
 "We are glad you came to visit our store."

Words like 看，访问，住，下榻，... All seem to pertain to traveling, or visiting someone. But my topic is about visiting a business or store instead of a person or vacation destination.

Would 坐 be appropriate? Like 你多久坐在咖啡店？But, I guess that does not work for 'to visit' if it is a grocery store.

How do you say 'to stay' or 'to visit' a business?

上 (visit)

上酒家 (dine in a restaurant)
上洒店 (*rent room in a hotel) * short stay for a night or few hours
上酒吧 (visit a bar)

光顧 (patronage; patronize | [粵]: 幫襯 )

光顧某店( shop at some store)
光顧髮型屋 (visit the hair salon)

other usage of 光顧:

被小偷光顧 (visited by a thief)

逛 (visit/ tour)

逛公司 (shop at or window shopping at department store)
逛遊樂場 (visit / touring amusement park)

泡 (visit / linger)

泡酒吧 ( visit a bar / linger in a  bar)
泡網吧 (visit or linger in an internet bar)

"We are glad you came to visit our store."

"我們很高興閣下光顧/ 光臨本店" or "歡迎閣下光臨本店。"
閣下: (formal) you
光臨: (formal) to honor with one's presence; to attend


What is the difference between '新型冠状病毒防控是当务之急。' and ' 防控新型冠状病毒是当务之急。'? Anyone who can explain the difference well?

新型冠状病毒(adjectival noun) 防控(n)是当务之急(relative clause)

Novel Coronavirus prevention and control is an urgent priority

~

防控(v)新型冠状病毒(n)是当务之急(relative clause)

To prevent and control Novel Coronavirus is an urgent priority


Is saying hao3 ch1i ba rude? I already know the various Chinese phrases for "bon appétit" such as "chi1 hao2 he1 hao2" or "man4 man4 chi1" but they either seem to formal or like someone's scolding you to eat slowly. Is "hao3 chi2 ba" a legitimate way to express the sentiment?

The most common way to express bon appétit in more formal situations is:

请慢用

请[qing3] = please

慢用[man4 yong4] = Enjoy your meal! / Bon appetit!

If you find this too formal you may take off the 'please' (请) and just say: 慢用.

Mind you this is most likely going to be said by a waiter/waitress in a restaurant or someone who is not joining the meal.

慢慢吃

is an option, but also usually said by someone who has finished eating before the rest of the party.

慢

Although, 慢 does mean slow(ly) in general in phrases like 慢点 (take care/be careful) or 慢慢X (慢慢走(take care)、慢慢吃(enjoy!), etc.) it doesn't, literally, mean slow but to take your time.

好吃吧

好吃吧 is made up of two parts 好吃 + 吧 —or— tasty + (I) guess. So this phrase really means - (It's) good, I guess.


一貧如洗 : What mean 一, 洗? ABC Chinese–English Comprehensive Dictionary (2003), p 1164.

In 一貧如洗, what mean

一? One what? Or is this subject pronoun "one" in English?

洗? How pennilessness or poverty relate to 洗?

洗 means being washed or flushed thus becoming clean or bare.
一 could mean "whole/wholly", "full/fully", or "all" similar to that in 坐了满满一车人.
I copied this from Google's Dictionary, which uses information from Oxford Dictionaries.
一
/yī/
1.
数词
数字，最小的正整数。
2.
数词
指同一或一样。
 「咱们坐 一趟车」
3.
数词
指满、全或整个。
 「坐了满满 一车人」
4.
数词
指专一或单一。
 「一心 一意」
5.
数词
指某一。
 「一天晚上」
6.
数词
指每一。
 「一组八个人」
7.
数词
指另一或又一。
 「乌贼 一名墨斗鱼」
8.
副词
表示猛然发出某种动作或突然出现某种情况。
 「往起 一站」
9.
副词
与「就」「便」等副词相呼应，表示前一动作或情况一旦发生，紧跟着就要出现另一动作或情况。
 「一叫就来」
10.
副词
用在重叠的动词之间，表示动作是短暂的或尝试性的。
 「跳 一跳」

一
/yī/
名词
我国民族音乐中传统的记音符号，表示音阶上的一级，相当于简谱的「 ₇̣」。


What suffix of location is more natural in Standard Mandarin : 头, 面 or 边? when I use 上 /下 /东/ 南 /里 etc. how do I know If I have to use 边 /面 /头？
I normally use 面, as in 书在桌子上面, but I want to be sure I'm right.

