20
votes
Accepted
Very frequently used word in Mandarin that sounds like "nica" or "nigah"
The word your hear is probably 那個 (in traditional characters) / 那个 (in simplified characters). It is pronounced nàge or nèige (in the Pinyin transcription), and it's basic meaning is ‘that’ or ‘that ...
- 1,660
12
votes
Chinese words with non-Chinese letters / characters?
There are lots of them, here's what I can recall:
T恤衫，T-shirt
X光片，X ray image
卡拉OK，karaoke
K线图，Candlestick chart
A型血，Blood Type A
P图(v.)，Photoshop an image
维生素C，Vitamin C
O型腿，Blount's diseas
...
- 386
11
votes
Accepted
Why is 台北 spelled Taipei, not Taibei?
From wiki: the spelling "Taipei" derives from the Wade–Giles romanization T'ai-pei. "Taibei" is pinyin, which iOS supports as an input method.
Wade-Giles used to be the standard method of ...
- 8,622
11
votes
Accepted
无奈我爱你，How to use 无奈 and 有奈?
《說文解字》似乎並無「奈」之條目。
It seems that 《說文解字》 does not have the entry of 奈.
「奈」由「柰」衍生而來，可能是新造字，也可能是誤寫。「柰」的本義是「果名」，借用為「柰何」，猶言「如何」。後來，分成「柰」表「果名」，而「奈」則專用在「奈何」之類的字詞。
奈 was derived from 柰. It might be a new word,...
- 5,896
11
votes
What does 卷 mean in 当你刚开始想卷的时候?
If the vlog is made recently then most likely 卷 is short for 内卷，an economical/sociological concept that has become popularised in China in recent years. "卷" itself has become part of the ...
- 927
11
votes
What mnemonic helps differentiate 瑞士 (Switzerland) from 瑞典 (Sweden)?
They're both transcriptions of foreign language names.
瑞士 (~shì) is an approximation of Swiss, the adjective form of Switzerland;
瑞典 (~diǎn) is an approximation of Sweden.
Note that the first ...
- 23.4k
10
votes
Accepted
跟您请教一个字(Do you know this Chinese word?)
臵 （U+81F5） [ gé ｜ ㄍㄜˊ ]
From 《康熙字典》:
《集韻》「各額」切，音「格」。與「𢓜」同。「至」也。
Same as 𢓜. It means "to arrive" or "to go to".
又《六書原》徦，俗作臵。
The original or formal form of 徦.
徦 （U+5FA6） [ jiǎ | ㄐㄧㄚˇ ]
1. 至；到。(to ...
- 5,896
10
votes
Accepted
What other words than 奥 exist for places of reveration?
四隅（four corners of a room）
宧（yí ／ ㄧˊ）：室內東北角（northeastern corner）
窔（yào ／ ㄧㄠˋ ）同“穾”：室內東南角（southeast corner）
奥（ào ／ ㄠˋ）：室內西南角（southwest corner）
屋漏（wū lòu ／ ㄨ ㄌㄡˋ）：室內西北角（northwest corner）
- 5,896
10
votes
Apple Watch has a built in response of "一个字。非常棒！👊". Is this correct?
1.字 = character, 词 = word
2."一个字，非常棒" can be either an incorrect translation (which is not rare in big companies' products) or a net slang phrase("一个字，XXX" where XXX is intentionally more than one ...
- 1,853
10
votes
Accepted
What's the logic behind the word 从事?
事 can also be a verb for 'to serve; to work for' e.g. 忠臣不事二主 (a loyal vassal does not serve/ work for two masters)
Since 从 itself has many different meanings, just say 从 is not specific enough. ...
- 81.4k
10
votes
What is the story behind 逐日移山?
It is a combination of two idiom stories
逐日 = 夸父逐日
“夸父逐日”的意思是比喻人有大志，也比喻不自量力
移山 = 愚公移山
文章叙述了愚公不畏艰难，坚持不懈，挖山不止，最终感动天帝而将山挪走的故事
"夸父(Kua Fu) 逐日 (chasing the sun)" describes "chasing a ...
- 81.4k
9
votes
Accepted
What does 丫 mean? 丫是什么意思？
It is a short word for "丫头养的" only used in area around Beijing city，"丫头" means slave girl or young girl servant. "养的" means feed by.
This is bad language saying somebody's mother is young girl ...
- 206
8
votes
Accepted
Is 笨蛋 a derogatory word?
