One of the hardest parts of learning the Chinese language is understanding the various meanings of the same word, and then knowing how and when to throw them into a conversation. Today we will take a look at a simple, yet versatile phrase: “干吗? (gànmá?)” …
Key Learning Points (Preview):
飞机 (fēijī): n. plane
一心一意 (yìxīnyíyì): adj. focused
Yì tiān, xiǎo māo gēn māo māma qù diàoyú. 一 天， 小 猫 跟 猫 妈妈 去 钓鱼。 One day, a little cat goes fishing …
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Finding a good Chinese tutor is key if you want to learn the Chinese language correctly and in an effective way, but how do you know if your tutor is the right one for you? Use the following checklist as …
(Learn Chinese through Cartoons)
Cóngqián yǒu yígè gōngzhǔ, tāde pífū báide xiàng xuě, suóyǐ guówáng gěi tā qǐmíng wéi báixuě 从前 有 一个 公主， 她的 皮肤 白得 像 雪，所以 国王 给 她 起名 为 白雪 gōngzhǔ. Dànshì gōngzhǔ de māma qùshì dé hěnzǎo. 公主。 但是 …
(Learn Chinese through listening to popular kids’ songs.) Xiăobáitù guāiguai, bă mén kāi kāi, kuàidiăn kāi kāi, wǒ yào jìnlái. 小白兔 乖乖， 把 门 开 开，快点 开 开，我 要 进来。 Little rabbit, hurry up and open the door, I want to come in.
Bù …
中国商务送礼禁忌 (Zhōngguó shāngwù sònglǐ jìnjì) Taboos of giving business gifts in China
Key Learning Points (Preview):
送礼 (sònglǐ): v. to give gift
商务往来 (shāngwù wǎnglái): n. business exchanges/doing business with others
“送礼 (sònglǐ) Gift giving ” is an important part of “商务往来 (shāngwù wǎnglái) doing …
Yǒuyìtiān, dàxiàng hé mǎyǐ fāshēng le yìchǎng zhēnglùn, tā liǎ dōu rènwéi zìjǐ de lìqi bǐ duìfāng dà. 有一天， 大象 和 蚂蚁 发生 了 一场 争论， 他 俩 都 认为 自己 的力气比 对方 大。 One day, there arose an argument between an elephant and an …
Key Learning Points (Preview):
“梨 (lí)” is the Chinese character for “pear.” （Riddle time: Guess the fruit.） Find taboo Chinese gift idea here! 礼物 (lǐwù) n. gift
Origin Story
Dōnghàn shíhou, yǒugè jiào Kǒng róng de rén. Tā xiǎoshíhou hěn cōngming, yǒu wǔgè gēge, …
Previously, we introduced two other Chinese words related to the character “霸(bà)”: “学霸(xuébà)” and “麦霸(màibà).” In this issue we will learn about another one, which is “霸王餐(bàwángcān).”
Literally, “霸(bà)” means “to dominate, lord over, tyrannize over or rule by force” and “王(wáng)” means “king.” Together, …
Compliments play an important role in maintaining good social relationships. After all, it never hurts to make others feel good about themselves! Let’s learn how to pay your Chinese friends compliments in Mandarin.
First, let’s have a look at the most common sentence structure for …
The Chinese word “火 (huǒ)” literally means fire, but the word also has a few other meanings.
First, to describe something/somebody that is very popular. For instance, “最近这个节目很火。 (Zuìjìn zhège jiémù hěn huǒ.) This show is really popular these days.”
Second, to refer to getting …
Answer: A In Chinese, “爱(ài)” means “love” and “人(rén)” means “person/people,” so “爱人(àiren)” literally means “the person you love.” However, the term can’t be used to refer to every person that you love: not your girlfriend, not your boyfriend, and not your lover. The term …
For Chinese learners, one major difficulty you may face during your Chinese studies is the pronunciation of the four tones. These include the 1st tone which is level, the 2nd tone which rises, the 3rd tone which falls then rises, and the 4th tone …
In this issue we will learn a useful Chinese proverb —“墙头草, 随风倒(qiángtóucǎo, suífēngdǎo) The grass on top of the wall sways whichever way the wind blows”.
Here, “墙头草(qiángtóucǎo)” refers to people who don’t have a mind of their own, who can’t form their own opinions.…
In last week’s test, we learned about the idiom “喝西北风(hē xīběifēng)”, which means getting nothing to eat or having to live on air. Now in this issue we will get to know about two other kinds of “风(fēng)”: “东风(dōngfēng)” and “耳边风(ěrbiānfēng).”
“东风(dōngfēng)” …
We have previously introduced Sichuan’s “麻辣(málà)” and Hunan’s “香辣(xiānglà)” flavors. In this last issue of our three-part sizzling-hot tour of China we will learn about one more unique kind of “spiciness” — the “酸辣(suānlà) sour spiciness” of “贵州(guìzhōu).” The special climate of Guizhou Province is, …
In China, “辣椒(làjiāo) chili” has rich cultural connotations. The fire-red chilies, connected with feelings of joy and celebration, symbolize colorful and thriving lives. What’s more, the character “交(jiāo) make friends or associate with someone” is a homophone of “椒(jiāo)”, suggesting that making good friends with …
Answer: B In option A, “蜜蜂(mìfēng)” means “bee” and “蜂蜜(fēngmì)” means “honey.” In B, “苹果(píngguǒ)” is “apple” but the character combination “果苹(guǒpíng)” doesn’t hold any meaning in Chinese. In option C, “国王(guówáng)” refers to “a king” and “王国(wángguó)” is his “kingdom.” Finally, in D, “白雪(báixuě)” …
In Chinese, some two-character words or phrases will take on new meanings if the order of the two characters is swapped. For example, “牛奶(niúnǎi)” means “milk” but “奶牛(nǎiniú)” means “cow”, “喜欢(xǐhuān)” is “to like” but “欢喜(huānxǐ)” is “happy”, and “刷牙(shuāyá)” means “to brush one’s teeth” …
Answer: C In Chinese there are a few polyphones, or characters with multiple pronunciations, “扫(sǎo/sào)” in the test is one of them. The two pronunciations of “扫(sǎo/sào)” express different meanings. “扫(sǎo)” means “sweep” in English, as in to clean the dust and rubbish away, like …
