Friendarin

17 February, 2016

07 February, 2016

Noun Specifiers


In Chinese Mandarin language, Specifiers (SP) are a special group of Noun modifiers. Here are some commonly used Specifiers: 
这 - zhè (zhèi) - this 
那 - nà (nèi) - that 
每 - měi - each, every 
哪 - nǎ (něi) - which?

Specifier is normally followed by a number, a measure word and a noun itself:

SP + NU + M + N

However, a noun may be omitted when it is understood from the context. 这 and 那 can stand alone as a subject (without a measure word).

If the number is "one", it may be omitted, too.



06 February, 2016

"Handsome Dad" Joke

In Chinese language, the character 的 may be used: 

1) to express possession 
Noun 1 + 的 + Noun 2
爸爸的车 - bàba de chē - Dad's car 

2) to attribute adjectives to nouns 
Adj. + 的 + Noun
可爱的宝宝 - kě'ài de bǎobǎo - a cute baby



This Chinese joke illustrates the difference:

以后我有了儿子,我要给他起个名字叫 “好帅”, 别人看见了我,就会说“好帅的爸爸”。 

Yǐhòu wǒ yǒu le er zi, wǒ yào gěi tā qǐ gè míngzì jiào “hǎo shuài”, biérén kànjiànle wǒ, jiù huì shuō “hǎo shuài de bàba” 

When I have a son, I'm going to name him Hao Shuai ("Handsome"). Then, other people will call me "Handsome Dad".

04 February, 2016

Talking About Literature

Some useful words for discussing literature and writers:



著名的作家 – zhù míng de zuò jiā – a famous writer 
著名的诗人 – zhù míng de shī rén – a famous poet 
小说的重点 – xiǎo shuō de zhòng diǎn – a story’s main point 
讽刺封建社会 – fèng cì fēng jiàn shè huì – to satirize feudal society 
小说的内容 – xiǎo shuō de nèi róng – a novel’s content

25 January, 2016

Chinese Radical: 火 - fire


The (huǒ) radical means "fire". Here are some characters containing this radical. Their meaning is usually somehow related to "fire" or "heat".



灯笼 - dēng long - a lantern 
炒肉 - chǎo ròu - fried meat 
抽烟 - chōu yān - to smoke 
烤炉 - kǎo lú - an oven 
炎热 - yán rè - very hot 
秋天 - qiū tiān - autumn