There are regional and personal differences.
I personally usually use 边. (BTW I am a native.)
面 is also OK and feels neutral to me.
头 sometimes sounds like having a dialectal flavor to me. Also, the different combinations are not always the same. For instance,
里头 feels quite neutral but 东头 feels more dialectal to me.


How to say the term "招" and "式" in English? It's used as a classifier, like this:

  "亢龙有悔"是"降龙十八掌"中的*一招*.

and

  *一招一式*他都记得清清楚楚.

So how to say it in English?

Generally it's called 'move'.
To be precise, 招 is 'move' and 式 is 'stance' or 'form'.
When it comes to a specific move, you can use words like catch (手 as in 擒拿手), hit (打), reach (长拳), kick (踢) etc.

一招一式他都记得清清楚楚。
Every move is imprinted on his mind.


What does 素弦声断 mean? I tried to translate this using Google Translate. It is hard to understand what 素弦声断 exactly mean.
does 素弦声断 mean: the sound of the broken guitar strings?
or
does 素弦声断 mean: the guitar breaks its strings?

Literally, It means strings broken so that the sound of 古箏(or 古琴) stopped.

素絃聲斷 comes from a poem. 素絃聲斷 means "It's no longer possible to hear that the beautiful lady plays 古箏(or 古琴) for me again."

倚危亭。恨如芳草，萋萋剗盡還生。念柳外青驄別後，水邊紅袂分時，愴然暗驚。
無端天與娉婷。夜月一簾幽夢，春風十里柔情。怎奈向、歡娛漸隨流水，素弦聲斷，翠綃香減，那堪片片飛花弄晚，蒙蒙殘雨籠晴。正銷凝。黃鸝又啼數聲。

when you see ancient Chinese dramas, the strings breaks when someone plays 古箏(or 古琴)...It's a sign that something BAD will happen.


Difference between 柱体 and 圆筒 I get the impression that 柱体 is more mathematical and 圆筒 is more about general "drum shaped" things. Are they interchangeable or is there a distinction?

柱体 is used more in geometry and engineering. It means a column-like body, which can be a square or rectangular column 方柱体, circular column 圓柱体, or any shape of columns.
筒 is a bucket. So 圓筒 is a round bucket or a barrel.


Videos for learning Chinese Mandarin I am well aware there of posts such as this, but I am specifically looking for videos that would be on youtube, for example. There are many videos on youtube, but I have been able to find anything that is like a lecture. I have only been able to find short videos here and there, but nothing that follows some sort of syllabus (lesson 1, 2, 3, etc.). Are there any such resources?

As what you said, Television also helps you that have all been in your seen post:

CCTV 4 (mms://8.3.230.132/cctv-4/cctvNews01.wmv)
NJTV 1 - Nanjing TV (mms://218.94.122.203/njtvxw)
XZTV1* (mms://218.3.205.21/xwzhpd)
XZTV2* (mms://218.3.205.21/jjshpd)
XZTV3* (mms://218.3.205.21/shzfpd)
NYTV - Nanyang TV (mms://61.136.113.41/nytv_1)

Besides, you can also see this:

快乐汉语

跟我学汉语


When to omit the modifying 的？ 他给她买来了一个戒指。
He gives her a ring that he bought.

I assume that this sentence should need 的 before "a ring that he bought" to be modifying, as below.

他给她买来了'的'一个戒指。

So I think 的 is somewhat omitted.

I'd like to know what rule can be generalized from this case.

Thanks in advance, and also Happy new year!

