What does "不要紧" mean? 众人回头观望，而这一看不要紧，所有人都是不由大吃一惊

According to an online dictionary, "不要紧" means "not important". How does the sentence make sense?

"The group looked back and that look was not important. Everyone couldn't help but be shocked greatly?"

不要紧 has two meanings (http://www.baike.com/wiki/%E4%B8%8D%E8%A6%81%E7%B4%A7):

Doesn't matter; not a problem.

Seemingly not a problem but ...

Here it is the second meaning. The logic behind the sentence is:

众人回头观望，而这一看不要紧，所有人都是不由大吃一惊
The group looked back. This seemingly trivial action lead to a surprising finding.


What does 传承跨越沧桑的壁垒 mean? 传承 impart and inherit
跨越 stride across; leap over
沧桑 vicissitude
的 poss.
壁垒 rampart; barrier
I came with 'passing the obstacles' but I'm not sure if it's right.

Here's an English translation from YouTube

and in text form:

Inheritance over the barriers of vicissitudes of life

Without directly translating every word specifically we could change this to something more user-friendly like:

An inheritance that transcends the barrier of time

You might even be able to fit "changes" in their as well to make it a little truer to the original Chinese.


Translate “修路致富” into English How to translate the title “修路致富” into English? I want to use it as the title of my paper.

"Wealth Follows The Extension of Motorways" is an expression that's been attributed as a "Chinese saying".

I first heard it on this video

China’s Super Highway: MEGAPROJECTS (Part 6) by The Daily Conversation.

Starting at around ~2:30 the narrator says:

  It seems the whole country's embracing the Chinese saying lu tong cai tong - Wealth Follows The Extension of Motorways.

Almost the exact same quote can be found in this blogspot post:

  It seems the whole country is embracing the Chinese saying, “Lutong Caiton,” wealth follows the extension of motorways.

It all seems to be based of the saying 路通财通. Which with the current announcements and actual extensions & building of highways and superhighways certainly fits your 修路致富.

It doesn't seem to be a well known phrase yet in English, but the Daily Conversation has almost racked up 1.5 million views on their youtube video, so it might very well become a "Chinese saying" in English.


Is there a Chinese saying similar to “Once two men share a woman, they’re brothers.” I read about the phrase in the title and traced it back to the following article:

http://www.chinafile.com/reporting-opinion/postcard/bro-code?utm_content=buffer2c3cb&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

However, the Chinese isn't given.  Is there a Chinese saying similar to this and, if so, can somebody provide the original Mandarin?

Thanks in advance.

++ The article states that this is a 'northeastern saying'.

I believe it is a Cantonese term.

Traditionally, a man would call the husband of his wife's older sister 襟兄; and that 襟兄 would in term referring the man as 襟弟. They were 襟兄弟 (lapels brothers) or 老襟 (fellow lapels) to each other.

襟兄弟 originally describe the relationship of two men married a pair of sisters. Somehow, people began to use this term to refer to the relationship of different men married the same woman in different time.

To avoid confusion and being joked at, people stopped calling each other 襟兄 or 襟弟 and started calling each other 姊夫 (older sister's husband) or 妹夫 (younger sister's husband) instead.

Outsiders in occasions would still refer them as 襟兄弟, with the understanding of the term also has a second meaning that is derogatory.

Nowadays, calling the men who have sexual relationship, (married or not) with the same woman in different time (or worse, at the same time) as 襟兄弟 (lapels brothers) or 老襟 (fellow lapels) had became the main definition, while the original definition of describing the relationship between two brothers-in-law had became secondary.

a Chinese reference

a Cantonese reference

  There's also a term 同靴 (in a same boot) or 靴兄弟 (boot brothers)
  refers to men who have sex with a same prostitute
  https://zhidao.baidu.com/question/62611723.html

  旧时称同嫖一妓者。《官场现形记》第三二回：“幸喜他平日，也常到 钓鱼巷 走走，与 余荩臣 有同靴之谊。”

  同靴之谊 means "relationship between fellow prostitute clients".  It also means "relationship between two men who have sex with a same woman" nowadays.


Can someone explain what the 其 in 順其自然 means? The phrase 順其自然 means trust nature to take its course in Cantonese, and every character makes sense except for 其. Can someone explain its meaning in the phrase? Thanks!

其 is referred to 'it' as in your translation. However, 自然 here does not necessarily mean the literal meaning 'nature'. Instead, it refers to the natural tendency of any subject you're talking about. If you see a child growing as he/she prefers to be rather than pushing him/her to be, 其is the child and 自然 means 'without intervention'. If you let something develop without attempting to change its route, 其 is that thing. In old Chinese, 其 as a personal pronoun is only one of its many senses.

What's more, it's a Chinese idiom, not just Cantonese.


What is the difference between 退欧 and 脱欧? On RFI Chinese Radio, they often have a topic about what I got to understand is Brexit, a current issue in England. They often use at different time the terms 退欧 and 脱欧 to talk about the issue. From what I understand, it's about separation of England from the European Union, but I can't get hold of the difference between these two expressions. Does anyone have an idea ?

Edit

First, thanks to @水巷孑蠻 for the answer which seems accurate. I accepted that answer but now @Tang Ho's answer bothers me.
What I find is that 退欧 and 脱欧 could be interchangeable. But now, it is implied that it could be depending on how the organization of England vs Europe is viewed by narrator. Both answers seem valid. How to choose ?

they are just translation of brexit.

"退歐" is 退出 + 歐盟 (eu)

"脫歐" is 脫離 + 歐盟 (eu).

"退歐" & "脫歐" like coke & pepsi, imo, they taste similar, it's hard to say which one is better :)


What does 这个书包看起来不大 mean? Can somebody please help me in the translation of this phrase?

  这个书包看起来不大

What does 起来 mean in this context?

起来 in this case is used as an adverb. It is combined with the verb 看 together as a phrase. 看起来 means looks as if. The people who is saying this sentence may not really look inside the volume of that bag, but only guess it would be big enough for carrying things, or fit someone's figure.

You can also make some other phrases in the same way, such as 闻起来 for "smells", 吃起来 for "tastes", etc.

"这道菜闻起来很香". This dish smells delicious(but might not tried yet).
"这道菜吃起来很香". This dish tastes good.

In such cases 起来 has nothing to do with the meaning get up.


What are the parts of speech of the words in 车外的阳光格外的刺眼, and why is this 的 correct? 车外的阳光格外的刺眼.

That's a complete sentence. I've got troubles understanding what parts of speech are. According to my dictionaries:
阳光 - sunshine,
格外 - especially,
刺眼 - to dazzle.
So the sentence would mean "The sunshine outside the bus was extraordinarily dazzling".
But... There's the second 的 in this sentence (阳光格外的刺眼). And objects which go after 的 are nouns (from what I know). So 刺眼 turns to be a noun? If so, where's the verb in this sentence? I really don't understand this 的. I'd gladly put 地 instead.
Edit:
This is 100% clear: 车外的阳光. The unclear 的 is here: 阳光格外的刺眼.

车外： Object + related location/position = place term, n.
的： Aux. term to turn n. into descriptive, usually in possession/belonging relation; or habitually added after multi-character adj. (single character adj. usually is optional with 的)
阳光： n. subject of the sentence
格外： itself is adv. no need to add any aux term.  月亮格外明亮/汉语格外难学
的： Double mistake - no need at all, or even if you want to put aux term, it must be 地
刺： v. as predicate.，literally means "to sting"
眼： n. as object.

Perfect:  车外的阳光格外刺眼。
Not so good:  车外的阳光格外地刺眼。


can you help me translate this ?? pls help me to translate this thnk you

【古诗英译】王之涣《凉州词》   译/晚枫

凉州词
王之涣

黄河远上白云间，
一片孤城万仞山。
羌笛何须怨杨柳，
春风不度玉门关。

Lyrics to Liangzhou Tune

by Wang Zhihuan
tr. Rhapsodia_晚枫

The Yellow River riseth up far into clouds so white,
An isolated city on mountains standeth sky-high.
The flute is futile the weeping willows tune here to blow,
In that beyond the Jade-gate Pass spring breezes never go.

第二版（12月12日）

The Yellow River riseth far into clouds white,
Atop a mountain standeth a lone fort at height.
Should the piccolo pick the willow tune to play?
Since over the Yumen Pass spring breeze reacheth nay.

经过这一番讨论，现在根据新的认识，拿出第三版，望各位批评：

The Yellow River reaches up to touch clouds white,
A lone fort sets far against the high mount in sight.
The weeping willow tune the flute needs not to play,
For yond the Yumen Pass spring breeze won’t make its way.

第四版 Dec 15 2010

The Yellow River reaches up into clouds white,
A lone fortress and a high mountain far in sight.
The weeping willow tune the flute needs not to play,
For yond the Yumen Pass spring breeze won’t make its way.


What is relation between 得 and 他 in these sentences? I have the sequence X得他 2 times. What confuses me is the 得他。 I think 1. can be rewritten as shown, but in 2. I'm not sure. It seems more like 使得 is just 'make, cause'.

It is said 'after X得 is an adverbial, but how can 他 be part of an adverbial?

吓他： frighten him 使他： make him

吓得他[拔腿就跑]。 = 他被吓得[拔腿就跑]。
使得他[闭上眼睛，心理就有竹子的影子]，= 他被使得[闭上眼睛，心理就有竹子的影子]

2。 （他）对竹子非常熟悉，使得他闭上眼睛，心理就有竹子的影子，因此他画的竹子徐徐如生，远近闻名。

使得： 某事物引起一定的结果： make

cause : （他）对竹子非常熟悉

effect: 他闭上眼睛，心理就有竹子的影子

使得 can express causal relation. If you read the sentence this way, maybe it is more comprehensive.

Example 1: 热使得气体膨胀 Heat makes gases expand, where:

cause : 热

effect: 气体膨胀

Example 2: 因为你的说明，使得我弄清楚怎么一回事 Your explanation makes me clear, where:

cause : 你的说明

effect: 我弄清楚怎么一回事


Etymologically Correct Character For The Sichuanese ‘niang’ Meaning "What" 邛崃方言

The character used here to represent ‘niang’ is 娘 but that obviously can't be the etymologically correct character for the above meanings (i.e.: what, how, etc.).

Etymologically Correct Character For The Sichuanese ‘niang’ Meaning "What"?

There is a better link to the article that is quoted above in this post on Sina Blog, which will let you search the whole article in your browser.

The article mentions the use of 合音字 in Qionglai and related Sichuan dialects, i.e. one character writing two syllables. Examples the author gives include “不晓” 写作 “表”，and “那样” 写作 “浪”.  Possibly 娘 is simply a 合音字 for the interrogative form 哪样.


Why is 就 used in ...我实际上在立法会内曾就胶袋问题提出质询...? 兩個月前，我其實在立法會內曾就膠袋問題提出質詢，因為我們有一次 到沙灘和路邊的郊野公園去，看見那情況感到很恐怖。 I looked it on MDBG but didn't get anything of important meaning.

ABC calls this a 介词 (converb) and defines it like this:

  with regard to; concerning

Here's the examples they use:

  就A 来说

  Jiù A lái shuō

  with regard to A

And:

  就A 而言

  Jiù A ér yán

  with regard to A

就膠袋問題提出質詢 = as for the inquires raised in regard to the problems with the pastic bags


砲響: were there cannons in ancient China? After reading Romance of the Three Kingdoms, I was surprised to see a lot of references to 砲響 (the sound of cannonade). Here's a few examples:

嚴綱鼓譟吶喊，直取麴義，義軍見嚴綱兵來，都伏而不動；直到來得至近，一聲砲響，八百弓弩手一齊俱發。
三國演義 第七回
城中全無動靜，眾軍一齊擁入。只聽得一聲砲響，伏兵四起。曹軍急退，背後張繡親驅勇壯殺來。
三國演義 第十八回

Obviously there was no gunpowder or cannons back then (the story was set in the 3rd century AD, and gunpowder was thought to have been invented in the 9th century AD), and the character 砲  suggests that it's a catapult instead. But the passages and wording (一聲砲響) suggests that it makes a single loud sound heard across the battlefield. Were catapults really that loud? Why would it be a single sound, and not a series, i.e. if a commander has multiple catapults and orders a volley? Or is it something other than a catapult?

Brewitt-Taylor's English translation of San-guo yanyi calls it a "bomb." This was a kind of "signal bomb" 號砲 or 信砲. The earliest real historical record of these seems to have been the Yuan dyansty, as Song Yuanyao's comment notes. Joseph Needham's volume on "The Gunpowder Epic" has a brief mention of the use of these, for instance in the Mongol attack on Yangzhou in 1276. I think it is safe to say that Luo's description of battles where these are employed is simply anachronistic.


出生 vs. 出世 differences? I was watching a Chinese movie about the Monkey King (孙悟空）, and after he sprung out of the rock, he said "我出世了". I looked it up and understood it to mean "I was born". Are the two terms interchangeable or is one more formal than the other?

出世 has more use scenarios than 出生. When used for people, it's same as 出生 (出生 is used more commonly for this case); but it could be also used for things which come into being.

  (1) [vouchsafe;come into being;be born]∶人的出生

  (2) [come out;be published]∶问世;产生

  (3) [be above worldly considerations;be not involved in the material
  world]∶超脱超脱人世束缚。佛教用语,佛教徒以人世为俗世,故称脱离人世束缚为出世

  (4) [rise above this world]∶高出人世


How to find earliest usage of a term? This question could be split into two types of terms: new expressions & old expressions.

For new expressions one could open Google &/or Baidu go to "News" (资讯) and then "Order By Date" (按时间排序).

Other than this I'm not sure if there are any better options.

As for old expressions: there was an answer on here before that mentioned using 漢籍全文資料庫 to find the earliest usage in historical documents.

Again, I don't know if this is the optimal way of doing this.

Ideas?

This question could be split into two types of terms: new expressions & old expressions.

