10 votes
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What is the difference between 夜(yè) and 晚 (wǎn)?

Originally, 晚 could be written as 莫 (in ancient form): 艹(草, grass)+ 日 (sun), referring to when the sun is below the grass -- sunset. In modern Chinese, we can understand or memorize it in this way: ...
Wang Zong'an's user avatar
10 votes
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Difference of 青 and 黑

青 does not mean black in modern Chinese (likely due to semantic transition). It can mean black in classical Chinese, but that does not mean its meaning is ambiguous either, given the context is ...
L Parker's user avatar
  • 5,605
9 votes

How to say "obscene": translate 下流 or 輕佻?

'Obscene' is not 下流(no class/ bad taste) or 輕佻 (frivolous) One definition of obscene is 不堪入目 , it is used to describe perverted, immoral act or behavior For example: Taking a child from his mother ...
Tang Ho's user avatar
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8 votes
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Is there a distinction between 禁止 (jìnzhǐ) and 严禁 (yánjìn), which both mean "forbid"?

严禁 is short for 严格禁止,which means strictly forbid. 禁止 is kinda suggestive,严禁 indicates something is obliged not to do by the rules or law. Actually in everyday use, there is no obvious distinction ...
user16311's user avatar
  • 104
7 votes

What is the difference between 做 and 作?

As an extension to Flake's answer: 做 in most cases do not involve creative activity, in another word, usually do not involve mind work. As in 做工(work), 做饭(cook). 作 in most cases is something creative....
xfx's user avatar
  • 214
6 votes
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What is the difference between 比如 and 例如

比如 used for similar but have different things; 例如 used for many of the same things, and take a typical example, using the example to illustrate the general of many things Also, 比如 may not exist, but ...
Albert's user avatar
  • 146
6 votes

斯 vs 这 vs 此 for the meaning "this"?

斯 is ancient Chinese language usage, and 此 is more used in writing language. 这 is most common nowadays.
science belief's user avatar
6 votes
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Difference among these terms for student clubs: 队、团、俱乐部、社和兴趣小组?

These words are very similar. 队 and 团 are almost the same. For example, we can call the band that attend competitions either 乐队 or 乐团; we can call a choir either 合唱队 or 合唱团. We also often put these ...
Angie's user avatar
  • 76
5 votes

What is the difference between 夜(yè) and 晚 (wǎn)?

晚 itself means late, and it doesn't mean night, like 晚霞. While 夜晚, 晚上,晚间 mean night. So "beautiful night" is 美丽的夜 or 美丽的夜晚,not 美丽的晚。 However in some words the character 晚 does mean night, that is ...
孤影萍踪's user avatar
  • 4,079
5 votes

What is the difference between 认为 and 以为?

Putting it simple: 认为 - think or consider 以为 - thought or considered (but I was wrong).
Enrico Brasil's user avatar
5 votes
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What's the difference between 可 and 可以?

"可" is a morpheme, while "可以" is a word. With the meaning of "be able to", "可" and "可以" are interchangeable in most cases. When we answer a question, we should say "可以", which means "fine", or "OK". ...
S1ngS1ng's user avatar
  • 155
5 votes

Difference between 生活 and 生命

生活 is life as in "family life/private life/sex life/working life". 生命 is life as in "Cats are supposed to have nine lives/He lost his life in an accident"
ltux's user avatar
  • 545
5 votes

Is there a distinction between 禁止 (jìnzhǐ) and 严禁 (yánjìn), which both mean "forbid"?

It is quite simple, 禁止 = forbid - a formal pronouncement; (a warning) 严禁 = strictly forbid - implies there is a heavy punishment for violation, and it is being enforced earnestly-- (a stern warning) ...
Tang Ho's user avatar
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5 votes
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What is the difference between 人才 and 人材, and which should I use?

