Questions about the rules that govern and structure the language, and the composition of clauses, sentences and expressions.
0
votes
0answers
15 views
How can I express the concept “There's nothing of which I'm absolutely sure” in Chinese?
Scientists and philosophers have at various times been quoted as saying:
"There's nothing of which I'm absolutely sure" or "I'm not absolutely sure of anything". (Richard Feynman, for example.)
How ...
0
votes
1answer
86 views
Why is 真都不错 used here instead of 都真不错?
中国的风景都真不错。
A native speaker told me that the above sentence was wrong, so the corrected version should be:
中国的风景真(的)都不错。
Is the first sentence's grammar wrong or it just sounds unnatural? ...
1
vote
3answers
192 views
Is it possible to use the verb particle 过 for future events?
I know it's possible to the use perfective aspect particle 了 for future events, eg:
你家少爷长大了准能当个二流子。
I have yet to find example of similar occurrences with 过. Is it even possible to use it in ...
4
votes
6answers
572 views
Could you explain the structure of this sentence?
The sentence 我吃饭的时候看了一本书。 apparently has two verbs (吃 and 看), but I can’t see how the two actions are correlated. Could anyone explain that?
4
votes
2answers
199 views
Errors and Unnatural Language in a Translation Challenge
I was recently challenged to translate the following sentence from English into Chinese:
You should stay away from that bar. A friend of mine went there before, and he ended up in the hospital after ...
4
votes
5answers
326 views
What is that use of 得?
I have read the sentence: 你还记得我吗？
But I can’t understand the meaning of 得, here. I don’t think it belongs to the rules explained here
3
votes
1answer
91 views
Measure Words and their English Analogue
I was taught that the closest analogue in English of Chinese measure words are 'units', e.g. "a pile of wood", "a cup of water", etc.
What strikes me as a bit odd about this analogy is that the units ...
4
votes
1answer
128 views
What's the grammatical structure for “<subject> <verbs> like a <noun>” style simile in Chinese
I am fond of the simile structure "I eat like a wolf" or "The light flickered like a candle" in English. I never know how to express these thoughts in Chinese though, even if I know the underlying ...
1
vote
2answers
150 views
Resultative complement 到
Is using the resultative complement 到 generally equivalent to saying "at the time this action was finished"?
Can 你走到车站的时候已经很晚了吗？ be translated as "By the time you reached the station were you ...
5
votes
2answers
145 views
Is the measure word optional in 这件毛衣?
I've heard the sentence 这毛衣, (so without measure word), but my chinese manual always use a measure word after 这:
这件毛衣
这件苹果
Is the measure word optionnal in after 这 ?
3
votes
2answers
143 views
How to explain the structure of “将在外，军令有所不受。”
In my own opinion, this sentence should be "将在外，军令不受".
I can hardly imagine any use of "有" and "所" here. Could someone explain the structure of this sentence?
5
votes
3answers
166 views
How to add emphasis to sentences
Last week a kid wrote on the office white board "Give me all your cheese now!" and I attempted a translation into Chinese (mostly to practice my handwriting). I wrote 马上给我你的奶酪。 I felt like this ...
2
votes
3answers
120 views
Grammar for counting in Chinese (for non-native speakers of Chinese)
I need to write a program that can insert the count of objects into a text - without knowing virtually anything about the Chinese language. While for English this needs to distinguish between singular ...
1
vote
9answers
555 views
Are “我在哪里可以买火车票” and “我哪里可以买火车票” both correct sentences?
Are "我在哪里可以买火车票" and "我哪里可以买火车票" both correct sentences? If one isn't, why?
6
votes
8answers
906 views
Difference between 是不是喝酒了? and 喝酒了没有？
What is the difference between
是不是吃了蛋糕？ and 吃蛋糕了没有？
or
是不是喝酒了? and 喝酒了没有？
7
votes
3answers
365 views
Why do Chinese translations of English names sound very inaccurate?
I have noticed that most Chinese translation of English names sounds really inaccurate and weird.
For example, the common translation of person's name "Robert Wilson" is "罗伯特·威尔逊", which is not ...
2
votes
3answers
236 views
Is this sentence ambiguous out of context?
My newsletter says this sentence
我五分钟后就回来。
is translated as "I'll be back in 5 minutes".