I would rather split it into the following:

Textual usage in the classics & history, and later
Pre-Qin paleographic occurrences

While resources for the former are abundant (resources like 漢語大詞典 and later will give a good survey, even if not the earliest usage), resources for the latter are specialised and scarce. This is because literature of the former category are basically canonicalised, while texts in the latter category are still a fresh, hot area of research.
For a searchable database of the latter category,

For words, see 先秦甲骨金文簡牘詞彙庫.
For single characters,

The average user should look at 漢語多功能字庫 - this gives detailed paleographic explanations for each entry

If you have a  working knowledge of Pre-Qin script shapes, you can use 小學堂. Note that each entry in 小學堂字形演變 also links to a 漢語多功能字庫 entry if it exists.

小學堂字形演變 does not aim to give accurate glyph origin explanations. The character explanations given directly underneath the table are mainly from well-known or canonicalised books for reference purposes, and may or may not be the modern professional consensus.
The aim of 小學堂字形演變 entries is to provide a professional consensus on the historical forms of a character and related characters, presented in a table. For the actual explanations behind a character, please see the 相關索引 section underneath each entry for the references.

Worked example for words on 先秦甲骨金文簡牘詞彙庫: Earliest occurrence of the term 中國

Go to 先秦甲骨金文簡牘詞彙庫

Click on 詞彙檢索資料庫

Type 中國 in the box labelled 詞彙. Optional filters include (Leave blank to not apply any filter restrictions):

Part of speech (詞類)
Resource type:

Oracle bone script (甲骨文) and associated literature
Bronze inscriptions (金文) and associated literature
Bamboo and wooden slips (簡牘)

Click 查詢

Only one result comes up:

The citation (書籍 & 編號) is 殷周金文集成 6014.

嚴式 & 寬式 refer to strict and loose spelling: Since 國 did not exist originally, the word representing 中國 was originally written as 中或. Thus, 中或 is the strict spelling of the word as it appears in the inscription.

殷周金文集成 is hosted on 國學大師, and you can search record #6014 there:

Have fun deciphering! E.g. analysis of a short fragment:

隹（唯）珷（武）王旣（克）大邑商（則）【⿺⿹人彡】（筳）（告）【⿰于弓】（于）天曰余（其）宅（兹）（中）或（國・域） 自（之）【[⿰]】（乂）【⿸目十】（民）
For (唯) King Wǔ (武王) had already (旣) defeated (克) the Great (大) State (邑) of Shāng (商). He thus (則) conducted ritual divination (筳 > 筳篿) and prayed (告) to (于) Heaven (天), saying (曰):

I (余) shall (其) settle (宅) in these (兹) central (中) regions (或 > 國・域), and govern (乂) the people (民) from (自) here (之).


Has the iPad been genericized in Chinese? The other day I heard this guy referring to his 平板电脑 as an iPad (爱怕德), when it was just some generic tablet computer.

Chinese contains a lot of genericizations, 可乐 for soda, etc.

Is this one too, now?

I think in this case, it's true

"iPad" is more famous, most people (at least in mainland) aren't familiar with digital devices. People maybe don't know what tablet computer is, but they know "Oh it's Apple's iPad".


Difference between 客气 and 礼貌 On New Practical Chinese Reader 4, workbook, page 7, there's a story about Scott and a Chinese person discussing about manners. The Chinese person says 客气 and 礼貌 are different, and that he/she feels weird when Scott says 谢谢, 对不起 and such all the time, since they're close friends.

I know Chinese don't "thank" and "please" relatives as often as Westerners, but I never could tell that 客气 and 礼貌 had any difference.

Question:

What's the difference between 客气 and 礼貌?

EDIT:
After some thinking and analysis I think that 礼貌 is politeness related to one's personality, while 客气 is politeness related to the ways one shows it. Any thoughts?

As a complement to other answers:

客气 means 'being polite unnecessarily'. It's often used between close friends, family members, who generally don't have to be that polite to each other.

礼貌 as an adjective simply means '(being) polite'.


Resources: Chinese Minority Languages China has a lot of minority groups and each group has its own language, if not a bunch of them.

What resources are there for learning Chinese minority languages?

For example:

Naxi Dongba script : http://sinoglot.com/naxi/

Check out Ethnologue - http://www.ethnologue.com/country/CN/languages .

For specific information on each Chinese minority language click on "More information"

i.e. for Narua (6b (Threatened). Language of recognized nationality: Mongolian. Sichuan Province speakers assigned to the Mongolian nationality. Language of recognized nationality: Naxi. Yunnan Province speakers officially classified within Naxi nationality), it will lead you to:

http://www.ethnologue.com/language/nru

For learning, if you click on "Language Resources" you get:

http://www.language-archives.org/language/nru


What is translation for 或作譈懟，亦書作憞 ? In the sentence from the Kang-Xi Dictionary 或作譈懟，亦書作憞, I looked up
the characters 譈,懟,憞 all are pronounced  dui4 and all  are translated as to hate. I am confused  and do not know how to deal with this sentence. I am not sure, but those 3 charaters does not strike me as commonly used characters, or do they ?

或作譈懟，亦書作憞 means "also, it is identified to 譈 or 懟; and it can be written as 憞."
They are all archaic words and no longer used today. Neither orally nor literally.


How do you say "snap judgment" in Cantonese? There isn't a translation in the Cantonese dictionary. Is there a way to say "snap judgment" or the equivalent?

I don't think there is a Cantonese phrase equivalent to it. Usually we just use a sentence like "唔好咁快下结论" to express the idea of "Don't make a snap judgement".


Is there a more formal way to say 氆氇? Is there a more formal way to say 氆氇?

For example:

  你的衣服上掉了饼干渣，氆氇一下。

  There are some biscuit crumbs on your shirt,  get them off.

氆氇（pǔlu 〖藏pulu〗）是藏族人民手工生产的一种毛织品，可以做衣服、床毯等，举行仪礼时也作为礼物赠人。

I don't think native speakers would say this word. "get them of" simply means 弄掉它们.


What does this red seal and picture say or mean? (Characters identified: 天天快樂，前程似錦) Please help me find out what this means as live to know artists to find out what a piece of art means

The writing: 天天快樂 (happy everyday)

The seal: 前程似錦 (have a bright future)

No signature in the picture you posted


Proper translation for the exotic pets exotic pet is translated on iciba as

  外来宠物

VICE also translated it the same way in a video of theirs, also adding

  外来物种

And my absolute favorite

  野生猛宠

is there a common well known term for exotic pets? 野生宠物？

the SPCA hong kong used "珍奇品種寵物" for exotic pet.

http://www.spca.org.hk/ch/animal-welfare/welfare-law-development/exotic-pet-laws

click the flag to toggle between traditional chinese & english :)

imo, turtles, or parrots are not fierce. so, 野生猛寵, the "猛" is, not descriptive for certain species of exotic pet


How does 客 (kè, "customer, guest") and 气 (qì, "gas, anger") combine to give 客气 （kèqi, "polite")? Looking up their definitions:

  客气 (kè qi) = polite
  客 (kè) = customer; visitor; guest
  气 (qì) = gas; air; smell; weather; vital breath; to anger; to get angry; to be enraged

There seems to be no logic behind combining 客 and 气 to give 客气.

Question: How does 客 and 气 combine to give 客气?

I think the logic is like 口气，语气.

口气 is tone in English. 气 is air. 口气 is air from your mouth. Figuratively, it becomes your tone with which you speak.

So, my thought for 客气 would be you speak in a guest's tone, which implies you are being polite.


What is "god" in Chinese? I searched it from a translator and it said 神仏. Is that correct? I need the text for my hoodie that im making. There is so many answers and I dont want to write something that I dont 100% know.

It depends on your context. It could be 神 (deity), 老天爷 (Boss of Heaven), 上帝 (God), 主 (The Lord, used by Christians; other people just use 上帝). 真主(God of Islam), 佛祖(God of Buddhism, Sakyamuni specifically), 太上老君(Boss of Taoism)

Other neutral words
仙, 神仙


Difference between 特色, 特殊, and 特别? What's the difference between 特色, 特殊, and 特别？
Can you please show me some examples?
Thank you.

特色 is foremost a noun, and can be used to describe a specialty of some sorts, often associated with a region: 龙井茶是杭州西湖的特色。Note that 特殊 is rarely used this way.

But as most Chinese words, it can also take on other functions, such as: 西湖龙井茶的特色泡法。Here, 特殊 can also be used, as a stative verb or an adjective.

中国特色社会主义, or socialism with Chinese characteristics, is another example.

特别 is more of an adverb, as in 我喜欢音乐，特别是摇滚乐 or as in 我特别关注她的看法。


How to say 'never' in Mandarin Chinese? Research:

In here, https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=how%20to%20say%20never%20in%20mandarin
It says that to say never, you say, "Cónglái méiyǒu", but another website, which is this one, http://eteacherchinese.com/Chinese-Dictionary/never-0
says that you should say, "cónglái méi", so, how do you say 'never' in Mandarin Chinese?

There is seldom a one-on-one word translation that will work in all contexts. "从来没有 | cónglái méiyǒu" or "从来没 | cónglái méi" works if you're talking about something that has never happened up to the present time.

我从来没学过中文. (Wǒ cónglái méi xuéguò Zhōngwén - I have never learned Chinese.)

If you want to talk about the future, as in "something will never happen", you need a different expression altogether.

他永远不会来. (Tā yǒngyuǎn bù huì lái - He will never come.)

So, my suggestion is, if you're looking for a word meaning, at least provide a context.


Difference between 游学 and 留学 As in the topic, I would like to know what are the differences between 游学 and 留学. As far as I know a student going studying abroad could use any of them. Could he? When aren't they interchangeable?

留学 http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/dictionary/words/20426/
to study abroad

'留' = 'stay'; '學' = 'study'
'留学' means 'stay (abroad) to study'
If you say: "我要去留學" (I am going to study abroad), it implies there is a clear destination. e.g. "我要去美国留学" (I am going to America to study). In this case, you are going to enroll to a particular college or university in a particular city in a foreign country
'游学' is short for 一邊游历一邊學習 (learning while traveling). It is a very general term.
'游学' could mean you are traveling across your own country and learn new things as you go, from serious study like taking college courses, to casual learning like learn to make wonton noodle soup from a restaurant owner; It could also mean you go to many foreign countries and studying in many different universities or taking apprenticeship under different masters.
'四方游学' is a common phrase that describe 'go to many places to study' or 'traveling the world and study along the way'   . But there's no such thing as '四方留学'


How to say that you were accepted/rejected from a college in Mandarin? For example, how would I say something like "Harvard rejected me" or "Harvard accepted me"?

reject: 拒绝, 驳回, 否决, 否认

Harvard rejected me.
哈佛拒绝了我。
哈佛大学拒绝了我的申请。

accept: 接受, 答应, 采纳, 采用, 接纳, 录取

Harvard accepted me.
哈佛录取了我。
哈佛录取我了。
哈佛大学接受了我的申请。


Why is 大家们 (dàjiāmén) a thing? Searching Baidu for 大家们 (dàjiāmén) gives 8,770,000 hits.

Question: Why is 大家们 a thing?

It is surprising because 大家 (dàjiā) means everyone, and 们 (mén) is used to turn a few select words into plurals.  For example, 我们 (wǒmén = us, we), 先生们 (xiānshēngmén = gentlemen), and 朋友们 (péngyǒumén = friends).

It doesn't seem to make sense to say 大家们 and take a plural of "everyone".

大家们 is not correct.

Not all search terms with a lot of results are correct words/phrases.

You should notice that there are not many meaningful results in the search results. And the very first result is a Q/A site asking whether "大家们" is correct, and the accept answer says it is not. The second result is a paper from a journal that discusses this kind of errors.


忍耐 vs 忍受 usage/difference Based on the dictionary, 忍耐 = endure, bear with, restraint oneself while 忍受 = bear, endure. But when I look at sample sentences, the usage of both words sort of overlap each other. So how do I use each word? Is there any distinguishing usage between the word? Oh BTW, this is just my guess but I sort of did notice a slight difference which is 忍受 seems to mean bear/endure a situation while 忍耐 seems to mean exercise patience/put up with someone or something.

I answered a similar question here http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/phorum/read.php?3,114539,114551#msg-114551

忍耐- (n) patience; forbearance

忍耐- (v) exercise patience; restrain oneself

忍受- (v) to endure; to bear

Let's try put the terms into sentences

我未預備好，你要忍耐一吓。- I am not ready yet,  you have to be patient.
我未預備好，你要忍受一吓。- I am not ready yet, you have to endure it. (Doesn't seem as suitable as be patient in this sentence.)

~

我無法'忍受'這種痛苦！- I can't 'endure' this kind of pain.; I can't 'bear' this kind of pain. (it seem like 忍受 translate to 'endure' or 'bear' is correct.)
我無法'忍耐'這種痛苦！ - I can't 'be patient with' this kind of pain (This sentence doesn't make much sense)

More examples:

忍耐是有限度的。 (Patience has a limit)
忍受痛苦是有限度的 (Enduring pain has a limit)


It's Kong Lin's birthday, but she hates birthdays: is it okay to write 孔琳宁愿发现来月经而整天肚子疼，也不过今天? I'm writing a story in Chinese (which I go through with my teacher), and this is one sentence from it:

  今天是一年中她最讨厌的一天，孔琳宁愿发现来月经而整天肚子疼，也不过今天。
  Today is the most annoying day of the year, [and] Kong Lin would rather discover she's having her period and [have a] sore tummy all day, than "experience today".

It's Kong Lin's birthday, but she hates birthdays.  Importantly, I don't want to say 过生日, because at this part in the story, the reader doesn't know it's her birthday (it's a mystery for the reader---why does she hate today so much?).

I'm particularly uncomfortable with 也不过今天.  Here I'm using 过 to mean "to pass time", and the time is 今天.  "Pass today" (or "experience today") is an unnatural thing to say in English, but I'm not trying to write in English.