他给了她一个他买的戒指 (he gives her a ring that he bought) seems grammatical，but may sound strange， maybe one could also say 他作为礼物买了一个戒指给她 （he bought a ring for her as a present）

for the following cf。外国人实用汉语语法：

in the attributive， verb＋的， 的 generally can not be omitted，

examples：讨论的问题，旅行的人都来了，请的客人都到了

exceptions exist with 的 optional ；我看见过游行队伍 （some dissyllables modifying dissyllables）


Is the rendering of 相 into English as "mutual(ly)" sensible? Here is the passage with a rough translation of what I believe it is supposed to be saying, it is from 3-400AD, Buddhist scripture:

少欲者，少欲俱相類相聚相應相可；
few are the chaste, the few chaste are altogether mutually ranked mutually congregated mutually responding mutually functioning;

If there are other issues with this rendering please feel free to address them, although my chief concern is the usage of 相. Should it be read as "marked by [類/聚/應/可]"?

少欲俱相類，相聚，相應，相可 《雜阿含經》

少欲者俱相類，相聚，相應，相可 《佛說相應相可經》

少欲者: 貪欲少的人、欲望較少的人 People with less desire

俱: all

相類: 互相類似 They think and behave similarly.

相聚: 互相聚集 They often get together.

相應: 互相契合 They tally or correspond mutually.
相應 means to tally or to correspond (契合) in Buddhism, not to react or to interact.

相可: 互相許可 They agree with one another. They agree mutually.

相 may mean "mutually" or "each other".
However, one is an adverb, and the other is a pronoun.
I think the 相 in 相類, 相聚, 相應 and 相可 are more likely to be the adverbs, not the pronouns.
So, 相 means "mutually" here.


Difference: 些 and 有的 A while ago I learned that some was 些 or 一些, but now I've also learned that there is another way to say some, 有的. My teacher didn't go into the difference in class and I forgot to ask her afterwards. Is there a difference in meaning and/or usage or are they totally synonymous?

Thanks in advance，
William

The main grammatical difference, which hints to the usage difference, is that 些 is indeed a classifier.

This implies 些 gets involved when you're counting stuff. Now you say: but 些 is supposed to mean "some", I'm not really counting anything!
Well nevertheless you are, even though you are not expressing a precise quantity.

Now, let's add a piece to the puzzle.
As you may know, classifiers in chinese are also used to determine a noun, i.e. they replace the determinative article in English. That's why 那个苹果 can be translated as "that apple" but also "the apple", that one apple we talked about earlier in the conversation.

Our 些 in turn carries the same semantic value.

一些苹果 some apples

那些苹果 these apples / the apples

Therefore 些 is used when you're talking about a narrow topic, something circumscribed to a pool of common knowledge between you and your interlocutors.
Whereas 有 means "there is" and 有的expresses a general existential trait, as in 有的人喜欢吃苹果 = "there are people who like to eat apples" = "some people like to eat apples".

Tl;dr

些 particular, unspecified but possibly finite number

有的 general


What are the distinctions between 大概 and 大约？ Both have come up in the course of learning HSK vocabulary, and the dictionary definitions and usage examples I've found for each seem to have a good deal of overlap. Where should they be used, and what differentiates the two?

大概 is more general

大約 is more narrow. Specifically be used to express estimation of numbers

Both 大概 and 大約 can mean "approximately"

"There are approximately fifty people" can be translated as "大概有五十人" or "大約有五十人"

More example:

大概二十英尺 / 大約二十英尺 (about 20 feet)

大概四十岁 / 大約四十岁 (about 40 years old)

大概三年/ 大約三年 (about 3 years)

However, 大概 also means "probably" and "roughly"

You can say 他大概不会来了 (He probably won't come), but you cannot say 他大約不会来了 (He approximately won't come)

You can also say "大概說明一下" (roughly explain a little), but you cannot say "大約說明一下" (approximately explain a little)

  Whenever numbers are involved, you can safely use either 大約 or 大概 for "approximately"


Translation of this sign This sign was in season 1 episode 2 of White Dragon which takes place in Hong Kong. I was hoping someone here might be able to shed some light on what it says. Thank you!

It is '春夏秋冬行好运' written in traditional Chinese ('春夏秋冬行好運').

