Questions tagged [meaning-in-context]
Questions about understanding words or phrases within a given context.
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What does 脫上台 in the following context?
This line comes from the song 走建國路回家但後座少ㄌ泥. Lyrics can be found here if more context is needed.
知道妳喜歡自由, 不會去管你太多就算妳說上台要脫
I know you like freedom, so I won't bother you too much, even if... What? &...
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What does 被打败 mean in this context?
At the zoo feeding a bear 喂大熊
convo:
-它是被打败的那一块
-它被打败了呀
-有点可怜
-多给它几块肉吧
dictionary only gives "to defeat / to overpower / to beat / to be defeated"
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What does 外地人能干的，北京人应该照样能干，转变观念已迫在眉睫 mean in my textbook?
据介绍，今年北京的劳动力市场总体上仍供大于求，就业形势依然严峻。外地人能干的，北京人应该照样能干，转变观念已迫在眉睫。行文至此，北京市职业介绍部门传来令人欣喜的消息：在招聘的85名保洁员中，有50人是北京人。相信会有越来越多的北京人从外地人离京这一课中受到启发，振奋精神，展示北京人的新风采。
Short Term Reading Chinese (2nd edition): Advanced; ...
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What does "小" mean in "小炒牛肉"?
I am not sure why the character "小" (small) is used here. Is there any difference between "小炒牛肉" and "炒牛肉"?
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这段课文写对了没有? 请你们检查一下。谢谢
Please help me to check if my text for the video is correct. 大家好! 我是_, 我来自俄罗斯, 今年20岁。 目前还是一个_大学外国语学院的学生。 我是一个渴望知识的人, 学得很认真和努力。 我家不太富裕, 我从中学工作和帮助解决金钱问题。 从那时起，我试图了解金融和经济学是如何运作的, 觉得很有意思。 在我上学期间, ...
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What does 科 in 本科教育 or 本科学历 mean?
This question is triggered after reading the post "What does 本 in 本科教育 or 本科学历 mean?" In which, the word 本 was well explained, how about 科?
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What does 折腾 mean in this context?
I've been trying to translate two sentences for days but cannot find a suitable English word to translate 折腾.
Here's the context:
以前有段时间，他很喜欢养花，开始折腾各种盆栽。
Because of this, I also cannot translate the ...
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How should I interpret 一个颗状星的行星?
这个概念在汪淼的头脑中萦绕。为什么那个世界的太阳运行会没有规律？一个颗状星的行星，不管其运行轨道是正圆还是偏长的椭圆，其围绕恒星的运动一定是周期性的，全无规律的运行是不可能的……汪淼突然对自己很恼火，他使劲地摇头想赶走头脑中的这一切，不过是个游戏嘛，但他失败了。
刘慈欣,《三体》 (see e.g. this)
I'm not sure how to interpret 一个颗状星的行星 in ...
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What does 拉丝为加丝 mean?
Could someone tell me what 拉丝为加丝 means? I searched it up on baidu and the first thing that came up was Las Vegas and it also makes sense within the context, but the characters are different from Las ...
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What does 被熏 mean?
So I'm not sure if I'm correct but I want to make sure, does this 被熏 mean sick? According to google translate this 被熏 means "smoked", but in the context of the sentence, it doesn't really ...
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森严 Why does this mean heavy guarding?
So why does "森严" mean "strictly protected"? like, ok, "森" Means Jungle and "严" means strict, so shouldn't it means "strict forest" not "...
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What's the logic to change the literal meaning of the words
I read a short story in the DuChinese app where the woman wanted his husband to call her as "queen".
She said: "不要叫小明妈、叫我“女王"吧。
The husband pretends he understood she wants to be ...
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What is 照拂 in 我是你照拂的梦?
So in this line 我是你照拂的梦, both Google and Apple have translated as I am your dream. What about 照拂? What does 照拂 describe 梦 or 你?
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What is the meaning of 磨了边?
While I was trying to read a Chinese novelette, I came across this sentence:
白色衬衫和褐色裤子，这是他唯一一套体面衣服，衬衫袖口磨了边，他把袖子卷到胳膊肘。
My initial guess was that 磨边 would mean something such as the edge of something, ...
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What does 必须追一下 mean?
So I found this comment on a drama on YouTube. Did the commenter mean the person who sang the song (or the theme song itself ) needed to catch up? Meaning it was not as good as the drama or just ...
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Meaning of 活该 臭死她才好?
They are talking about a girl in an embarrassing video that went viral
活该 臭死她才好
"Serves her right..." I don't get the rest.
Edit: There's nothing about a smelly environment in the video but ...
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苗- What does this do at the end of a sentence?