I am curious to know whether this sentence could be translated as "I came back 5 minutes ago", or does ...
16
votes
6answers
664 views
的-地-得, when do you use which?
So the age old question of 的-地-得, when do you use which? When spoken, it all sounds the same, but on paper it depends on if it's a verb, noun, adjective. But I don't quite remember if that is all that ...
3
votes
3answers
211 views
What is the function of 已 in 好像她已出去好几天了。
What is the purpose of 已 in the following sentence？
好像她已出去好几天了。
The English translation given is:
It looks as if she's gone away for a few days.
Or is this an incorrect-character, supposed ...
3
votes
4answers
223 views
That mystical 就 again
Here is a sentence:
厨房壁炉架上的那面镜子就把哈利吓了一跳
Below are my translation variants. Bold letters should be a 'jiu' english analog here.
The mirror on top of the kitchen's fireplace scared Harry the ...
1
vote
2answers
169 views
What effective methods exists for visual learners to get Chinese grammar?
I want to learn Chinese grammar (e.g. sentence structure), however, I am a highly visual person and feel a visual learning process would help me the most.
I have already taken a beginner Chinese ...
1
vote
3answers
228 views
国家 vs. 国, when can 国 be used alone?
In the Chinese book for beginners by Bellassen, it is stated that 国 cannot be used alone: it doesn't have a meaning on its own, and thus the word country/fatherland is 国家 and not 国.
However... I am ...
9
votes
4answers
287 views
How is 就 (jiù) used?
Pimsleur's Mandarin course teaches "I'm leaving very early tomorrow morning" as:
我明天早上很早就走 (wŏ míngtiān zăoshàng hĕn zăo jiù zŏu)
It says that 就 (jiù) doesn't have a corresponding meaning in ...
1
vote
2answers
96 views
What is 被 doing in sentence “这种病在三十年前就被根除了”?
I understand that the sentence means something like "This disease was eradicated 30 years ago", but I have no idea what role does 被 have in it?
Is the sentence okay if we remove it? Does it convey ...
4
votes
2answers
110 views
Which measure word should I use with 角色？
Nciku tells me the proper measure word is 类, but a quick search on Google garnered mostly results like "哪类角色更容易赢“小金人”？“ implying that for the most part 类 is used when inquiring about a particular type ...
9
votes
3answers
210 views
Use of 十年中 to express duration
Does 十年中 mean "in ten years"? I found it in this sentence from tatoeba.org:
他十年中第一次回家。
He returned home for the first time in ten years.
It seems like I could use the same pattern to say, ...
4
votes
2answers
176 views
Difference between 两个都 and 我们俩
Pimsleur's Mandarin course teaches 'both of us' as 我们两个都 (wǒ men liăng ge dōu), but in another question I asked here I recently found that 我们俩 (wǒ men liă).
Are these always interchangeable, or are ...
2
votes
4answers
132 views
How to ask “is it really so that…”?
How do I ask a question like "is it really so that you're just 18?" or "is it really so that the movie was good?", i.e. a surprised question?
My guess is something along the lines of "这是真的，你只有十八岁呢?", ...
9
votes
5answers
174 views
Learning how to use measure / count words properly
Chinese has measure (or count) words like “个” (一个人), “部” (三部车), etc.
These always get me confused, and there way too many of them. Are there any general rules that can help me memorize them?
Also, ...
2
votes
1answer
71 views
Usage of 感动 (active/passive?)
According to mdbg.net 感动 means both 'to move (emotionally)' and 'moving'.
But from what I understand from some texts I have '邻居们都很感动' implying a more passive meaning for 感动.
Can someone shed some ...
3
votes
1answer
206 views
What is the difference in usage between 以后 and 之后？
Today John Pasden linked to an old Sinosplice post in which he discussed how Chinese grammatical categories cannot be mapped neatly onto those of Indo-European languages.
...
4
votes
3answers
150 views
What is the function of 的多 in this sentence?
中国人爱喝茶的多。
I assume the meaning is that "Chinese people love drinking tea a lot", or "...really love drinking tea." Does 的多 act as an adverbial structure here? In what other situations would it be ...
5
votes
3answers
111 views
Are 平常 and 通常 essentially interchangeable?