In this sentence, '春夏秋冬' means spring, summer, autumn and winter by order, '行好運' means 'good luck'.

Put them all together, it says 'good luck for whole year'.

Just in case you're interested, this is a couplet, it usually comes in pairs. The second line is ‘东南西北遇贵人’, which means wherever you go, you'll always meet nice people.


What does "二人要通过许多小的管卡" mean? From what I see from google, "管卡" is some sort of metal clamp? Would the phrase mean something like "the two of them passed through many small mechnisms"?

Shouldn't that be 关卡 = checkpoints, barriers？

二人要通过许多小关卡

2 people must pass through many barriers

Some kind of fun sports competition.


央行行长会: Is the second 行 necessary? 央行行长会 - A Meeting of the Heads of Central Banks.

Is the second 行 necessary? If not why not? Does 央行长 mean "Head of a Central Bank" or is it necessary to say the equivalent of "Bank-Head of a Central Bank" i.e. 央行行长.

This is an interesting question. My first impression is that there isn't such a term known as "央行长". But after doing a quick search on Google, I realize that there are people who actually use such a term though it isn't that widely accepted.

Let's take a look at the search results from a few similar terms before making a conclusion:

国防部部长 (11,500,000) vs 国防部长 (6,470,000)
协会会长 (8,630,000) vs 协会长 (1,010,000)
肃毒局局长 (31,500) vs 肃毒局长 (21,200)
卫生厅厅长 (6,320,000) vs 卫生厅长 (21,500,000)

As for 央行长:

央行行长 (4,310,000) vs 央行长 (80,600)

Language evolves with time and new terms are constantly being invented while old ones may fall out of use. Some of the new terms may gain wide acceptance while others may not. "央行长" could well be a new term which has not gain much acceptance. Therefore "央行行长" is still the recommended term to use in order to be understood.


What are some popular Engish songs that have Mandarin translations? I know a few like:
Perfect by Sophie Chen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjKumvgMy7s
Call Me Maybe by Dawen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grWp1KzmTYM
Are there any others?

Just off the top of my head:-
https://youtu.be/RC29_-aaeC0 (Tennessee Waltz)
https://youtu.be/DVwc-aJ6PSI  (Oh, Carol)
https://youtu.be/uqsOqk58UoM  (Sha Lalala)
https://youtu.be/vlhdL7Woovs  (More than I can say)


A reputation for something I know the word for reputation is 声誉, but how would I use this word to form sentences like:

Chinese has a reputation for being a hard language.
This boy has a reputation for being naughty.

What would 'for' be? How do I form this structure?
Thanks.

《牛津現代英漢雙解詞典》 shows an example, "have a reputation for laziness/for being lazy 以懶惰出名".

Chinese has a reputation for being a hard language.
中文以困難而出名。

This boy has a reputation for being naughty.
這男孩以淘氣而出名。

for 以


Can I say 爸, or do I have to say 爸爸? I will find that 爸 (bà) is father if I look it up in a dictionary, but I've never heard anyone say that or 媽, only 爸爸 and 媽媽.

But can I still say just 爸?

Sure, there are many different ways to mean "father" in Chinese:

父亲：a formal and polite word, not usual for daily use

令尊：a very polite word to replace "your father"

家父: equals to “my father” when you are talking with someone else (more polite)

泰山 or 岳丈: a very polite way to call your wife's father，while "岳父" is more common

公公: your husband's father

爸爸 = 爸 = 老爹: just like "dad"


What tone for retroflex r? The retroflex r is not the consonant r in a word (pinyin) like in 人  rén.
The retroflex is added as a suffix in the Beijing area, or as a diminutive suffix.
Would it be pronounced with the second tone, because 儿 is pronounced ér?
Or would it be pronounced like the previous syllable? Like in 哪儿 it would be pronounced 3rd tone, or 4th tone as in 那儿?
Is there a rule to pronounce that retroflex?