My teacher skipped this sentence, and I'm not sure if it's because it's a bit quirky, or because it's unproblematic.

Question:  Is it okay to write 孔琳宁愿发现来月经而整天肚子疼，也不过今天?

I would say 孔琳宁愿一整天经痛，也不愿度过今天。


How do you cut different things in Chinese? 割 ge1, 剪 jian3 切 qie4, 刮 gua1, 砍 kan3, 斩 zhan3

Could you list the major things you can cut using these? And linguistic traps I shouldn't fall for (e.g. you cut fingernails with one but toenails with another (it's just an example))? I would like to master using these so I'm asking about examples but also the logic of these characters, please.

PS If there's one more character worth being added here, let me know!

Cut things with a sickle (鎌刀) or in a motion similar to using a sickle is 割 (cut)

Example: 割草，割辫，割头，割尾巴 (cut grass, cut braid, cut head, cut tail)

  Cut things with scissors (剪刀) or cut things with a scissoring motion is 剪(cut)

Example: 剪头发，剪草，剪布，剪指甲 (cut hair, cut grass, cut cloth, cut finger nail)

  Cut things with a knife (刀), especially Kitchen knife (廚刀) or a motion similar to using a Kitchen knife is 切 (cut)

Example: 切菜，切饼，切水果，切肉 (Cut vegetables, cut cake, cut fruit, cut meat)

  Cut things with an axe or other cutting tool using similar motion as using an axe is 砍 (cut; hack)

Example: 砍头，砍木，砍柴，砍蔗 (cut head, cut wood, cut firewood, cut sugar cane)

  斩 (cut; hack) is similar to 砍 but mostly with a knife or other bladed weapons more slender than an axe

Example: 斩頭，斩木，斩柴，斩蔗 (cut head, cut wood, cut firewood, cut sugar cane)

Both 砍 and 斩 contains the meaning of 劈 (hack)

  刮 is 'to scratch' or 'to shave'

Example:刮骨，刮须，刮皮，刮毛 (Bone scraping, shaving bread, skin scraping, shaving body hair)

To determine which character to use, just think of what tool or what motion you use to cut the object, for example: a basketball. How do you cut a basketball in half? Certainly not by 砍 (to hack) or 割 (to slice). The correct tool is 鋸(saw) and the motion is called "to saw" (鋸) as in 鋸开(saw open) 鋸断 (saw apart)

  if there's one more character worth being added here, let me know!

削 (削皮刀- peeling knight; 削掉- to slice/ peel off)

闸 (闸刀- chopper switch; 闸断- to chop apart)

 (刀- box cutter; 开 - to slice open/ to cut open)

剃 (剃刀- shaving blade; 剃掉 - to shave off)


On Linux, how do I output Chinese Characters (not pinyin) using tones in the input I would like to be able to input tone alongside the pronunciation in order to input Chinese characters on Linux (e.g. ta1 = 他, ta2 = 蹹, ta3 = 塔, ta4 = 踏).

Most modern IMEs do not allow this input method, in order to type any of these characters you would simply type "ta", and then choose the desired character from a list. However, when learning Chinese, it is useful to be able to input the tone, so that when you are typing Chinese, you have some degree of confirmation that you are getting the tones right.

I solved this with my own research, but I wanted to share my solution with other people who might have the same problem.

Note that there are many questions on here about outputting pinyin with toned input (e.g. ta1 = tā) on Linux, and some about outputting Chinese characters with toned input on other operating systems, but I don't think there are any about outputting Chinese characters with toned input on Linux (though I may be wrong).

Try using Terra-Pinyin (地球拼音) which runs on rime (中州韻) which runs on either ibus or fcitx. It allows you to input using "-" to represent 1st tone, "/" to represent 2nd tone, ">" to represent 3rd tone, "\" to represent 4th tone.

I honestly don't remember the entire install process, but I give an outline as best as I can remember (but I may be wrong in some places). I use Ubuntu 18, so it may be different for you.

Open Language Support, click Install/Remove Languages, add Chinese (Simplified) and/or Chinese (Traditional).

Open Input Method, press OK, Yes, choose ibus (if it isn't already selected), press OK.

Open the terminal, run sudo apt-get install ibus-rime

Open settings, go to Language and Region, under Input Sources click the plus sign, click Chinese (China), click Chinese (Rime), then click add.

Restart your computer.

After restarting and logging in, in the top right, there should be a button that lets you swap between English and Chinese (Rime) input. If you switch to Chinese (Rime), you should be able to type in Chinese, using Luna-Pinyin (朙月拼音) however you will not yet be able to use tones in your input.

You may or may not need to run sudo apt-get install librime-data-terra-pinyin (I'm not sure if it comes preinstalled)

Finally, follow the instructions here to add terra-pinyin to Rime: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Rime

To summarize those instructions:

Go to home. Press ctrl-H to show hidden files. go into .config, then into ibus, then into rime.

Create the file default.custom.yaml

Inside it, write

patch:
  schema_list:
    - schema: terra_pinyin

(including the indentation), then save the file.

In the rime menu in the top right, switch to Chinese (Rime), then 3 options should appear. Press the second option (this will put your changes into effect).

Finally, you should have Terra-Pinyin (地球拼音) running.

Typing "ta-" will give you a bunch of first tone choices, typing "ta/" will give you a bunch of second tone choices, typing ta< will give you a bunch of third tone choices and typing "ta\" will give you a bunch of fourth tone choices.


Jean Pasqualini's book Prisonnier de Mao I found this citation in wiki:

  Jean Pasqualini's book Prisonnier de Mao:
      "Prison is not prison, but a school for learning about one's mistakes"

I wonder if it is a Chinese slogan of Cultural revolution time or was it coined by Pasqualini himself? If it was a slogan, can anyone give the original writing in Chinese?

I haven't found the point about learning from one's mistakes but this is the closest Mao quote I've found:

中国监狱制度的改革与发展

  “我们的监狱不是过去的监狱，我们的监狱其实是学校，也是工厂，或是农场。”

Which roughly equates to something like: Our prisons are not prisons of the past, our prisons are actually schools, they are factories, or farms.

Jean Pasqualini might have taken some liberties or licenses since this has to do with 劳改 (re-education through labor) with his translation, but I can't be sure yet.

Update: So, the wiki quote is listed as:

  Behr, 1987 p.283

Which is a reference from Edward Behr's 1987 book "The Last Emperor" - page 283, here is the excerpt in question:

  The difference lay in the overall approach of those in authority to all those accused of any kind of 'crime'. As Jean Pasqualini, author of Prisoner of Mao, a uniquely insightful analysis of the Chinese penitentiary system based on his own prison and labour camp experiences, put it: 'Prison is not prison, but a school for learning about one's mistakes.' Chinese prisons were places 'where the prisoners reform the prisoners'.

A translation of "The Last Emperor" (中国末代皇帝) was done by 黄群飞 (Huang Qunfei) and published in 1989, here is his translation of the above paragraph found on page 219 of the book:

  不同之点在于那些掌权者对那些被控犯有各种“罪行”的人的总的处理方法不同。《毛泽东的囚犯》一书的作者琼·帕斯加里尼，根据他自己蹲监狱和劳动集中营的经历，对中国的悔改制度作了与众不同的、独到的分析。他说：“监狱不是监狱，而是一所悔罪的学校”。中国的监狱是“囚犯改造囚犯的地方。”

Jean Pasqualini's quote is quite the resemblance of Mao's by saying:

  “监狱不是监狱，而是一所悔罪的学校”


Does 芋頭 have a different pronunciation in Taiwan Mandarin vs Mainland? My friends in Kaohsiung just taught me the word for "taro" 芋頭.

I looked it up and found yu4 tou5 but my friends here insist it's yu4 tou2.

Is this a pronunciation difference between Taiwan vs the mainland?

This is actually one example of a more general phenomenon. Mandarin, as spoken in Taiwan, uses weak stress (the neutral tone) much less often than Mandarin as spoken in northern areas. This is true not only of Taiwan speakers, but of other areas as well.  According to Jerry Norman's 1988 book, Chinese (p. 149):

  Weak stress (neutral tone) is an essential feature of the standard
  language, and of most northern dialects, but because its occurrence is
  lexically determined it is difficult for non-Peking speakers to
  master. Speakers of putonghua from many regions in South China,
  however, employ only a very small number of weakly stressed syllables,
  and these are chiefly limited to grammatical suffixes and particles.


What is the Mandarin term for great godparents? What does my child call my godparents?  Do my godparents become "great godparents" now that I have a child, similar to my parents becoming grandparents?

To most people in English "great godparents" means simply godparents who are very very good at it.  In general, "godparent" means different things to different people.  People especially differ as the the religious connotations.  For many Christians, a godparent has promised to assure that the godchild will grow up properly schooled in the faith, if the parents are unable to.

People who want a Chinese term for godparents have used 乾媽 and 乾爹.  But I think in China if you say someone is your 乾媽 or 乾爹 most people will think you mean that person is your foster parent or step parent.  In the west a godparent might become a foster parent, if the parents die, but usually that does not happen.

By far the most common use of  乾媽 on line is to name 老干妈 chili sauce.  And in Taiwan at least one person has used 乾媽 to mean oranges.  See  http://news.ltn.com.tw/news/society/breakingnews/1593333

So I think if you want to express your idea of godparents in Chinese, you should first be clearer about your idea in English.  If you mean, for example the Catholic Church sense of the term, then you could ask Chinese Catholics how they express it.


Why 摺 in Simplified Texts and not 折? I've seen 摺 (almost intentionally I would assume) written in numerous simplified texts, especially with the word 摺叠.

Here's one example (emphasis is my own):

浙江在线 《以“色”诱人 专属定制》

  浙江在线·住在杭州网3月3日消息 一方飘逸的丝巾，摺叠间营造出许多迥异的情调，变幻出万种风情。不同颜色、不同戴法，搭配出多少不同的你，或端庄秀丽、或热情奔放、或甜美娇人，让你摇曳生姿，变的生动而魅力。

Grand Ricci seems to like this simplification too, it contains an entry for 摺叠 but none for 折叠.

Guifan has the following footnote:

  注意 “摺”简化为“折”, 但在“摺”和“折”意义可能混淆时, 《简化字总表》规定仍用“摺”。

Which doesn't totally clear things up, really.

What reason would 摺 be used in simplified texts as opposed to 折?
Is this a regional variant? (i.e.: TW/HK vs. Mainland, etc.)
Where would 折 and 摺 have different meanings? (Like mentioned in Guifan?)

折 is not a simplified character. 摺 just happens to be a rarer character that means the same thing, namely to fold (v), or folder (n).

折 is here much more versatile, and has additional connotations, such as break, lose, die, act, and so on.

Here we have words such as 打摺 (fold), which is obviously not the same as 打折 (make a discount).


What is the exact meaning of '能虐到我的只有没钱'? I found this meme (?) on a group, and I'm not sure what is the exact meaning of this. Can someone help me ?

虐 means "torture"

In combat game lingo 完虐 (complete torture) means "defeat someone in a completely dominating fashion that it is not even a fight but a one sided torture"

The usage of 完虐 has extended outside of gaming field. It can be used in any field of competition, or simply describe " dominating"

能虐到我的 - the thing that can defeat me like a one sided torture

只有没钱 - is only poverty

He is not afraid of anything, but afraid of being poor very much


Usage of 的要 in 頭髮太長囉，該剪的要剪一剪了 I am having difficulty understanding how 的要 is being used in the second sentence:

  頭髮太長囉
  該剪的要剪一剪了

The first sentence makes sense: [Your] hair [is]  too long

However I don't understand at all how 的 and 要 are operating in the second one.  I was not able to find any information on it online (I may have searched for the wrong terms).

"的要" is not a term; "的" makes the phrase a noun, so "該(should)剪(cut)的" means "what should be cut". "要" means should/must/shall/will, so the whole sentence literally means "(you) should cut (the long hair) what should be cut".


着 vs 著? Is it the same Is 着 the same as 著? Can I interchange them, for example:

Is

這位着名的歌手的名字是__

The same as

 這位著名的歌手的名字是__

(put a name in "__")

So here's a wrap up of the comments above.

着 is a Simplified Chinese only† character, so you won't find it in Traditional Chinese dictionaries, unless they explicitly list them.

See e.g. 教育部重编国语辞典. (找不到, because there is not such character in Traditional Chinese) I assume that OP uses Traditional Chinese because of the 這 used in the example sentences.

† EDIT: *As @Stan pointed out above, 着 is used even outside of Mainland China, as a folk alternate form of 著, but it is not considered correct, at least in Taiwanese usage. However it is a proper form as 'zhe' in HK.

However, we have 着 in Simplified Chinese where it corresponds mostly to the 著 character that is found both in Traditional and Simplified Chinese. The subtle, yet important difference is that when 著 is distinctively read 'zhù', it is written in both variants as 著 and in this case it doesn't correspond to 着. So 著名 is 著名 even in Simplified Chinese. In other cases - with different readings, like, 站著 (Trad.) corresponds to 站着 (Simpl.)

My theory is that some Simplified Chinese users are not aware of this use case and assume a 100% Simplified-Traditional correspondence between the two characters or even automatic ('character-by-character') machine transliteration could have contributed to the wrong assumption that 著名 can be written as 着名.


Is this email correct grammatically and structurally? 希望你一切都好。我已经学习七张纸你给我。…… Recently I have tried to become more proficient in writing emails in Chinese. The structure for these are difficult, I have provided an example of a email I recently wrote. Is this correct grammatically and structurally?

To: Zoutang Zhang
3030 A1和A2课程
张博士晚上好，
希望你一切都好。我已经学习七张纸你给我。
明天我要也提交LTT 1.除了你发送的两封电
子邮件之外，还有什么我应该学习的？谢谢你
的帮助。
你的学生、
欧阳威利

(Original image.)