In a few of my entries on Lang-8.com, several of my Chinese friends have changed 平常 into 通常 and vice versa without providing additional explanation. It it just a matter of personal taste?
3
votes
1answer
93 views
Example of using 吧 in conversation
My textbook explains that 吧 is a modal particle, but I'm not a linguist and the "modal particle" article on Wikipedia didn't help. Can you give examples of using 吧 in conversation?
4
votes
5answers
150 views
How to say “we want what is best for our kids”?
I'd like to say the above sentence.
I can't think anything but the following sentence, but it just doesn't sit right with me somehow:
我们都要对我们的孩子最好.
While the subject "what's best" in english ...
4
votes
1answer
90 views
What is the pattern for 'instead of x, y…'
For example, how would I say, 'instead of x, we should do y'?
I find it hard to balance the sentence correctly in chinese.
Do I need to use, 反而 or 而且? Or is there some better method?
1
vote
4answers
148 views
很 and 最 - Questions of The Context
很 means very. 最 means truly, really. I was wondering in which context they would be most appropriate.
我最喜欢去组约。- I'd really like to go to New York.
So 最 can be used as a descriptor in this ...
4
votes
4answers
183 views
What is the function of 了 in the sentence “她会杀了你的”?
What is the function of 了 in the following sentence? Does it imply a sequence of actions?
她会杀了你的。"She will kill you."
4
votes
6answers
222 views
How to parse 没得 + Verb constructions
I've heard phrases of the form 没得V, where V is a verb. Sometimes, the 没得 appears to function like 没, e.g.,
我没得选: I don't have a choice.
Sometimes, it appears to function like a softer, ...
1
vote
3answers
113 views
Usage of 了 and 以后
For the sentence 'I watched a movie after I had food', are the following translations equivalent? Additionally, is the 3rd translation incorrect (is the ...了...以后... usage valid)?
我吃了饭看电影。
我吃饭以后看电影。
...
1
vote
3answers
109 views
How to correctly order the words in this sentence?
This is a question from an exercise book that I'm currently working through, to rearrange the given words into the correct order. I believe the format is along the lines of "The person who was [doing ...
8
votes
2answers
231 views
Using 的 at the end of a sentence
I'm looking for confirmation of the way I'm parsing a sentence with 的 at the end, and I'd appreciate some background or other examples of this usage.
I found this sentence on tatoeba.org:
...
3
votes
1answer
66 views
What is the difference, if any, between 即使 and 無論？
Is a big difference between 即使 and 無論?
I was working on a couple of fill-in-the-blanks exercises and the following sentence came up:
你的畫很有特色，（blank）是畫家也不一定能畫德比你好。
I think the right answer ...
2
votes
2answers
99 views
2
votes
3answers
81 views
Ways to say “more”
I know a few ways to say "more" or "in addition", and I'm wondering which to use when translating this sentence. I came across the following English sentence and its Chinese translation on ...
4
votes
4answers
155 views
What comprehensive grammar books are available? [closed]
I have found many grammar books, but none that go beyond the low-intermediate level. Some textbook series contain lots of grammar, but this is spread out across many books and difficult to quickly ...
9
votes
5answers
195 views
Difference between 如果 and 要是?
In the Pimsleur Mandarin course it uses 如果 (rúguǒ) to mean 'if', but the dictionary shows 要是 (yàoshì) to have a similar meaning:
如果: if; in case; in the event that
要是: if
Are there any ...
6
votes
4answers
276 views
What is the difference in use between 完 and 了?
If I understood correctly, both 完 and 了 can be used to indicate a completed action, so what is the difference in use? How do we properly use 完 in a sentence? Which contexts would be valid?
6
votes
3answers
265 views
What is the difference between 一只狗 and 一条狗?
I've been told by native speakers that the former refers to little dogs while the latter is for bigger dogs. I also have been told that the latter has a negative connotation. I'm wondering:
how ...
13
votes
1answer
177 views
What is the difference in use between 以及, 和 and 与?
I have a book with the following lesson titles:
中文以及中国
聚会和饮食
交通与环境
Why are these terms connected with 以及 / 和 / 与, why not always use 和 for example?
Are there any rules for proper use of these ...