In pinyin erhua is usually written with a natural tone:

r

哪儿, like you mentioned above, for example is written:

nǎr

Erhua is tacked on to the end of the pinyin and the tone is in the usual place for the preceding character.
An easier way to see this is probably for a word like 瓶儿. 瓶儿 is written:

píngr

The erhua is not merged into the pinyin (like you may see in some topolectical Romanizations) but just placed at the end somewhat unsightly. This is because the whole word is read as a whole and not in parts.


Does 很 actually convey a meaning of very/extremely? In dictionaries 很 is translated as 'very' but I'm not sure this is correct.

If I want to say "I am happy" the mandarin is 我很高兴. The character 很 is used even though the english phrase shows no sign that I am very happy or extremely happy.

I have been told to say 我非常高兴 if I am feeling more happy than normal

So does the character 很 show any indication that I am 'very' happy?

很 is often pronounced lightly, so it is actually without any real information. It seems to fill the role of a predicate marker (e.g. 'copula') with adjective phrases. However, if it's stressed, then it does mean 'very'.
(Mandarin Chinese does have stress; however, it seems to get ignored in many language classes.)


Why are mussels called 淡菜 The name 淡菜 would suggest a meaning like "bland vegetable" or something like that. Why are mussels called 淡菜?

淡菜 is only the name for dried mussels or dried sea mussels.

汉语大词典's entry for 淡菜 says:

  贻贝的肉经烧煮曝洒而成的干制食品。味佳美, 以煮晒时不加盐, 故名。

So 淡 comes from the fact that 不加盐 (salt is not added).

菜 must be for the fact that it is a dish and not because it is a vegetable.


Ways to write "strength" What is the difference in writing strength as 力 or 力量 ?

I have seen it both ways and am not sure of the difference.

We say 电力 electric power instead of 电的力量; 马力， horsepower, instead of 马的力量，魄力，guts instead of 魂魄的力量，etc.

We say 有力的反击，effective strike back, instead of 有力量的反击。大力的支持，fully support, instead of 大力量的支持，etc.

we use 力量 as a separate word, e.g, 我们的力量, our strength, 团结的力量， unity,s strengths , 集体的力量，groups power, we don't say 我们的力 or 团结的力。

There is an idiom, 群策群力，power of team work.
There is a phrase, 团队的力量， power of team work.

From the above, I will say 力 and 力量 mean merely same, the difference is 力 mostly used as part of a phrase while 力量 is used as a separate word.


Understanding glyph origin of 勤 better I have the following etymology from Outlier Dictionary of Chinese Characters:
勤 qín is composed of 堇 jǐn “a type of ancient punishment in which fire was used to dry a person out” and 力 “force, power, effort,” pointing to the original meaning “toil, labor.”
my question is this punishment  killing the person with fire? or make him sit near fire to dry up? Please explain high level this punishment to understand the character better. thanks

勤 is phonetic 堇 + strength/power 力.
堇 has few interpretations. One is clay (yellow soil 黃 + 土).
Another is possibly a person being burned alive as a punishment  + fire 火. The character with this punishment meaning is 暵 and is not really seen in modern usage.
 is the basis for these 2 characters 難 and 嘆, meaning difficult and sigh respectively. It's a person with inflamed lungs/chest breathing in pain.
Unlikely there's any link from 堇 to 勤 with regards to its meaning, so if you want a sort of mnemonic, think of 勤 as hard work requiring strength 力 to overcome difficulty /難.


Phonetic pronunciation help for "秋子/Autumn Child" - Chinese trad Trying to figure out the laymans phonetic spelling for 秋子 (Qiūzi: Autumn Child.)

The closest I've been able to come is Chee-Oh-tsö (because the umlaut 'o' makes an oo sound).

But this still seems wrong. Any help for a newbie?

I don't hear a "oo" sound in 子。 It's more like a "z" without much of a vowel sound after it. To spell it out in laymans phonetic, I suggest: chee-Oh-Tzz  (or just one z) (Edit: or chee-Oh-Tzh, so as not to imply a buzzing sound?)


Differences between 蝉 and 知了? What are the main differences between 蝉 (chán) and 知了 (zhīliǎo) both meaning cicada.

Do they both refer to the same species?

Will either saying be understood by the majority of native speakers?