There are some basic grammatical things you should take note of, along with some stylistic/cultural things you need to keep in mind, considering that you are writing to a teacher, and not a peer. Furthermore, letters are a unique class of literature in most languages, including Chinese. There are specific formats, traditions, and phrases that are unique to letters. In the modern setting, some apply to emails as well, while some are considered a bit archaic. Your command of the balance between modern and traditional will grow as you write and receive more and more letters. I've written some notes sentence by sentence below.

張博士晚上好 -- This sounds a bit Western to me, which isn't necessarily bad, because many native speakers are also influenced by Western phrases these days. In more traditional spheres, the opening to a letter usually follows the formula: 稱謂＋提稱。稱謂 basically means a name, in this case it's just 張博士。 提稱 literally means "elevating phrase." There's a whole list of these things--I've attached a helpful guide below in case you're interested. For a teacher, an appropriate 提稱 is 尊鑑 or 台鑒。  They literally translate to something like "Please view, your dignity." This opening phrase is ALWAYS followed by a :, and nothing else.
希望你一切都好。 The second line is always on the second line and indented. Also, when referring to someone who is higher than you in social class--in this case, to a teacher-- always use the more polite 您。There's not much else wrong with this sentence, except that if you want to be a bit fancier, you could add a 啟辭, literally "opening phrase." Some suitable ones include 「謹啟者」。
我已經學習七張紙你給我。Grammar--take note of the modifying clause here, 「你給我」。This is directly modifying the noun clause 「七張紙」。Modifying clauses come before the noun in Chinese, and is linked with the word 「的」。You seem to have gotten it in the next sentence, so I imagine this was more of a careless mistake. Additionally, the word for study guides, which I'm assuming the 紙 are, is 「講義」or 「學習單」。As to the verb--已經 is paired with Verb+了 to denote tense. And finally, use 您。This gives us: 「我已經學習了您給我的七張講義。」
明天我也要提交ＬＴＴ1。 I don't really understand the context here, so it's hard to say whether or not this sentence should be changed. One thing to note, though, is saying 「明天我也要」implies a connotation of you either really looking forward to submitting LTT1, or you being forced to do so. Chinese contexts get crazy sometimes and this is a good example.
除了你發送的兩封電子郵件之外，還有什麼我應該學習的？ This may be just me, but it sounds a just a tiny tiny wee bit demanding. In Chinese, just a bit more polite fanfare is often a good idea. Other than the usual 您 instead of 你，there's something you can make even more polite for the second part. A more polite sentence could be 「不知道還有沒有其他我應該學習的講義/重點/內容？」
謝謝你的幫助。 - 您

6.你的學生。 In Chinese letters, we don't use the last sentence to describe ourselves. Usually the last line is used to express some polite sentiments to the receiver, such as gratitude, love, care, etc.. This is highly formulaic and you should always consult a guide before you write this. Some gratitude lines include: 「多勞費心，銘感不已」, which means "I have endless thanks for your worries and inconvenience," or 「至盼即時示下,無任感禱」, literally "I very much look forward to your guidance, and am very thankful."

7.歐陽威利 - Following the letter, it is customary to write the word 「緘」 to mark the ending of the letter. In a letter that doesn't have any strong emotions, just the one word is fine. However, if you wish to express more, such as in a case of respect, you may write 「謹緘」, literally "I close this letter with much care".

Some extra info: In Chinese, there's something called 「抬」, which literally means lifting up, or elevation. It is used when you mention a respected person's name within the body (i.e., not the opening or the ending) of the letter. This applies to basically all writings, including novels, official documents, plaques, and of course letters.

There are many kinds of 抬，and there are two that are the most common: 「平抬」and 「挪抬」。平抬 is when you put the respected name in the next line. For instance:

張博士親鑑：

博士晚上好。學生聽聞

王安娜博士近日發表論文，昨日拜讀，奈學生愚鈍有諸多不解之處，特書此請教

張博士高見。

As you can see, breaking the line every time this happens can get quite a bit clunky, especially in official emails that involve a lot of people. Thus, people invented a compromise, i.e. 挪抬. This means just adding a full space before the respected name.

張博士親鑑：

博士晚上好。學生聽聞  王安娜博士近日發表論文，昨日拜讀，奈學生愚鈍有諸多不解之處，特書此請教  張博士高見。

The full edited letter would read:

張博士尊鑑：

謹啟者希望您一切都好。我已經學習了您給我的七張講義，明天也將提交LTT11。
  除了您發送的兩封電子郵件之外，不知道還有沒有其他我應該學習的講義？

多勞費心
歐陽威利 謹緘

中文傳統文書格式


HSK5 - 'make / do / create' verbs (meaning of 搞 unknown) So, in HSK 5, there are quite a large number of verbs which relate to 'making / creating / doing'. For other people's reference, I have listed out those I know, and then underneath there are a few where I am unsure. Please let me know if something is wrong. I can update 搞 also if somebody is able to provide some information per the below. No doubt others can help out here to create a useful reference. Thanks!

创造 - to produce (an abstract concept): opportunity, miracle, requirement, atmosphere, value,  culture, (to set) a (world) record.

制造 - to produce/manufacture (something physical): products, clothes, cars

制作 - to produce/manufacture (like 制造, but where the product requires handcraft or fine workmanship, normally in small quantities): jewelry, cake, furniture, art, literature.

生产 - to produce/manufacture (like 生产 but where the manufacturing process is relatively simple, though are often interchangeable)

引起 - to cause/create (seems to be a very generic cause/create that can apply to anything): effects, repercussions, problems, reaction, illness.

造成 - to cause/create (give rise to - almost always negative): side effects, problems, losses, stress, burdon, disaster.

导致 - to cause/create (like 造成 but where the effecting item is an action/clause - can be positive or negative): (taking tablets:) side effects, (not studying hard:) problems, (doing exercise:) results

产生 - to cause/create (like 造成 - can be positive or negative, tends to relate to emotions): interest, effect, result, feeling, emotion, mentality, problem, misconception, efficiency.

建设 - to build (something large and often physical): economy, system, institution, railway, city, culture, communism, facility, installation.

盖 - to build (somewhere where you live): house, building, flats, accommodation, hotel.

搞 - to do/make: event, technology, target/aim, art, item - not sure what this verb really means - how would you translate 搞技术，搞活动，搞对象，搞艺术，搞名堂？ What unites the verb's meaning in these instances?

搞 is an omnipotent verb used in oral language. It emerged very lately as gao3，with which the modern meanings associated has nothing to do with its ancient usage.

Basically, most important usage is to attach it to any abstract noun/verb, meaning conceptual "do":

搞艺术/搞创作/搞发展/搞卫生/搞活动/搞名堂/搞关系...

Even in oral language, 搞 has a tone of bureaucratese, because using (abusing) these kind of all-purpose verbs are a prominent feature of government officials' speech/writing.

Other than "do", 搞 can mean "get", but I would say it's more like "do something such that":

In 搞两张票来/搞到手, you may treat 搞 as "get", but this is not the essence.

Because it is 来/到手 that indicate "get": do something such that two tickets "come" （搞两张票来）＞"get"/ do something such that something to your hand（搞到手）＞"get"

So it can extend to: 搞好关系/搞砸事情/搞定/搞完/搞大肚子/搞死/搞出人命...

The last usage, though somehow overlaping, is "make":

搞事/搞钱/搞核武器...


Need help identifying what is written on the banknote Can you please tell me what denomination this banknote is and what year? Thank you!

点钞券 = Banknotes counting ticket

出纳点钞专用券 = "paper money counting note, exclusively for cashier"

练功专用 =  exclusively for practice

严禁流通 =  Strictly prohibited for circulating

It is not a real banknote, it is a note created for the cashiers to practice counting money.

They didn't want the cashiers to use real money to practice counting money. So they gave them fake ones instead. And it is strictly prohibited to pass it as real banknote.

I presume these practice notes are the same size, used the same paper as real banknote, also looked similar to the real thing. Must had been used before banknotes counting machine appeared


Comparing 到 and 得 to emphasize results I am trying to understand the usage of 到 and 得 when used to emphasize results. Take, for example, the lyrics from "吻别":
我的世界開始下雪
冷得讓我無法多愛一天

In this adjective + 得 + clause construction, can we replace 得 with 到 for the same meaning? So, can we say 冷到讓我無法多愛一天? Would it still have the same meaning?

In another set of lyrics from ”她來聽我的演唱會“, I see the following verb + 得 + clause:
我唱得她心醉 我唱得她心碎

I take that this means "I sang enough to make her enchanted, I sang enough to make her heartbroken"

In this case, can we also replace 得 with 到 to receive the same meaning?

Both 得 and 到 can act as [degree/ result complement]
Example:
冷(得)讓我無法多愛一天 = 冷(到)讓我無法多愛一天 = cold (to the degree of) I can't love one more day
我唱(得)她心醉 = 我唱(到)她心醉 = I sing (to the degree of) she is enchanted
However, 到 has another function for meaning 'continuously until', which mean 我唱(到)她心醉 can also mean "I sing until she is enchanted" To illustrate this function better, look at the following example:
牛肉煮(到)全熟

Beef to be cooked (to the degree of) well done

you cook the beef to the degree of well done, emphasize the degree of the verb

beef to be cooked (until) well done

you continuously cook the beef until it is well done, emphasize the 'continuously until the result is reached'  aspect of the verb
If you replace 到 with 得, you will not have the #2 interpretation


What is the difference between yǐqián (以前) and zhīqián (之前)? I'd like to have some way to differentiate between yǐqián (以前) and zhīqián (之前), in order to help with memorising them both.  Referring to Modern Mandarin Grammar (Claudia Ross, Routledge 2006), it seems to suggest that the only point of differentiation is that zhīqián is  more literary.  Is this the only difference?  If not, what do I need to know?

As a native Chinese speaker, I agree with what you found in the book. Two words are almost identical except that Zhiqian is more literary. But, on a second thought, it seems that  zhiqian is similar to "earlier" while yiqian is similar to "used to". For example:

我以前抽烟,但我现在不抽了. "I used to smoke, but I quit now."
我之前刚抽了一支烟. "I just smoked one cigarette earlier."

In its meaning of of "used to", 以前 can be used to start a sentence, while 之前 cannot:

以前我们上学得反复背诵乘法表. "At school, we used to do a lot of multiplication-table drills."
× 之前 我们上学得反复背诵乘法表.

以前：
1. 在时间上，比现在，或某一时间（或某一事件）早的时期。如： 三岁以前，我只能喝牛奶。
2. 泛指从前，以往。如：我以前抽烟，但我现在不抽了。

之前：
1. 表示在某个时间或处所的前面。如： 他在满17岁之前发表了第一篇小说。
2. 在事情发生的先后次序方面，指一事先于另一事发生。如：吃饭之前要洗手。

一般说来，“之前”所指的时间事件或处所，与所参照的时间事件或处所相隔不远。“以前”就比较宽泛。如：“吃饭之前要洗手”意思是说，洗手后很快吃饭。但“吃饭以前要洗手”则没有强调洗手后很快吃饭。早晨洗了手后，吃晚饭之前不洗手，也算是“吃饭以前洗手了”。
另外，“之前”要出现在某事某时某处之后，因为“之前”中的“之”指代前面出现的某事某时某处。所以“之前”用在句子开头是错的，因为前面没有所指的东西。


How do I correct 我几乎在享受中想象着听这样建议的可怜的男人? I'm trying to say this in English:

  I am almost enjoying imagining the poor men who listen to these suggestions, ...

The context is peacocking: Peacocking means dressing for attention; just like peacocks use their feathers to get a mate.  My character is researching these "pick up" techniques online, and she's imagining someone using "peacocking", believing it's a good idea, but look ridiculous in other peoples' eyes.

And this is what I've come up with:

  我几乎在享受中想象着听这样建议的可怜的男人，。。。

I don't think it's very good, though.  I showed my teacher this a while back, but she struggled with it.  I don't think it's an easy sentence.

Question: How do I correct 我几乎在享受中想象着听这样建议的可怜的男人?

我几乎是乐于这种想象：这些可怜的男人们听到这些建议，（会是······）


Is there any distinction between 二倍 and 两倍? Both 二倍 and 两倍 mean "double".  I'm wondering if there's any distinction between the two, e.g. with respect to grammar, or when to use which.  (There is ordinarily a difference in usage between 二 and 两.)

Question: Is there any distinction between 二倍 and 两倍?

It's not mentioned on the Chinese Grammar Wiki page Expressing "multiples" with "bei".

This question is not a duplicate of When to use 一倍 vs 两倍 nor Saying 'doubled' in Chinese 一倍 vs 两倍 which ask about 一倍, while this question asks about 二倍.

They are exactly the same. Maybe, 两倍 is used more frequently than 二倍, but I don't have actual data to support it. It's just my impression.


What is the best way to say "fresh baked cookie"? https://translate.google.com/#auto/zh-CN/fresh%20baked%20cookie
Google says:
新鲜烤饼干

but I know 饼干 to be cracker.
Is there a better term to describe a fresh baked cookie?

The following information is provided for reference.

We use 剛出爐的 or 現烤的 for "fresh baked" in Taiwan.

Therefore, "fresh baked cookie" may be called as follows in Taiwan.
剛出爐的餅乾 ／ 現烤的餅乾
剛出爐的麵包 ／ 現烤的麵包
剛出爐的甜點 ／ 現做的甜點

It's very common to see these signs in Taiwan.
剛出爐的麵包
剛出爐的饅頭
剛出爐的包子
剛出爐的披薩


When do I use V for Ü in Pinyin programs I use a program called Sougou, which is very poopular in China I think. Sometimes I use the Microsoft pinyin language option.

Sougou is very good at guessing my characters based on context, but sometimes I have to click through to find my character, especially when it's character with  ü it seems.