So I'm reading a novel and I have seen the author write 苗 multiple times, putting it at the end of a sentence. I am confused to as what the author is doing by writing 苗 at the end of a sentence, at ...
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I am perplexed by this script. I believe it is Chinese, be appreciative if it could translate into English and/or give further meaning. att image [closed]
Old ink painting with characters that I would like to understand and be translated. I have various ink paintings with plants, animals and humans but have never understood the meaning of the characters....
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Is there a chinese term similar to semifera?
I am looking for a chinese term, that has the same meaning as the Greek diphues (διφυής) “of two natures”, or latin semifera, which means part human, part animal. It is a term to encompase ...
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What's the deeper meaning behind 不吃饭则饥，不读书则愚?
I'm loving learning some of these wise sayings, but I'm having a little trouble getting the deeper meaning.
It seems like it basically is "don't eat the hungry, don't read the stupid".
Does ...
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How can I understand the seemingly illogical HSK6-exam answer: 同仁堂诞生之前是：一个小药铺?
This is a from a HSK6 past exam (paper H61005, page 18):
每一个中华老字号都是一个品牌奇迹，“同仁堂”有 300 多年的历史，京城最老的老字号“鹤年堂”的历史超过 600 年。今天它们不仅仅是品牌，更是一种文化，当我们提起这些品牌，最津津乐道的还是那些被人熟知的动人故事。
少年康熙曾得过一场怪病，全身红疹，奇痒无比，宫中御医束手无策。...
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What does 她又自杀又下跪地被送上了飞机 mean?
后来据说阿紫自己跑去医院打掉了孩子，她的家里人为了断绝她和仲嵚的来往，想办法把她弄去了法国，在亲戚家开的餐馆做帮厨，她又自杀又下跪地被送上了飞机。现在想来，这应该是这个故事里最圆满的一种解脱。
仲尼, 谢谢你曾来过我的世界, 2017, p.19 (photo of original).
I don't get what the part in bold above means. Google ...
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What's the meaning of 我跟你学学他啊?
Two girls are talking about how bad a guy was.
One of them said 我跟你学学他啊 then proceeds to imitate/repeat what the guy said.
When I look up 学学他, all I get is the meaning of learn or study which does not ...
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What's the meaning of 溜个号 in 我出去溜个号
Sitting in a class, one says: 你帮我盯着点 我出去溜个号
I'd like to know what 溜个号 really means
Or is it just "I sneak out"
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Does 几棵参天大树字 refer to trees (树) or characters (字)?
This is from a grade-5 composition:
左边，有几棵参天大树字、直直的挺立在那里。
快乐的秋游
I'm confused as to whether 几棵参天大树字 refers to trees (树), or characters (字). The measure word 棵 suggests it's referring to trees, but ...
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Context-based classifier usage
I've noticed that many Chinese people would use 个（個）instead of the proper classifier for many situations in daily conversations (e.g. 一个歌, rather than 一首歌).
Based on my current knowledge, 个（個）may be ...
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What the sentence means?
余憶童稚時，能張目對日，明察秋毫。見藐小微物，必細察其紋理，故時有物外之趣。………一日，見二蟲鬥草間，觀之，興正濃，忽有龐然大物，拔山倒樹而來，蓋一癩蝦蟆也。舌一吐而二蟲盡為所吞。余年幼，方出神，不覺呀然驚恐。神定，捉蝦蟆，鞭數十，驅之別院。
What I thinking is about, there it's a frog that ate the bugs. And somebody ...
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What does the Expression 规格 mean in the following context?
So I tried to let google translate translate some chinese text, and the results were mostly useful, but the way it translated 规格 does not make sense in the context, indeed, all the alternative ...
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How do I interpret 者 in 如是者有年，一日偶然…?
我自读书识字以来，就想为英雄豪杰，求之四书五经，茫无所得，求之诸子百家，与夫廿四史，仍无所得，以为古之为英雄豪杰者，必有不传之秘，不过吾人生性愚鲁，寻他不出罢了。穷索冥搜，忘寝废食，如是者有年，一日偶然想起三国时几个人物，不觉恍然大悟曰：得之矣，得之矣，古之为英雄豪杰者，不过面厚心黑而已。
李宗学，厚黑学全集，p.21. (photo)
I don't understand 如是者有年 ...
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Does 我也不知道怎么冒犯他了 mean "I also don't know how to offend him" and/or "I also don't know how I offended him"?
My teacher prepared a (large) batch of sentences to study. One sentence is:
我也不知道怎么冒犯他了。
Here I see two interpretations of this sentence:
I also don't know how to offend him.
I would naturally ...
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Slogan “澀得起，就係我”
This is the slogan of a popular lemon tea drink in Hong Kong.