Is there a particular region where one is more common?

Is one archaic?

Yes, they both refer to cicada.

Most people use 知了 in both oral and written forms in mainland China. People almost never use 蝉 when they speak.

The reason cicada is called 知了 is because they make the noises which sound like they are saying (zhī liǎo... zhī liǎo... zhī liǎo...). Therefore, 知了 is also used to describe the sound cicada makes.

I'm not sure if one is more archaic than the other. As the word 知了 was used in classic Chinese literature 《月令七十二候集解》, which was written by 吳澄 in 元 dynasty (AD 1271–1368)

  蜩，蟬之大而黑色者，蜣螂脫殼而成，雄者能鳴，雌者無聲，今俗稱知了是也。


Translation of "we won't be able to see you"? 我们会不会看你？ I'm confused about a translation question. If I wanted to translate "we won't be able to see you" (the actual sentence isn't important, just future tense and then some action with 会), would I say 我们会不会看你？That sounds like a question, "can we see you?". I've been taught to translate future tense to 会, is there another way to say an action is in the future? I've heard that "要" also works, but doesn't that mean "want"?

As far as what you mean by see, the above answer is right in that context.  Do you mean meet at a certain time and place?  Do you mean at the moment?  Chinese requires a lot of specific information to be understood thoroughly..as you can probably ascertain, English is a relatively lazy language these days, as a matter of convention and every day speech.

As far as able, it is imho, most likely to be implying 能　or 可以　.

可以　means does one have permission.  (i.e. Can I see you? [Am I allowed to])
能 means physically capable or able.  (i.e. Can I see you? [Or is something preventing me..time, physical restraints, etc.)

We won't be able to see you:

我们不能看见你。　Means physically unable..which is not a quality or happening that is very likely.  This would more be used in another light, for example:
我们不能看见彩虹。　　This would imply that, perhaps, from your side of town you are unable to see the rainbow that someone on the other side of town could see.  Otherwise, it doesn't really make sense..because if every one cannot see that rainbow, then it does not really exist, does it?

我们不可以看见你..This is another poor choice of word (see), that is where the issue lies.  This implies that we are not allowed to see you physically..which makes for a weird scenario.  It also is somewhat open ended..it could mean a number of things.

You have to clarify what is meant by see, which is probably meet, and from there you can establish meet for what purpose.


Using 瑞士的瑞 to address the character 瑞 Since I'm not a native chinese, I need to confirm this with one.

For the character 瑞 would it be awkward if I refer to / address it when spelling a word to another person using 瑞士的瑞 ---> "Switzerland's Ruì" ?

瑞士 has the highest rank of frequent word that has the character 瑞 in it..

Please CMIIW

Not awkward at all. It is in fact a common way to refer to 瑞. Another option is using 瑞雪兆丰年的瑞.


Hanzi for "daigang"? La société chinoise depuis 1949 by Tania Angeloff (2018; in French) is a book about Chinese society since 1949. The author sometimes uses pinyin without tones to give the Chinese counterparts of some of the terms used in the book.

On page 73 she uses the term daigang, which she paraphrases in French as "[personnels] en attente de poste". The French phrase roughly means "waiting for a job or post". Unfortunately, the tones or the Hanzi are not mentioned, and looking up daigang in MDBG or MandarinTools.com did not help.

Does anybody know the Hanzi for this phrase?

It is 待岗, where 待 means wait and 岗 means job opportunity.


Is this question 你明天想做什么 correct? I want to ask: What do you want to do tomorrow? Is the following question correct?
你明天想做什么

I doubt where to put 明天 in the sentence and the use of 做 because several other characters can also mean do.


How can 那本书找了很长时间也没找到 be corrected? This sentence comes from my homework.
   那本书找了很长时间也没找到.

(1) What's wrong with this sentence?
(2) How can this sentence be corrected?