Is there a standard rule here? Should  ü always be replaced with v in pinyin programs?
What about after the J, Q, X and Y letters where  ü is always implied, should I be hitting V or U on my keyboard?

Sorry for the simplistic question, I wish I could understand the sougou documentation, but it's still "chinese" to me. Thank you.

In the past (e.g. 80's to 90's), when the Chinese IME did not implement fuzzy logic, the rule was you should use v for and only for ü as you would write on paper. For example for J you should type ju not jv.

Now all the mainstream Chinese IME (MSPY, Sogou, Google Pinyin, etc.) has fuzzy logic built-in and enabled by default. This question isn't much relevant anymore.


What does 我知道 and 应该的 mean in this dialogue? There's this dialogue here: (3:20) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yelfxueMlvc

  请问，洗手间在哪里？
  洗手间？在那边。在那里的右手边。
  哦，好。我知道。谢谢.
  不客气，应该的。

So... "我知道" certainly doesn't mean "I know" here. Because if he had known, he wouldn't have asked. So what's the meaning? And my second doubt is about "应该的". It's the first time I hear it and none of my dictionaries gives a translation which would make sense to me here. What is it?

In this context:

我知道 means 我現在知道了 (now I know)
应该的 means 人與人之間互相幫忙是应该的 (people helping people is obligatory)

The one asked for information said "我(現在)知道(了)" to confirm he has received the information. If he just said "好，谢谢" (good, thank you), the one who gave him the information could not be sure that the information he gave was successfully passed along.
After someone thanking you, saying 不客气(you're welcome) is a polite respond. And that should be enough.
Adding "应该的" (it is a right thing to do) is to show humbleness.
Implying: My action is not a grace I grant you, but an moral obligation between common folks, no need to be too grateful


Opposite of constructions using 得 (must / have to) What is the correct way to form a sentence expressing the opposite of 得 (have to) as in "to not have to".  I don't think 不得 is correct?!

  *我不得工作

I am thinking something like...

  我不需要工作 or
  我不用工作

Is there a better way to construct "do not have to?".

You are correct in that 不得 is not the correct negation for 得 (děi). The generally recognized negation for 得 is 不必 (bùbì), although 不需要 (bùxūyào) and 不用 (bùyòng) are perfectly fine as well; you could also use 无须 (wúxū).


What are ways to create "simplifed" Chinese characters? Most Chinese characters have two parts, a radical and a phonetic. So different ways to simplify them might include the following:

1) Simplify the radical, retain the phonetic. Example: 调

2) Simplify the phonetic, retain the radical. Example: 这

3) Simplify one or the other of the above, for a character that has only one, but not the other. Example: 车

4) Substitute a single "character" for both parts. Example: 后

Is this roster complete? One way that I haven't seen is that both the radical and phonetic are simplified. Is this true, and if so, why might that be?

Wikipedia's Simplified Chinese page has a section that outlines all the types already. Quoting it a bit:

There are four methods used:
Structural simplification of characters
Under this method, there are the following:

Replacing a character with another existing character that sounds the same or similar (e.g. 乾、幹 → 干)

Using printed forms of cursive shapes (e.g. 長 → 长)

Replacing a component of a character with a simple symbol (e.g. 對 → 对)

Omitting entire components (e.g. 習 → 习)

Further morphing a character after omitting some components (e.g. 歸 → 归)

Preserving the basic outline or shape of the original character (e.g. 飛 → 飞)

Replacing the phonetic component of phono-semantic compound characters (e.g. 鐘 → 钟)

Replacing some arbitrary part of a character with a phonetic component, turning it into a new phono-semantic compound character (e.g. 曆 → 历)

Replacing entire character with a newly coined phono-semantic compound character (e.g. 驚 → 惊)

Adopting obscure ancient forms or variants (e.g. 電 → 电)

Adopting ancient vulgar variants (e.g. 陽 → 阳)

Re-adopt abandoned phonetic-loan characters (e.g. 後 → 后)

Derivation based on simplified character components
This is where components that have been simplified are also simplified when they are used as radicals; e.g. 單 → 单 so therefore 彈 → 弹
Elimination of variants of the same character
E.g. 夠 → 够, 豬 → 猪. Note that the goal here is to reduce the total number of characters, which means that sometimes the simplified version has more strokes, e.g. 搾 → 榨
Adoption of new standardized character forms
E.g. 奧 → 奥, 虛 → 虚. These are structurally the same after simplification.

For more information see https://zh.wikisource.org/zh/%E7%AE%80%E5%8C%96%E5%AD%97%E6%80%BB%E8%A1%A8


How to thank someone for following you back on social media? So, someone I respect has followed me back on social media, and I was hoping to thank them directly. I can't really figure out how to word "Thank you for following me"/"Thank you for following me back"/"Thank you for the follow". What's the best way I can say this?

谢谢你关注我呀！！！

There's actually an article that kind of talks about this on zhihu, funnily enough. Their translation there is:

  thank you follow me --> 谢谢你关注我呀！！！

They also have a picture of automated thanks for following me in action:

On social media 关注 is always the term for follow.


Using "shì" for noun + adjective + noun Being a beginner, I am bit puzzled by the concept of "shì" being used not for describing nouns with adjectives.

Using search, I think it is clear to me that:

Noun + noun = I can use "shì".
Adjective + noun = I should use "hen".

Well but what I am unable to figure out is the combination, like "This is my new phone".
I am connecting two nouns, but also connecting an adjective and a noun. What rule is the applied?

Seems the answer did not help much, here is mine - it is about predicative and attributive.

My phone is new. The adjective describes the subject, this is the predicative.
My new phone. The adjective is attributive, it is linked to the noun.

If it is predicative, do not use "to be" (shì).

SIDE NOTE: I am a beginner myself and I often see the example "Sky is blue" translated as "Tiānkōng shì lánsè de (天空是蓝色的)". I have no idea why it can be like this as it clearly is predicative.


Are the Cantonese word 係 and the Japanese word はい related? The Cantonese word meaning "to be", written as 係 (Jyutping: hai6) sounds similar to the Japanese word はい ("hai" in various Romanizations). Both words are used to answer "yes" or "it is correct" to yes-no questions.

The Japanese Wikipedia article on Cantonese contains a sentence I find interesting:

  「係」は肯定の返事にも用いられ、日本語の「はい」の語源という説もある。

I think the second part of that says that there is a theory that 係 in Cantonese is the source of the はい in Japanese. However, the article does not provide any sources for this statement.

My questions are:

Is this theory documented anywhere? And what are the details of this theory?
Is this theory plausible?
What is the source of the Cantonese word 係 (meaning "to be", ignoring the other meanings of that character) in Middle Chinese?
What is the source of the Japanese word はい?
Is it possible that they share a common source?

related: https://www.quora.com/Are-the-Hais-in-Japanese-and-Cantonese-related

The Japanese wiki page mentions that the claim is a "folk theory" that is "denied by academics".

An alternative etymology for Cantonese hai6 comes from 系/繫. I don't have this book, but apparently Jerry Norman suggests this in Chinese (1988). This word had a very early meaning of 'to be connected', was used as a copula in later texts, and the phonological evidence is certainly not lacking.

To summarize the wiki article, はい is thought to come from either 拝, a courteously used Sino-Japanese word, or a corruption of similar words such as "ai" and "ei". It is only attested from the Edo period onwards, which is very recent.

Considering the relative isolation of Japan in the past few centuries, the word would have had to travel from Japan into rural Chinese villages in the past 100 years or so. Even if this did happen, it would likely have been heavily documented by various sources. The Chinese-internal etymology is much simpler and I personally see no reason to believe the Japanese etymology without further evidence.


Meaning of the saying 逢着天门 逢着天门 Does anyone know the meaning of this saying or idiom? It is part of the commentary to a Shenshu verse, which doesn't really make sense to me, but it seems this expression more or less explains the verse.

The full sentence goes like this:"去到长安，东北转角，逢着天门，便有下落", comes from Zhuge Shenshu Verse No.355. If you feel it doesn't make sense, then you get the point. This book was used to do Fortune-telling, so it meant to confuse the readers, so the  Fortune-tellers can pick up from here, use their knowledge (verbal tricks) to explain your destiny.
A word to word translation: "Go to Chang An (The Capital City), north east corner, Meet Tianmen (Can be explained into a certain place or a certain time), then you find it."


Character Gaps On Comic Conversation : 5 While reading a comic book, I have some problems with seeing some characters in this older copy of a book (the Chinese character is sometimes too dark to distinguish strokes and scanning doesn't help).
Here is the work that I have done so far. Thank you for any help finding the missing characters (I don't need the translations, per se but just seeing a clear copy of the character would be helpful).
There are multiple questions because I want to show the work in context. I could break these up into smaller questions but that would not be helpful to other learners (learning conversation) and would unnecessarily clog the website.
Pane 1 ( ? ➜ missing character )

你是指我会（？）吊（？）来，和（？）火烤吗：

Pane 2 ( ? ➜ missing character )

那些都小事一（？）：-> looks like 香 with a radical

Pane 3 ( ? ➜ missing character )

我回（？）你到老（？）之（？）都不会（？）到大（？）折。：
什么！！：What!

Pane 4 ( ? ➜ missing character )

你是說你能（？）知道一个人的命（？）：
沒错！：Yes!

Pane 5 ( ? ➜ missing character )

你一定想問我为社么知道对不对？：You must know what to ask me for, right?
啊，对。。。：right...

Panel 1

你是指我會被吊起來，和被火烤嗎？: "Are you saying I will be strung up and roasted with fire?"

Missing character: 被, 起, 被

Panel 2

這些都是小事一樁: "Those are all no big deal."

Missing character: 樁

Panel 3

我會讓你到老死之前都不會遇到大波折: "I'll make sure you meet no major set backs until you die of old age."

Missing character: 讓, 死, 遇, 波

Wrong character: 回 -> 會|会

Panel 4

你是說你能夠知道一個人的命運： "Are you saying you can see someone's future?" (or more literally: "know a person's fate")

沒錯: "That's right!"

Missing character: 夠, 運

Panel 5

你一定想問我為什麼知道對不對: "You must be wondering why I know, right?" (or more literally, "wanting to ask")

嗯， 對: "Umm, yes."

Wrong character: 啊 -> 嗯


Do I necessarily have to use 第 when talking about a page number? Can one say 打开书100页 or is it necessary to add 第 before 100?

I was thinking that it would be the difference between saying "open the book at/to page 100" (with 第) and "open the book 100 pages" (without 第, which sounds wrong to me).

First, '书' in '打开书100页'(open book 100 pages) can be omitted

Yes, if you omitted '第' in '打开第100页'(open page 100) and wrote "打开100页", the sentence could be interpreted as " open one hundred pages". For this very reason, 第 cannot be omitted.


Is there a place to find extremely simple stories? Is there anywhere (ideally free online) to find a wide range of reading material that is in extremely simple Chinese, the equivalent of perhaps "Fun With Dick and Jane" in English? https://books.google.se/books?id=Gg9iCgAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=fun+with+dick+and+jane&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiBoZPes5_nAhXuwMQBHYp_DL4Q6AEIKDAA#v=onepage&q=fun%20with%20dick%20and%20jane&f=false

Possibilities here

I sometimes read essays written by Chinese children: RuiWang's 作文.  They have all levels for free, starting from 一年级 (grade 1).

You can find many English novels translated into Chinese and available for purchase on JingDong or other sites.  I read Matilda (玛蒂尔达) this way.  I thought it was helpful for improving my reading speed.

You can access Chinese school textbooks for free at 电子课本网: the reading material is 语文.  Again, starting from 一年级 (grade 1).  [After selecting a book chapter, it looks like you need to scan a QR code, but you can just click it and it'll show you the pages.]

Du Chinese is a well-polished reading app---new material is free [it's also new and fresh], and I feel it's reasonably priced for what's clearly a lot of effort.

Hacking Chinese reviews Mandarin Companion's graded readers which are here.  (There is also an article about 语文 which is more advanced.)

There's a list of resources here: Resources for learning Mandarin Chinese, but it's cumbersome.  These kinds of resource questions is why I wrote this post on meta (although it hasn't caught on).
I also note that many books are available for download from Blah.me.


Translating "wings" (of a stage) Is there a set phrase for this term? It seems to me that an acceptable translation would be 舞台左右侧, but that seems rather long.

在中文里面，这词有一个约定俗成的翻译吗？我觉得”舞台左右侧“这翻译还行，但还是有点长。

see online dictionaries, e.g. iciba: wing   in the wings
1In the stage wings, unseen by the audience. 在观众看不到的舞台两侧  bkrs:舞台两则 舞台左侧 舞台右侧


What is the 平仄 rule in 無情對 I am fascinated by 無情對,
It is two of my attempts:

四川特產北菇 (Sichuan specialty mushroom)
三洋通用東芝 (Sanyo, GM, Toshiba)

~

今朝書店晚開 (Bookstore open late today)
現代本田日產 (Hyundai, Honda, Nissan)

(All in Cantonese)
I think my matching of characters is acceptable, but not sure if they fit the 平仄 rule.
My question is as follows : What is the 平仄 rule in 無情對? Does my samples correctly followed this rule?

Since you just ask for tone pattern rule, the tone pattern of couplet also matches with the poetry. So I use tone pattern of middle Chinese for reference:

This is an ideal situation:

  国破山河在，
  仄仄平平仄

  城春草木深。
   平平仄仄平

But sometimes it's hard to match a pair of word in level (平) tones and oblique (仄) tones, so when it comes to normal couplet case, we just require the tone of last characters must match the tones.

  上联：雄黄酒    平平仄

  下联：牡丹烟    仄平平


How did "kitsch" (刻奇) come to stand for emotional contagion in a group? 刻奇 is said to be a loanword from English meaning:

  kitsch

Kitsch in short is said to be:

  Kitsch is garish and sentimental art or other objects.