They are identical*. As for which one you should use, that is going to be a personal preference. Here's some points which you may take into consideration when deciding (note that, overall, these ...
dROOOze's user avatar
  • 22.6k
5 votes

Differences between 记得 and 记住

The biggest help to clarify the difference is that 记住 has the result complement 住, which is used to express halt (e.g. 站住 stand still), and, by extension, firmness of the action (e.g. 忍住 withstand). ...
blackgreen's user avatar
  • 5,452
5 votes
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如果 synonyms for semi-formal written

There are way more synonyms in Chinese than listed. They are in most cases interchangeable depending on your desired degree of formality: Explanation 如, 若 Originates from classical Chinese; formal. ...
L Parker's user avatar
  • 5,605
5 votes
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Comparison of 稻 with 米饭, 白饭 or even 米 and 饭 individually

稻/水稻, known as Asian rice, has a scientific name Oryza sativa since it is a plant: Generally we don't use this word to describe what people eat, unless in a formal context. 世界一半以上的人口以水稻为主食 (OK) ...
Alan Zzz's user avatar
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4 votes
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Difference between 办法, 方法, and 方式?

I haven't looked up in the dictionary, so my answer may not be accurate. Just for reference. 方法 means the way that should be followed when doing something. Example: 使用方法 (the way to use something, ...
Aurus Huang's user avatar
  • 2,030
4 votes

Difference between 借 and 贷

We don't usually say 贷钱, but we do say 贷款 a lot, which is a more official way of saying 借钱. For example, If you borrow money from your friend, you 借钱 from your friend. In this case it's more ...
Gracegotlost's user avatar
4 votes

Which word to use for "day" when talking about lengths of time?

Both of the "天" and "日" as the "量词" are correct. In the modern standard Chinese, people will say "我觉得我会待两三天" in their daily life, and will say "我预计我将停留两三日" in the formal situation such as ...
Swain's user avatar
  • 41
4 votes

Which word to use for "day" when talking about lengths of time?

Basic difference: 天 (n) sky; day 日 (n) sun ; day; date When stating number of days, you can use either 日 or 天 Example: 三個月另八日 /三個月另八天 ( three months and eight days) 十六日 / 十六天 ( 16 days) ...
Tang Ho's user avatar
  • 78.5k
4 votes

What's the difference between 周 and 星期?

Dividing a year into 52 weeks was a new concept to Chinese people at the time. Since 星期(指七夕,就是牛郎织女鹊桥相会之日) a common term already existed in China, https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%98%9F%E6%9C%9F it ...
Tang Ho's user avatar
  • 78.5k
4 votes

斯 vs 这 vs 此 for the meaning "this"?

斯 refers to a person mostly, as in 天將降大任於斯人也... Interestingly, 这斯 in ancient Chinese means "this (bad) guy" in 水浒传, used by a rude guy frequently. As mentioned, it is an ancient word used in this way,...
Kathy's user avatar
  • 101
4 votes

Are 这是哪 and 这是在哪 different questions?

"这是哪?" short for "这是哪里?"; It means "where is this place/ what place it is?" (you want to know the name of a place) Example: A and B are at a park, A asks B: "这是哪(...
Tang Ho's user avatar
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4 votes
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Are 这是哪 and 这是在哪 different questions?

The key to differentiate between 这是哪(儿) and 这是在哪(儿) is to understand the different usages of the character '这'. 这 have several meanings, I just listed two of them relevant to this topic: referring ...
dan's user avatar
  • 24k
4 votes

What are the differences between 锻炼 and 运动 for "exercise", "work out", "train", etc?

运动 means "to exercise" or "to work out" . It is basically a method of strengthening one's muscles through body movements, to gain power and or improve endurance in sport. It can also just for ...
Tang Ho's user avatar
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4 votes
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The differences between 生日 and 生辰

生辰 can mean either "birthday"(the day one's birth) or 生日+时辰 (birthday + birth time) as in the phrase 生辰八字. Usually, 生辰 just means birthday, but it's more literary. You can probably only see it's ...
dan's user avatar
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