A subject in the sentence is missing
The following sentences would all be correct:
那本书我找了很长时间也没找到.
那本书他找了很长时间也没找到.
那本书大卫找了很长时间也没找到.
We omit subject all the time in dialogues, but only when it is strongly implied the subject is known
Example:
A: "我找到了不少作家X 未成名之前寫的書。"
B: "那作家X用不同筆名寫的那本你也找到了嗎？"
A: "那本书(我)找了很长时间也没找到。"
In this dialogue, B knows the subject in the last sentence is A himself. therefore omitting 我 is acceptable on B's point of view. Nonetheless, 那本书找了很长时间也没找到 is still ungrammatical
Note: You can replace 很长时间 with 很久. The meaning will not change
The above answer is based on Standard Written Chinese (SWC)


What is the meaning of 用支 in this setence? 支 usually means support or branch, but here it seems to take on a different meaning.  Unless it means they plan the support they use in their life on money?  I also tried to replace 用支 with 用之 and 用纸， but neither of those seems to make a ton of sense either.

  现代人，有的在金钱上规划自己一生的用支

original document: http://www.bailinsi.net/05wsbl/04wcl/02cswd/05/01/001.asp

用支 could mean expense， i.e. "所用開支"

The complete sentence means:

  Some modern people finically planed how they expend in life time.


Which one to use: 搞笑 vs. 攪笑 and 搞亂 vs 攪亂? For "amusing/funny," CantoDict lists these two variations: 搞笑 and 攪笑.

Similarly, these two words are listed as variations of each other for "to confuse, to mess up": 搞亂 and 攪亂.

In Cantonese they are pronounced the same, but in Mandarin, they are pronounced differently.

1) Which should be used for each meaning? Are both variations interchangeable or is one preferred (for both Cantonese and Mandarin).

2) Are 搞 and 攪 interchangeable?

The two words have different meanings

搞 is to do something in a very generic sense, with mostly no attached meaning. 攪 is also to do something, but it implies making a mess and sometimes with the intent to do so. 攪 have another meaning as mixing.

In particular cases, 搞笑 is used in mandarin but not 攪笑.

搞亂 and 攪亂 both means to mess up, but 攪亂 implies the entity who does so have the intent, whereas 搞亂 have no such implication.

攪局 means to make the make a mess out of the scenario, but 搞局 is "do the scenario" which doesn't make sense.

So no, they are not interchangeable.


What does 你就是个托 mean, which 文佳佳 yells at Frank in the movie 北京遇上西雅图 (Finding Mr. Right)? In the movie 北京遇上西雅图 (~13m45s), after not immediately getting her way about her room 文佳佳 yells at Frank who is helping her with her luggage:

(Alternative image link.)
你就是个托 我算是看清楚了

It means "you are a 托" and is some kind of insult, but I don't know what 托 means in this context.  It makes no sense to me (maybe it's related to 衬托).  The CC-CEDICT definitions are:

prop / support (for weight) / rest (e.g. arm rest) / thanks to / to hold in one's hand / to support in one's palm / to give / to base / to commit / to set / torr (unit of pressure)
to trust / to entrust / to be entrusted with / to act as trustee

Question: What does 你就是个托 mean in this context?

In this context, "托" means the person who pretend to involve an activity or to support someone to perform a scam typically.
It is related to 衬托, but derogatory sense only.


What is the difference between 时候 and 时间? When I want ask someone When will you eat?, can I use 你吃什么时间 (ni3 chi1 shen2me shi2jian1)?

I used to see sentences using 时候 to ask for the time. What is the difference?

Tuttle Learners

时间

  a period of time

  时间不够, 我没做完那道练习。

  Shíjiān bú gòu, wǒ méi zuòwán nà dào liànxí. As there

  wasn't enough time, I did not finish that exercise.

  我没有时间写信。

  Wǒ méiyǒu shíjiān xiě xìn.

  I don't have time to write letters.

时候

  [compound: 时 time + 候 a certain point in time]
  NOUN a certain point in time, (the time) when

  飞机什么时候开？

  Fēijī shénme shíhou kāi? When will the plane depart?

  他来的时候, 我正在打电话。

  Tā lái de shíhou, wǒ zhèngzài dǎ diànhuà.

  I was on the phone when he came.

时候 = time in general (what time does something happen, times up, duration of time).