In long it is defined as:

  Kitsch (/kɪtʃ/; loanword from German), also called cheesiness or tackiness, is art or other objects that appeal to popular rather than high art tastes. Such objects are sometimes appreciated in a knowingly ironic or humorous way.

In Chinese it is usually just simply translated: 媚俗.

Now we have questions on Zhihu popping up like:

刻奇（Kitsch）是什么？如何克服刻奇？

and articles online like:

刻奇陷阱：你为何总是热泪盈眶？

Which all seem to be talking about some type of group emotional contagion.

As far as I can see kitsch has no established psychological meaning in English & as 刻奇 is a loanword it is boggling to me where this meaning came from.

How did "kitsch" (刻奇) come to stand for emotional contagion in a group?

Many references claim that the idea is from the novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being. But, even if it is supposed to come from the Milan Kundera novel - the ideas don't seem to really match up with the original novel itself, See: The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera Home Literature The Unbearable Lightness of Being Analysis Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory Kitsch. There is quite a discrepancy between Kundera was saying and the way it is used in Chinese now. Perhaps it just comes from one misunderstanding after another.

From the links you shared, the idea is come from the following quotation of "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" - "Kitsch causes two tears to flow in quick succession. The first tear says: How nice to see children running on the grass! The second tear says: How nice to be moved, together with all mankind, by children running on the grass! It is the second tear that makes kitsch kitsch."
And in those 2 Chinese articles it is described more like "group emotional hijacking" than "group emotional contagion".
And yes, I think the author of the article "刻奇（Kitsch）是什么？如何克服刻奇？" misunderstood the conception in some way, then misled others who quote this article.
The author said this: "不揣冒昧的理解是" , means "I presume that", and then expressed his/her understanding of Kitsch.


How do you say, "What's your problem?" in Mandarin？ I want to know how to say, "What's your problem?" as an insult in Mandarin.

你很多問題勒神經病嗎““5”4””4
再來你有病嗎
是沒去看醫生嗎


How to pronounce three third tones in a row? Edit: This is a duplicate of How does tone sandhi apply in people's names?

I learned the rules for pronouncing tone pairs, I know that for a sentence like 我买花 the two third tones become a second and a third tone, the pronunciation would be wó mǎi huā. I learned this from This site

I came across this sentence: 我可以看得很清楚. There are three third tones at the start of the sentence 我可以 (wǒ kěyǐ), how do the tones change in a case like this?

I know that for a sentence like 我买花 the two third tones become a second and a fourth tone, the pronunciation would be wó mài huā

According to the rule of the 3rd tone sandhi, to be more precise, the tones should be 2-(半三声)-1. Note that the tone of 买 should be 半三声, which means only the first half of the 3rd tone, without the rising tone part. If you pronounced it as the 4th tone, it'll become 我卖花.

Then for 我可以看~, the tones would be 半三声-2-半三声-4-~. 我可以 could be interpreted as 我+可以, and when three words with the 3rd tone are used together and with 1-2 construction rule #4.2 applies, the 1st word is pronounced as 半三声, the 2nd word is pronounced as the 2nd tone, so 我可 is pronounced as 半三声-2. And according to the rule #3, i.e. when word with the 3rd tone is used before other words with the 1st/2nd/4th tone, it's pronounced as the 半三声, so 以 is pronounced as 半三声 here.


详细 vs. 仔细 - are these interchangeable？ So, both of these seem to mean detailed / carefully and texts seem to use them in much the same way. Are they therefore largely interchangeable or is there a difference as to when these adjectives/adverbs should be used?
Many thanks!
Hahsamyim

As an adverb, both 详细 and 仔细 contains the meaning of 'thoroughly, carefully and detailed'

  You can use "详细檢查" or "仔细檢查" for  "thoroughly inspect" or
   "carefully inspect"; You can use "详细分析" or "仔细分析" for  "thoroughly analyze"

  详细 and 仔细 are interchangeable in these cases.

However, 仔细 also contains the meaning of  'concentrate'  and 'pay close attention'

  You can use 仔细欣賞 for "concentrate and enjoy; pay close attention and enjoy" but not "详细欣賞"; You can use 仔细聆聽 for "concentrate and listen" or "pay close attention and listen" but not "详细聆聽 " (which mean thoroughly listen')

  详细 and 仔细 are not interchangeable in these cases.

Another difference between 详细 and 仔细 is  详细 can be an adjective, 仔细 is mainly an adverb.

We say 寫一份詳細報告 but not  寫一份仔細報告


What does 中 (zhōng) mean in 我哥哥是我认识的人中最沉着的一个? 我哥哥是我认识的人中最沉着的一个. I can understand the phrase but I don't see the meaning of 中 in the example. I have consulted in several places without success. Thanks

"中" is a shorter form of "之中" (within; among)

  "我哥哥是我认识的人(中)最沉着的一个" = "我哥哥是我认识的人(之中)最沉着的一个"

我哥哥 = my brother

是 = is

我认识的人(之中) = (among) the people I know

最沉着的一个 = the calmest one


What is the origin of the slang term 6? I'm speaking about for example:

  他很6

To mean: He's very pro/skilled.

I've seen this a lot, but I don't quite see what the origin of this comes from.

It's homophonic of 溜, which means proficient, smooth (in doing something) in Nothern dialects. Note it doesn't imply a top degree of mastery. It's more like nice instead of pwned.
The use of number 6 first appeared in online games, then spread to internet contents.
Some examples for the original word:

他爬树很溜（儿）。He's good at climbing trees.
他说的很溜（儿）。He gave a fluent speech.

One reference I can find: http://hs.tgbus.com/wenda/201410/20141002121649.shtml


"Four-part" composition of characters I would like to compile a list of characters where you can draw two lines in a + shape, running through the center of the character to cleanly separate it into four "components." Some leeway must be given when writing them.

For example, 疑, 殺, and 豔 fit my criteria. For 疑, I wouldn't call ヒ or マ Chinese real Chinese characters, but they are Japanese katakana so they must be related (maybe historically) to Chinese. So the character qualifies to me. I only studied traditional characters so there could be even more simplified ones.

I'm not even sure if there's a term for this type of character geometry. There might be a workbook somewhere that has collected such characters.

here some data i managed to compile. it's a bit of a mess, so pls bear with me:

http://bbs.whnews.cn/simple/index.php?t133800.html

品字结构：
鑫森淼焱垚品晶瞐畾矗聶众劦叒尛姦磊孨森蟲譶赑馫雥飍飝毳骉犇羴贔龘皛轟麤靐厽垚壵惢歮皛羴骉驫鱻卉芔灥厵猋舙掱晿刕嚞雥䨺㐂䆐䖃  灥厵叒
田字结构：
燚茻㵘䲜㗊䨻㸚㠭朤叕
三叠字：
雦㴇 㙓㐺渁隻雙䨇 巛彡巜十卄卅卌廿嬲 嫐  奻
左右上下叠字：
吅吕昍昌目䀠炎炏从仌厸㕕双㕛騳多奻㚣誩弜㯤喆屾出
上下叠字：
爻戔哥棗畕圭亖
左右叠字：
囍 孖夶㹜犾㚘㯥皕豩牪龖虤聑朋臸㱛砳玨甡祘竝覞賏踀辡秝兟兢競竸槑雔抙䬕䎜㐩㒭㚁㲎㿟 䡛玆㐨絲㣈㚡㒹㽬䪭兓幵艸斦比羽

http://culchina.net/bbs/dispbbs.asp?boardID=6&ID=10236&page=1

一二三亖、七㐂、十卄卅卌、廿、人从仌众㐺、金鑫、木林森、水沝㴇淼㵘、火炎炏焱燚、土圭垚㙓、士壵、豕豩、牛牪犇、牟、羊羴、馬騳骉驫、、犬㹜犾猋、鹿麤、龍龖龘、虎虤、屮艹艸芔、虫蟲、魚鱻䲜、鳥 隹雔雦雥、飛飝、习羽、古、吉喆嚞、毛毳、口吅吕品㗊、舌舙、耳聑聶、手抙掱、舌、白皛、日昍昌晶、、月朋朤、明 、目䀠瞐、至臸、女奻姦、男、了、子孖孨、山岀出屾、石砳磊、泉灥、刀刕、力劦、心惢、戈戔、百皕、玉玨珏、風䬕飍 、雷靐䨻、雲䨺、厶厸㕕厽、又双㕛叒叕、乂爻㸚、田畕畾、生甡、示祘、立竝、香馫、原厵、見覞、言誩譶、貝賏贔、足踀、車轟、辛辡、糹絲、至臸、禾秝、止歮、大夶、小尛、少、无兓、先兟、克兢、竞競、竟竸、呆槑、干幵、可哥、弓弜、工㠭、个、門、面、牙、齒、文、甲、乙、亦、永、僉、斤斦、兀、且、串、凡、卤 、直矗、喜囍、善、東㯥、朿棗、束、秦䆐、若䖃、夏、春、空、客、寒、宝、舍、県、夕多、户 、启、支、果、比、盖、秉、竹、老䎜、興、來㯤、函、歹㱛、幽、隻雙䨇、井㐩、兄㒭、尭㚁、、旡兂、卪、㔾

 或

一二三亖、四、七㐂、九、十卄(niàn)卅卌(xì)、廿、人从仌众㐺、金鑫、木林森、水沝(zhuǐ)㴇淼㵘、火炎炏(yán)焱(yàn)燚(yì)、土圭垚㙓、士壵(zhuàng)、豕(shǐ)豩(bīn)、牛牪(yàn)犇(bēn)、牟、羊羴(shān)、兔、馬騳(dú)骉(biāo)驫、犬㹜犾猋(biāo)、鹿麤(cū)、龍龖(dá)龘(dá)(zhé)、虎虤(yán)、屮(cǎo)艹(cǎo)艸芔(huì)卉、虫蟲(chóng)、魚鱻(xiān)䲜、鳥隹(zhuī)雔(chóu)雦(jí)雥(zá)、飛飝(fēi)、飞、习羽、古、吉喆(zhé)嚞(zhé)、毛㲎毳(cuì)、口吅(xuān)吕品㗊、舌舙(huà)、耳聑(zhé)聶、手抙掱(pá)、舌、白㿟皛(pò)、日昍(xuān)昌晶、月朋朤、明、目䀠瞐(mò)、至臸(zhī)、女奻(nuán)㚣姦、男、了、子孖(mā)孨(nì)

山岀出屾(shēn)、石砳(lè)磊、泉灥(xún)、原厵(yuán)、刀刕(lí)、力劦(xié)、心惢、戈戔(jiān)、百皕(bì)、玉玨(jué)珏(jué)、風䬕飍(xiū)、雷靐(bìng)䨻(bèng)、雲䨺、厶(sī)厸(miǎn)㕕厽(lěi)、又双㕛叒(ruò)叕(zhuó)、乂爻㸚、田畕(jiāng)畾(léi)、生甡(shēn)、示祘(suàn)、立竝(bìng)、香馫(xīn)、見覞(yào)、言誩(jìng)譶(tà)、貝賏(yīng)贔(bì)、頁、足踀(cù)、車䡛轟、辛辡(biàn)、禾秝(lì)、止歮(sè)、大夶(bǐ)、小尛(mó)、少、老䎜、先兟(shēn)、克兢(jīng)、竞競(jìng)、竟竸(jìng)、呆槑(méi)、干幵(jiān)、可哥、弓弜(jiàng)、工㠭、个、門、面、牙、齒、文、甲、乙、亦、永、僉(qiān)、斤斦(zhì)、兀、且、串、凡、卤、直矗、喜囍(xǐ)、善、東㯥、朿棗、束、秦䆐、若䖃、夏、春、客、寒、空、宝、宜、妥、盖、舍、県、斗、市、太、天、興、光、企、果、秉、竹、夕多、户、尸、启、支、比、或、来來㯤、去、函、歹㱛、幽、隻雙䨇、井㐩、兄㒭、尭㚁、巜、玄玆、予㐨(xù)、㣇㣈、糹(jiǎo)絲(sī)、幺、奇㚡、倉、入、号、巾、巢、左、臣、易、昔、欠、母、禺、尹、真㒹、夫㚘、畐㽬、音䪭、囚、因、困、全、几、凡、句、區、彐、、、㔾、旡兓(jīn)、卪、、、巿(pó)、桼(qī)、兂、㖖(niè)、、眉、

http://www.xiaohui.com/weekly/20070305.htm

记得当年读初中刚学英语时，常说“我是中国人，不会学外文”，借此来嘲笑那些学英语发狠的同学。哈哈，对头，咱们是中国人，学就应该学中国汉字。不过，既然大家都是中国人，嘿嘿，那么，列在本文 《你认识这些三叠字和四叠字吗? —— 三叠字与四叠字大全》 http://www.xiaohui.com/weekly/20070305.htm 页面中这些字，你认识几个?