I wanted to ask what 澀 is. I searched it and it meant “astringent” and a bunch of other negative adjectives.
I think calling your lemon ...
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What is the function of 加以 in this sentence?
I'm certain 林俊宏 is an accomplished translator whose skill is far far beyond my puny attempts. I'm just wondering about this 加以。
Original English sentence from Sapiens, 人类简史:
In addition, since ...
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开始和起来有什么不同？to start + verb
When used with another verb 开始 and 起来 both convey the meaning: to start doing something. Are they synonymous in that specific usage?
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What does 发达国家占7％，发展中国家占17％ in the textbook 规范教程HSK6上 refer to?
据权威机构统计，除吸烟、遗传等，感染也是引起癌症的重要原因之一。全球癌症17％是由细菌、病毒等感染引起的，但发达国家占7％，发展中国家占17％。造成这种差别的原因是，发达国家能更有效率地防治感染。
HSK Coursebook (HSK规范教程) 6上, p.7.
[Google Translate]: According to statistics from authoritative ...
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Use 微积分 to mean 'tiny'?
Just reading 人类简史, translated into Chinese by 林俊宏。
微积分: calculus
I know very little about 微积分, except that it is a way to divide by zero and still get an answer!
But in this text, 微积分 seems to mean ...
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When does 两 mean a number other than 2?
I was born in China but came to the US at a young age. Growing up, I was told that the character 两 could sometimes mean a small number other than two, depending on context. And indeed, yellowbridge ...
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What is the function of “而” and “使” in this sentence?
all.
I'm reading through a textbook and came across this sentence:
“那些得益于畜牧农耕而使人类实现了定居的地方，大都成为人类文明的摇篮。”
Overall, the sentence doesn't really give me much trouble except for that “而使” in the first ...
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Why does this woman say, “不客气地说”？
男： 你认为当“金牌导游”要具备哪些条件？
女： 不客气的说，要凭业务精、能力强。讲一个故事吧，我到现在待过的最大的一个团有一百个人。
What does she mean with ’不客气地说‘？？
Does she think her answer may be offensive to some people?
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how do i know when someone says 他 or 她 in a conversation?
她 means she, and 他 which means he, (they a are both pronounced ta) how can I tell the difference between the two in a conversation without any writing.
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Is there any difference between 见到 and 见着?
Person 1 says: 我不想再见到你
Person 2 says: 谁想再见着你
Why does Person 1 use the word 见到 and Person 2 use the word 见着?
Is there any different meaning between using 见到 and 见着 in this context?
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该讲不该讲 vs. 当讲不当讲
有句话不知该讲不该讲。 In 古代 dramas they used it quite a bit. But I have also heard the 当讲不当讲 version. It has always been in a situation where a lower ranking personnel was addressing a higher.
Are there any ...
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Why is 上下 used in 这套房子是上下两层的?
I am confused by the use of 上下 in the sentence:
这套房子是上下两层的，楼下是客厅，楼上有三个房间。
This house has two floors, the living room is downstairs, and there are three rooms upstairs.
I understand 上下 as up and down,...
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What should I understand under 一大景色？
I can't seem to wrap my head around this little phrase: 一大景色
自行车差不多成了城市的一大景色。
景色: 风景: scenery, landscape, 景致: scenery, view, scene
Does “一大景色” have some special kind of meaning?
I want to translate ...
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How would you translate "for just a moment" in Chinese?
I am wondering if there's a more accurate way to say "for just a moment", or "if not for just a moment" in Chinese?
I am not certain because the translations I found sounds ...
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How accurate is SCMP's translation of “任期内打仗”“今晚准备打仗”不是一句口号，而是一种现实存在?
“‘A war within the president’s term’ or ‘war breaking out tonight’ are not just slogans, they are becoming a practical reality,” it said.
China ‘steps up preparedness for possible military conflict ...
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What is the difference between 暍 and 热? [closed]
大家好
What is the difference between 暍 and 热 and when they are used ?
谢谢
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Meaning of "集合论提供了要如何描述数学物件的语言" in an article on set theory
Here is a sentence from the Baidu Baike article on set theory 集合论. I am trying to read this article using a dictionary because it has many words that I have not seen before.
在大多数现代数学的公式化中，...
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How to understand "乒乓大方卜"?
I saw a brand (Hup Seng) of sugar crackers with the Chinese character "乒乓大方卜". Though I recognise every character here, I do not see how these five characters make sense together. Does not &...
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Meaning of 不之禁也 in context
Background and Question
I am again translating Dai Hongci‘s diary from a visit in Vienna during the year 1906 into German. It contains the characters 不之禁也 in relation to indulging the students pastime ...
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