什么时候 can even be translated directly as when in English.

时间 ＝ THE time (like; what's THE time, THE time in Beijing is..., I didn't have THE time).

什么时间, on the other hand, is seldom used.

The sentence you gave up top, ni3 chi1 shen2me shi2jian1, is like writing "You eat what the time?"

What you want to say is something like: 你什么时候吃饭


Difference between 前面 and 面前 If I got that correctly 前面 is used for things like 本子在书的前面 or 本子在书前 and 面前 is used for living creatures (the ones with a face) like 报纸在我的面前. Could you please confirm if I'm correct here or missing something and there's more to that?

Is that appropriate to use 前面 for persons as well? My teacher said that for persons 前面 is not really a correct preposition to use.

前面 means "in front of" or "at the front of". It can be used for anything that has a front, though in some cases just 前 may be better.

面前 means "in front of the face". It can only be used in the context of things that (literally or metaphorically) have a face. In many cases it carries a sense of "in the face of" or "in the view of". For example:

法律面前没有特权
There are no privileges before the law.
如何在喜欢的人面前表现
How to present yourself before a person you like / are attracted to.

So your initial suspicion is right.

You can use 前面 for a person, but only if you're strictly referring to the position, and not to the sense of "looking at". For example, you could use 前面 when you want to say "there are many people in front of me in the line" but not when you say "The student is standing in front of the teacher", where 面前 would be more appropriate.


Why one uses 了 and the other one doesn’t? 我每天吃吃睡睡，从来不运动，吃饱就睡，醒了，就吃，怎么还是不胖。

I wonder why the writer didn’t add 了 after “吃饱” whereas they added 了 after 醒.

I know what 了 indicates here, it’s just that I don’t know why the writer didn’t treat “吃饱就睡” and “醒了就吃” equally.

  1) Is it for the sake of “even amount of characters (4 - 4)”?

Then...

  2) Is it okay if I add 了 after 吃饱 > “吃饱(了)就睡”?

One trivial question to add :

  A native once corrected me for not putting 都 after 每天, then why
  doesn’t this one have 都 in it though?

Overall, your analysis is correct. It's indeed for the sake of “even amount of characters (4 - 4)” in this case. It might be more obvious if it writes: "吃饱就睡，醒了就吃" or "吃饱就睡，睡醒就吃".

吃饱了就睡 is also correct.


"更进一步，不知道该如何做" equals "But further, I have no idea to do it"? I translate "But further, I have no idea to do it" to "更进一步，不知道该如何做"?
Is it normal ?

Actually, some more context would be good.
更进一步，不知道该如何做。
*One more step, I not know should how do.
Depending on the context, you can translate your sentence variously as:
更进一步，不知道该如何做。
I don't know how to carry on.
I don't know what's next.
I don't know what I should do next.


Refreshing and bubbly What would be the english equivalent of bubbly and refreshing to describe something like a soft drink? What other words could be used to describe aspects of a soft drink, like the fizz and pop?

Not sure how literal you are trying to be, but if you want to say that this is a sparkling drink as opposed to a flat drink, 有气 or 有气泡 is what I've heard.

On the other hand, foods and drinks can be described as 爽快 (Shuǎngkuài), meaning refreshing, puts you in good spirits, etc. 爽 can also be used to describe a good feeling or state, i.e. 我感觉很爽 after a good meal or experience.


What is the Chinese origin of “kai shao” I’ve seen people explain the custom of relatives and friends to introduce potential future partners, and referring to it in English as “kai shao”.

What is the Chinese origin for this? The closest I can think of is 介绍 (to introduce), but the pinyin (jièshào) is pretty far off. The Cantonese pronunciation (gaai siu) is closer but still doesn’t sound right.

It's just 介紹.

Following the blog post, it mentions Philippines culture.
Looking up languages of the Philippines, we get Hokkien as a major Chinese topolect.
Looking up 介紹 in Wiktionary, the Hokkien Romanisation is kài-siāu.

The blog post spelling it as "kai shao" is just not following a particular topolect's Romanisation, but just spelling it out by ear.