鑫 森 淼 垚 焱 靐 晶 卉 芔 轟 磊 畾 厽 馫 飍 灥 厵 犇 猋 赑 贔 蟲 麤 毳 龘 骉 驫 羴 雥 鱻 矗 姦 舙 瞐 聶 品 掱 叒 惢 譶 劦 壵 众 孨 歮 晿 飝 刕 尛 嚞 皛 雦 朤 燚 叕 茻

　　上面这些字是我今天收集整理的汉字三叠字与四叠字大全。三叠字，又叫品字型汉字，指由三个完全相同的字叠成“品”字形而形成的新字；四叠字，指由四个完全相同的字叠成“田”字形而形成的新字。
汉字三叠字与四叠字大全

　　收集整理这个东西，缘起今天下午的时候，在网上看到一个三个牛字叠起来的 犇字，一时想不起起读音，后来一问才知道读 bēn，与奔一个意思， 三头牛一起跑当然就是奔了。貌似以前有个演戏的就叫牛犇。在网上一搜，关于三叠字的介绍有不少，但是没有一个完整的整理集合。维基百科上分别有一个三叠字和四叠字的词条，但数据不全(注: 完成此文后，我在维基百科上更新了此词条)。于是把字典搬出来，借助网络，把所有的三叠字和四叠字找了出来，并注明读音和释义。

　一、三叠字列表(共52个)
　　http://www.xiaohui.com/weekly/20070305.htm

1.
      首先我查的就是与五行相关的三叠字: 金木水土火：
         1. 三金鑫 xīn 多用于商店字号、人名用字,取其金多兴旺之意
         2. 三木森 sēn 本义: 树木丛生繁密
         3. 三水淼 miǎo 会意。从三水。又作“渺”。本义:水大的样子。这个字多用作女孩子的名字，我邻居小孩就叫淼淼。:)
         4. 三土垚 yáo 意思为山高，那么多土当然山高啦。多用于人名。古同“尧”。
         5. 三火焱 yàn 光华,光焰。
   2.
      还有一些跟自然植物有关系的三叠字:
         1. 三雷靐 bìng 雷声
         2. 三日晶 jīng 从三日,表示光亮之意
         3. 三屮卉（芔） huì 会意。小篆字从三“屮”(chè),草木初生。本义:草的总称
         4. 三车轟 hōng 同“轰”,会意。从三车。本义:群车行驶声
         5. 三石磊 lěi 众石，石头多,心地光明坦白
         6. 三田畾 léi 古同“雷”，同“垒”，也表示田间的土地
         7. 三厶厽 lěi 垒土块为墙
         8. 三香馫 xīn 古同“馨”,芳香,散布很远的香气
         9. 三风飍 xiū 惊跑的样子
        10. 三泉灥 xún 三泉
        11. 三原厵 yuán 古同“源”,水源,源泉
   3.
      跟动物有关的三叠字:
         1. 三牛犇 bēn 同奔。有个人的名字叫“牛犇犇”，小名叫“七匹牛”。:)
         2. 三犬猋 biāo 狗奔跑的样子。同“飙”
         3. 三贝赑(贔) bì传说中的一种动物,像龟。旧时大石碑的石座多雕刻成赑屃形状
         4. 三虫蟲 chóng 同虫
         5. 三鹿麤 cū 同“粗”
         6. 三毛毳 cuì 会意。从三毛。本义:鸟兽的细毛
         7. 三龍龘 dá 这个是刚才去台湾维基查词条时发现的。《广韵》说该字之义为“龙飞之状”；《说文》解作“飞龙”。成语：龍行龘龘。龘字是现时大五码编码(big5)当中笔划最多的一个字，共48划。

     8. 三马骉(驫)piāo 众马奔腾的样子
     9. 三羊羴 shān 古同“膻”,也表示群羊。另外是鼻烟品目之一。
    10. 三隹雥 zá 群鸟；聚
    11. 三鱼鱻 xiǎn 古同“鲜”

4.
      下面是跟人物有关的:
         1. 三直矗 chù 会意。从三直。本义:直立
         2. 三女姦 jiān 会意。从三女。本义:奸邪,虚伪狡诈
         3. 三舌舙 huà 播弄是非。古同“话”。
         4. 三目瞐 mò 美目; 目深; 美丽的样子
         5. 三耳聶 nie 会意。从三耳。本义:附耳小语。这么多耳朵凑在一块，当然是咬耳朵说私语了。
         6. 三口品 pǐn 会意。从三口。口代表人,三个表多数,意即众多的人。
         7. 三手掱 pá 俗称扒手为三只手,故写作“掱”。掱手 = 扒手。哈哈，这个很形象。
         8. 三又叒 ruò 古同“若”
         9. 三心惢 suǒ 疑虑；善
        10. 三言譶 tà 说话快
        11. 三力劦 xié 古同“协”，合力；同力。
        12. 三士壵 zhuàng 古同“壮”, 本义:人体高大,肌肉壮实
        13. 三人众 zhòng 人三为众
        14. 三子孨 zhuǎn 谨慎；弱，懦弱；孤儿
   5.
      其他
         1. 三止歮 sè 古同“涩、澁”
         2. 三日晿 chēng 古人名用字. 注意这个字与晶字不同。

        附注：在本文评论的第12楼、第14楼中，一位叫蓝昊的朋友认为“晿 ”字的底部，不是日字，而是一个曰字。我查证了一下，认为他说得有道理。不过由于没有翻到权威的证据，估且仍列在这里。

     3. 三飞飝 fei
     4. 三刀刕 lí 姓氏
     5. 三小尛 mó 古同“麽”，细小，微细
     6. 三吉嚞 zhé 古同“哲”,聪明,有智慧
     7. 三白皛 xiǎo 皎洁，明亮
     8. 三隹雦 chóu 古同“集”, 群鸟在木上也

　四、四叠字列表(共17个)
　　http://www.xiaohui.com/weekly/20070305.htm

　　除了三叠字，还有四叠字。顾名思义，四叠字由四个完全相同的字叠成“田”字形而形成的新字。目前计算机系统能够显示四个四叠字，其余的已经被 Unicode 标准收录，但现在的系统和字库还没有支持，所以不能够被显示。

1.
      计算机能够显示的四叠字
         1. 四月朤 lǎng 古同“朗”。本义:明亮。四个月亮当空照，不明亮都没天理了。:)
         2. 四火燚 yì 火貌
         3. 四又叕 zhuó 连缀,短；张网的样子
         4. 四屮茻 mǎng 众草；丛生的蕨类

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/三叠字

三叠字
三叠字是指汉字中一类由三个完全相同的字叠成“品”字形而形成的叠字。现将已知的此类字列于下表：

[编辑] 漢字中的三疊字

以下標示的為汉语拼音。

* 鑫 拼音：【Xīn】發音同：【音】注音：【ㄒㄧㄣ】
* 森 拼音：【Sēn】發音同：【蔘】
* 淼 拼音：【Miǎo】發音同：【秒】
* 焱 拼音：【Yán】發音同：【炎】
* 垚 拼音：【Yáo】發音同：【搖】
* 犇 拼音：【Bēn】發音同：【奔】
* 驫,骉 拼音：【Biāo】發音同：【飆】
* 羴 讀音：【Shān】發音同：【杉】
* 猋 拼音：【Biāō】發音同：【飆】
* 麤 拼音：【Cū】發音同：【粗】
* 鱻 拼音：【Xiān】發音同：【鮮】
* 蟲 拼音：【Chóng】發音同：【崇】
* 贔, 赑 拼音：【Bì】發音同：【毙】
* 众 （「眾」的簡化字） 拼音：【Zhòng】發音同：【仲】
* 品 拼音：【Pǐn】發音同：【品】
* 掱 拼音：【Pá】發音同：【爬】
* 劦 拼音：【Xián】發音同：【协】
* 晶 拼音：【Jīng】發音同：【精】
* 磊 拼音：【Lěi】發音同：【壘】
* 姦 拼音：【Jiān】發音同：【奸】
* 聶 拼音：【Niè】發音同：【涅】
* 毳 拼音：【Cuì】發音同：【脆】
* 矗 拼音：【Chǔ】發音同：【觸】
* 飝 拼音：【Fēi】發音同：【飛】
* 刕 拼音：【lí 】發音同：【离】
* 厽 拼音：【Lěi】發音同：【垒】
* 叒 拼音：【ruò】發音同：【若】
* 壵 拼音：【Yáo】發音同：【搖】
* 尛 拼音：【Má】發音同：【麻】
* 孨 拼音：【zhuǎn】發音同：【转】
* 歮 拼音：【sè】發音同：【涩】
* 惢 拼音：【suǒ】發音同：【所】
* 皛 拼音：【xiǎo】發音同：【晓】
* 畾 拼音：【léi】發音同：【雷】
* 嚞 拼音：【zhé】發音同：【哲】
* 舙 拼音：【huà】發音同：【hua】
* 譶 拼音：【tà】發音同：【踏】
* 雥 拼音：【zá】發音同：【杂】
* 灥 拼音：【xún】發音同：【寻】
* 飍 拼音：【xiū】發音同：【修】
* 馫 拼音：【xīn】發音同：【興】
* 厵 拼音：【yuán】發音同：【员】
* 靐 拼音：【bìng】發音同：【雷】
* 龘 拼音：【dá】發音同：【踏】
* 赑 拼音：【bì】發音同：【闭】

[编辑] 三疊字的功能

1) 表示加三倍的東西之獨特：

鑫 xin1 (很富的，越來越大的豐富) 姦 jian1 (姦淫) 猋 biao1 (快) 鱻 xian1 (鮮) 惢 suo3 (善) 瞐 mo4 (美目的) 麤 cu4 (粗)

2) 集合概念：

驫 / 骉 biao1 (馬群) 羴 shan1 (羊群) 磊 lei3 (堆) 垚 yao2 (堆) 众 zhong4 森 sen1

2) 小的與多有的：

毳 cui4 (鸟兽的细毛 / 寒毛) 晶 jing1 (本指星星，現代表示光亮) 蟲 chong2 (蟲子)

4) 誇大：

掱 pa2 (偷) 譶 ta4 (说话快) 舙 hua4 (说是非话) 猋 biao1 (狗奔) 聶 nie4 (附耳小语) 叒 ruo4 (若 （用又［手］表明方法） 飍 xiu1 (惊跑) 犇 ben1 (奔)

正常表示用什麽身體的部分動作的偏旁，這爾是加三倍的，又是用長的寫法的。表示誇大的行爲。

5) 比較級：

矗 chu4 (矗立的) 尛 mo2 (微小的) 皛 xiao3 (喧)

6) 加三倍表現狀況或者景象：

轟 hong1 (三輛車相撞） 品 pin3 （三個箱子） 厽 lei3 (垒) 畾 lei2 雷 (鬼魂頭) 淼 miao3 (水面)

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/二叠字

二叠字，也稱爲雙叠字，指汉字中一类由三个完全相同的字組成的叠字。

表示加倍的東西之獨特

昍 xuān (明) 吅 xuān (喧)

這個功能很稀少的，因此我們認爲例外。三叠字為這個功能更常見的。

[编辑] 加倍指肯定的狀況

奻 nuán (争吵) 夶 bǐ (比) 从 cóng (跟随) 誩 jìng (争论)

與三叠字的第四功能很近。這爾的只是更象形的，和跟三叠字相反不是誇大的。

[编辑] 表示東西雙倍地存在

孖 zī (双生子) 皕 bì (二百) 斦 yín (二斤、公斤、千克) 双 shuāng 二 èr

[编辑] 集合的概念

林 lín (森林)

森林是樹木的集合，如同一群是牛或似的動物的集合。 雖然森林的使用跟群的不同的。

經常用三叠字為這個功能。

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/四叠字

四叠字

四叠字是指汉字中一类由四个完全相同的字叠成“田”字形而形成的叠字。现已知的此类字共17個，列于下表：

[编辑] 汉字中的四叠字

* 叕 讀音：【茁】 拼音：【zhuó】
* 朤 讀音：【亮】 拼音：【liàng】
* 燚 讀音：【一】 拼音：【yī】
* 茻 讀音：【蟒】 拼音：【mǎng】
* 㠭 (四個工) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
* 㵘 (四個水) 讀音：【漫】 拼音：【màn】
* 㗊 (四個口) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
* 㸚 (四個乂) 讀音：【麗】 拼音：【lì】
* 叕 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個人) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個厶) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個日) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (兩個比) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個田) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個竹) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個金) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
* 䨻 (四個雷) 讀音：【蹦】 拼音：【bèng】
*  (四個龍) 讀音：【哲】 拼音：【zhé】
* 䨻 (四個雲) 讀音：【農】 拼音：【nóng】
* 䨻 (四個興) 讀音：【正】 拼音：【zhèng】

28cc8     #25115112
200db

6b63    正   #12121
23944     #12121

821b    舛
5905    夅

20141

上下

【辰集下】【止字部】  ·康熙筆画：4　·部外筆画：0

【唐韻】【集韻】他達切，音撻。【說文】蹈也。从反止。轉注。本作。　與少別。【佩觿集】少，申兆翻，不多也。，他末翻，蹈也。步字从此。【集韻】作。原从反止，類似从反正。


What is the difference between 回答 and 答复? According to 现代汉语词典:

答复

回答问题或要求
对问题或要求做出的回答

回答

对提出的问题、要求给予解答或表示意见
对提出的问题、要求所作出的答复

For me both seem to be practically the same. One uses the other in its explanation.
At least for me, it feels that 回答 is a more general word while 答复 is more formal, and usually used when it involves someone superior. But I'm not sure if this is correct.
So I wonder if there is any difference between them, on its usage as verb.

The two terms are very similar. The difference is how the terms are constructed:  答复 is more like "to reply" (v) or "a reply" (n); while 回答 is more like "to answer" (v) or "an answer" (n)

  答(answer/ reply) 复(reply/return)

  答复 = 'answer with a reply' or 'return with an answer'  (to someone's question or request)

  or simply "reply" /answer

~

  回(return)答 (answer/ reply)

  回答 = return with an answer/reply (to someone's question or request)

  or simply "answer" / "reply"

~

  回(return) 复 (reply)

  回复 = return with an reply (to someone's question or request)

  or simply "reply"


Help with translation, art First i want to apologize for no being perfect in English, i speak spanish, currently studying japanese and with plans of starting chinese next year.

Recently i bought a piece of chinese art at a flymarket in buenos aires and i can’t read the signature i have a chinese friend and he couldnt help me

https://ibb.co/TkF8mWT
https://ibb.co/hFQT5fd
https://ibb.co/dKBYBQ4

Thank you

the title is “君子之風” (roughly, the demeanor of gentleman)

the next column is “于右任題” (written by mr 于), an important figure in last century)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yu_Youren

the seal below this column is “右任”

右 is in the form of 又-手

<
http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=右>

the bottom left characters are “縱材”, with the seal “縱材書畫”

have fun :)


Toneless Sinetic Dialects/Topolects One of Mandarin's biggest characteristics is its tones. Other Sinitic dialects/topolects aren't any different: Cantonese, Hakka, etc.

Question:

Are there any toneless Sinitic dialects/topolects? (Japanese?)

In modern Shanghainese and some other of Wu dialects, the adherence to the five tones has basically diminished in speech (still exists when referring to single characters), and converted into three pitches(low, mid, high).
Pitches for the same character, however, do vary through speech. For example, notice how the pitch for character 大's one pronunciation "da" differ from word to word: first the characters, then Shanghainese and corresponding pitch, then meaning, and finally the character's Mandarin Pinyin.

High: 澳大利亚 [O-da-li-ia] {lo-hi-md-md} (Australia) Ao4-da4-li4-ya4
Low: 大世界 [Da-su-ka] {lo-hi-md} (an entertainment venue) Da4-shi4-jie4
Mid: 大饼 [da-ping] {md-hi} （large flatbread) da4－bing3

(I'm not using any established romanization system for Shanghainese, instead I just used my own way for this ad hoc purpose.)
I couldn't find the definition to "pitch accent language," so I can't answer you whether Shanghainese has become one.


What is the best way to ask a Chinese person to give / leave feedback I am interested in finding out the best way to ask a Chinese person to give or leave me feedback about my services, on the Internet. (Like a restaurant review). I would like to ask in a respectful, polite way that gives me a good chance of them taking a moment to leave feedback.

In simple or classic Chinese, how do I do this?

您好，请对我们的服务提出宝贵建议，谢谢！

您好，请问您对我们的服务有什么意见或建议吗？

您好，请问您对我们的服务满意吗？

您好，请问我们的菜合您的胃口吗？


What does 小时级发射 refer to in 该型火箭具有“一箭多星”发射能力、小时级发射等多项优点? “快响利箭”海上飞天
长征十一号火箭是一枚四级固体运载火箭，全长约20.8米，最大箭体直径2米，总质量约58吨，主要用于发射近地轨道和太阳同步轨道有效载荷，该型火箭具有“一箭多星”发射能力、小时级发射等多项优点，被誉为我国长征系列运载火箭家族中的“快响利箭”。
海上飞天！一箭九星！我国首次海上商业化应用发射成功！，2020年09月15日

In the above I'm unsure what 小时级发射 refers to.  Some automatic translations are "Hourly launch" (Google Translate and Baidu) and "Hour-stage launch" (YouDao).  It seems "hourly launch" could not be correct---the rocket doesn't launch every hour.  My best guess is that it indicates that the rocket only takes hours to get its payload into orbit, but I'm unclear on this.
Question: What does 小时级发射 refer to in 该型火箭具有“一箭多星”发射能力、小时级发射等多项优点?
The whole passage means something like:

[My translation:] The Long March 11 rocket is a 4-stage solid carrier rocket, total length 20.8 meters, maximum diameter 2 meters, total mass around 58 tonnes, primary use is to launch payloads into near earth orbit and sun-synchronous orbit; this model rocket has "one rocket multiple satellite" launch capability, hour-grade launch etc. multi-faceted merits, and is acclaimed as the Long March rocket family's "quick arrow".

It means quick-reaction launch.
How I came to this conclusion:

The article you linked has some sort of quote from the rocket designer 彭昆雅, whose paragraph of explanation concludes with 大幅缩短了发射链条，提高发射效率和效益。So the purpose of the rocket is to "enormously reduce the launch chain and improve the launch efficiency and effectiveness". To improve the deployment time.

The Wikipedia page in Chinese about the Long March 11 states 长征十一号发射周期不超过72小时，最短发射时间在24小时以内

Switch to English, and after the first few sentences, which seem to echo your own translation, you see "It was designed with the ability to launch on short notice [...]".

Check the source that Wikipedia has quoted, and you read "The CZ-11 is developed [...] with the goal to provide a quick-reaction launch vehicle, which is easy to operate, cost-efficient to launch, can remain in storage for long period and reliably launch on short notice". There is consistency.

Another Wikipedia source, nasaspaceflight.com says "It’s goal goal is to provide an easy to operate quick-reaction launch vehicle".

Finally Google for "quick-reaction launch" (quoted) and you'll find some additional references from non-Chinese websites about rocket capabilities.


What is the correct way to write 'niu bi', and how did it get its meaning in Chinese? 'niu bi' (牛逼? like the bees knees in English) is one of the more amusing expressions I learnt in my time in China. The literal meaning in English is quite colourful, so I won't describe it here, but I'm curious to know more about this term.

What is the correct way to write this word, and how did it originally get it's meaning in Chinese?

niu bi = f**king awesome in English.
And niu in slang means awesome.

The usage is pretty same as in English.

For example:

A：我能一连吃10个汉堡.
   I can eat 10 burgers in a row.
B：牛啊！
   Awesome!

A: 你好牛，这么难得题目你也会做！
   You are so awesome. You can even do such difficult questions!
B: 谢谢。
   Thanks.

Additionally, regarding to 牛X or 牛叉.
It is common in online forums/tweets/blogs, but it is rare in conversations.
Reason is same as people write LOL online very often but seldom say L-O-L in conversations.

If you want to be polite, say 牛 instead of 牛X or 牛叉


List of all verbs that accept location complements? Typically, Chinese word order is Subject + Location + Verb + Object.

However, this page indicates the location may follow the verb with certain exceptions. That is, there are location complements for 在 (zài).

Is there an exhaustive list of all verbs which are exceptions to the standard word order, and which cause the location to follow the verb?

For instance, would 跳舞 qualify as an exception? How about 游泳?

The page clearly stated: "These are verbs that imply movement or location. Technically, the structure is called a location complement"

The answer to your question is: "Any verb that imply movement or location can use '在' as a location complement

There are too many to count.

For example:

跳 (jump) - you can jump on somewhere. E.g "他的貓跳在我身上" (His cat jumps on to my body)
掉 (drop) - you can drop something on somewhere. E.g "我把鑰匙掉在街上" (I dropped my keys in the street)
放 (put) - you can put something on somewhere. E.g "約翰把書放在桌子上" (John put the book on the table)
丟失 (lost)- you can lost something on somewhere. E.g "我把鑰匙丟失在街上" (I lost my keys in the street)
放置 (place)- you can place something on somewhere. E.g "約翰把書放置在桌子上" (John places the book on the table)

  For instance, would 跳舞 qualify as an exception? How about 游泳?

跳舞 and 游泳 do not qualified as exceptions. No location complement is needed for these two words. Dance or swim is not a single movement that  apply to a location. You can't dance, swim, sing or talk yourself (or an object) to a location.

Edit:

Crashalot wrote:

  why is jump on somewhere an exception, but dance is not? 跳舞 even uses 跳 as part of the word. in the same way you can jump on somewhere, you can dance on somewhere (e.g., dance on street, dance on grass)

Adding the  location complement '在' after  a verb,  is to indicate the action is a movement that put the subject or object on a location, which mean the action is associated with a location.

跳舞 only describes the action of 'dance'. It is not a movement to put object on a location.(you know that because 跳舞 doesn't even take object)

On the other hand, verbs like  '放置' (place) and 丟失 (lost) are movements that put object on a location-- when you 'place' something, there's always a location where you place it; When you 'lost' something, there is always a location where you lost it.

You can use 跳舞 on its own with no object, but you must use '放置' with object.

Verbs like 跳舞, 工作 and 游泳 do not take object, therefore cannot be an exception from the 'location before verb' rule.

If you want to add the information of where the verb takes place, you have to do it the regular way  by adding a relative phrase. For example:  " 他在大廳裡跳舞" (he dances in the hall) but not "他跳舞在大廳裡"; "他在銀行工作"(he works in a bank) but not "他工作在銀行"


How did 所以 semantically shift from "what one uses" to mean "consequently"? Can someone please expound the semantic shift below, step-by-step? Wiktionary is too brusque.

Prefix attached to verbs to form noun phrases, indicating the patient of the verb, similar to a passive participle.
所以  ―  suǒyǐ  ―  what one uses; what one relies on; means > the reason why > therefore

This is easier than it looks.
As Wikitionary says, 所 is a verbal prefix that reinforces the verb's agentive value. Usually the presence of 所 doesn't change the meaning of the sentence, but it marks a verb used as noun modifier with 的, and suggests that the modified noun is what receives the action Zdic also explains it clearly: "用在动词前，代表接受动作的事物". That's basically the definition of grammatical patient.
As an example:

我知道的事情 the things I know
我所知道的事情 the things which I know

The meaning of the second example with 所 is essentially the same, and the English translation actually does not differ. But 事情 is now marked as the patient of 知道, the role of 知道的 as a noun modifier is stressed, which you can render in English with an additional relative pronoun (which, that, etc.).
So as a standalone, the construction 所 + V + 的 is often translated as "that which is V", and that is the passive participle Wikitionary talks about.
Now 以 in Chinese is a bit harder to fully understand for new learners, because it doesn't have one single translation in English. According to the context, it can be rendered as "for", "as", "in order to" "to take/use". Once you get very familiar with how 以 is used, you might find a common denominator, close to "to take as".
So if you put those two together 所以 is literally something like: "that which is taken as", which shifts naturally to "therefore" -> "consequently".

因为我不舒服，所以我不想出门
I'm not feeling well, [that which is taken as = therefore] I don't want to go out


Translation of "Baller"? Was trying to explain to my one friend what does it means by "He's a baller".  The closest I got is "他很酷" but that's just the same meaning as "He's cool".  Is there a more...descriptive translation?

Edit:  Here's an example:   "I hit 4 of a kind twice at the casino tonight, it's baller"

Base on urban dictionary's definition, a baller is:

  A thug that has "made it" to the big time.

当屌丝逆袭成功之后，他就成就屌丝之王了，又称：“屌王“， ”屌霸“， “逆袭屌”


What are the Chinese characters for the American English word "Dishonored"? Related to the video game Dishonored. I'm not looking for the characters for 'Ashamed' or 'Insulted', words that would not work to properly describe in English the game title :D. Any other choices? I need something like 'I lost my honor by being betrayed' or 'the betrayal stole my honor'. Thanks!

The game is called

耻辱 on the mainland.
羞辱 also on the mainland
冤罪杀机 in HK & TW

Some of the details might not be 100% accurate as it looks like Wikipedia is giving contradictory information.

Dishonored 2:

耻辱2 (Mainland)
羞辱2 (Mainland)
冤罪杀机 (HK & TW)


Sentence construction for “whether or not” In Cantonese, how does one construct a phrase/sentence involving “whether or not”?

For example: We don’t know if they are husband or wife.

I came across this conversation: 係唔係老公老婆呢就唔知啦！

I wanted to know what the function of “呢就” is.

呢就 is not a single term. They are two word particles attach to different part of the sentence

The sentence construction of ”係唔係老公老婆呢就唔知啦！"is as follow:

[係唔係老公老婆][呢], [就][唔知啦！]

[about] [are (they) husband and wife?], [just]  [(we) don't know！]

In this context:

XXX呢 = about XXX

就YYY = just YYY

Other example:

人呢(about man), 就係生嘅 (is just alive - therefore flexible)

規矩呢(about rule), 就係死嘅 (is just not alive - therefore rigid)

租金呢(about rent), 就一人一半 (would just be half and half between us)

You can do without the particles in the sentences. That make them more direct and also more blunt:

"係唔係老公老婆?" "唔知!"

"人係生嘅, 規矩係死嘅" (it is a very common Cantonese expression)

"租金一人一半"


The use of 上 (shàng) "on/above/over" in Mandarin and English I'm interested in the the differences between English and Mandarin when they are talking about spatial preposition.

Can i assume that in Mandarin, they use the preposition 上 for most of the times disregard the spatial differences? For example, in English, there are word like "on", "above", "over", and they have different function in their spatial category, in which "on" should be higher than "above".

I think you miss the point in your attempt to understand the use of 上 to represent on, above or over.

The Chinese language proves there is no need for more than one word to do this as the necessary information is provided entirely in the context of the conversation.

For example, I am thinking of sentences that may appear difficult:

"The bird was on his head", "The bird was over his head"

Which could both be translated in Chinese to something like:
“鸟在他头上”

Out of context you may try and guess whether it is right on his head or right above his head, however it could be either.

Here are some examples of how this could be expanded (taken from Google results):

  有一只鸟在他头上飞过 — extended, no contact, vertical

  A bird flew over his head.
  鸟在他头上做窝 — contact

  A bird built a nest on his head.
  鸟在他头上飞了几圈 — extended, no contact, vertical

  The bird circled above his head a few times.

I would be interested to find an example sentence in English that can not be easily understood in context in the Chinese with the same amount of information.


Simplified Chinese Stroke order animation I want to show Simplified Chinese stroke order animation with unity or C#, is there an open source library?
If not, is there paid repository of stroke order diagrams in unity or C#?

This is the first result on google:
https://github.com/chanind/hanzi-writer


What does 我要放弃你不再爱我的人 mean? I think 我要放弃你不再爱我的人 mean I want to give up on you someone that is not loving me.
Based on the (guessing) translation above, the sentence can be grouped as following.
[我要放弃你] [不再爱我][的人]
On the other hand, 我要放弃你不再爱我的人 can mean I want to give up, you are not loving my body (e.g. you only love my money) if I group words this way.
[我要放弃] [你][不再爱][我的人]
What does 我要放弃你不再爱我的人 mean? How do you determine what word belongs to what?

umm...usually we mean the former. The latter can make sense in grammar sometimes, but actually we don't express like that in real life. In the second circumstance you mentioned, we would say 我要放弃，[你爱的][不是][我的人]。(I want to give up, what you love is not my self)


What is the difference between 听 and 听力|? Hello I'm learning Chinese and I would like to know when I have to use only 听 and when 听力?

听 is a verb, for example 听歌 (listen to a song).

听力 is a noun: the ability to hear