Think of the phrase "You fool!" or "you idiot" - depend on the relationship between the two people, the reason behind saying that, and the tone of the speech, it can be a playful, affectionate flirt, ...
- 81.4k
8
votes
Accepted
What is the difference between 呀 and 啊?
ABC's entry for 呀 says:
呀
ya5
(replacing a (啊) when preceding word ends in a, e, i, o, or (y)u)
快来呀!
Kuài lái ya!
Come quickly!
呀 is a replacement for 啊 when it comes after a vowel.
This is also ...
Mou某♦
- 36.3k
8
votes
What does 丫 mean? 丫是什么意思？
"你丫" is a phrase from Beijing dialect. The word "丫" itself doesn't have a meaning in this context. It is a slang, not an appropriate way of speaking. You can think of it as adding F words in an ...
- 81
8
votes
What's the logic behind the word 从事?
The primary meaning of 從（从）is to "follow". In English, we may describe participating/engaging in X as "pursuing" X. The logic in Chinese is similar.
https://www.moedict.tw/%E5%BE%...
- 294
8
votes
I don't understand why 老外 and 洋人 mean what they mean
老 (old) is a common word for making nicknames (indicates casualness, familiarity, or fondness). For example, you met someone and called him 李先生 (Mr. Lee) which is a formal address. Later you two ...
- 81.4k
8
votes
What does 摆烂 mean?
This is a slang term that gained popularity recently, but it isn't from an official source, so you can't find it in a dictionary. 摆烂 is similar to another new phrase 躺平, albeit slightly more ...
- 314
8
votes
What does GG mean here?
After a close match, the players might say "good game" to each other
It can also be used as a mocky, for example, I beat you 6-0 6-0 in tennis, but you still played a good game
Typing "...
- 81.4k
8
votes
Accepted
Difference between 怎么办 and 做什么？
我该(I should) 怎么(how to) 办(deal with/ handle) = How should I deal with it
You are facing a situation where you don't know [how] to handle
我该(I should) 做(do) 什么(what)？ = What should I do
You are ...
- 81.4k
8
votes
What does 放生矿泉水 mean in this news report?
放生 (verb) is a religious practice where you buy captured animals and release them to their natural habitat. It's believed to bring good luck to a person.
Here "放生矿泉水" is apparently an ...
- 2,492
7
votes
Accepted
The words for "boyfriend" and "male friend" - 男朋友，男性朋友，男的朋友
男朋友 mean both "boyfriend" and "male friend". Can 男性朋友 also mean "boyfriend" as well as "male friend"?
No, "男朋友" means 'boyfriend' exclusively. For both men and women.
A woman would refer to her ...
- 81.4k
7
votes
Is 太君 a derogatory word?
It was a good word. For example, in 红楼梦 sometimes they call 贾母 as 史老太君. It was used to refer some senior with respect.
But during the war, those traitors started to use this word to the Japanese to ...
- 2,709
7
votes
Why do the onomatopoeias describing the cry of frogs sound so different in Chinese and English?
Instead of directly answering your question I'm going to post this picture:
Mou某♦
- 36.3k
7
votes
Do all one-syllable words need to be followed by a 子 to make it colloquial?
Modern Chinese loves disyllabic words, that's why often you find seemingly meaningless "affixes" added to characters to sound "nicer".
Prefixation:
老 (老虎),
小 (小李),
初 (初一)
Suffixation:
子 (椅子),
頭 (...
- 1,163
7
votes
Accepted
I have no idea how 八九不离十 works?
八九不離十 means almost there and I accept it or pretty close and I accept it, the most important thing is and I accept it. The ten may be perfect but if nine or eight are still fine.
“汤姆说考试八九不离十就可以了。” ...
- 246
7
votes
Accepted
Is 消杀 (xiāoshā) a new word, and what does it mean?
Edit:
消杀 is not a new word, but in this context, 消 has to be short for 消毒(sterilize) and 杀 must be short for 杀菌 (sterilize)
消毒杀菌 (sterilize) is a common phrase. From the readers' standpoint, reducing ...
- 81.4k
7
votes
Accepted
旮旯 in 緣路山旮旯 (a film in Hong Kong)
山旮旯 is a Cantonese common phrase,
指偏僻的山區 (a remote mountainous area)
旮旯 means 'corner'. It is not used independently by modern Cantonese.
Similar to 黷 (wantonly engage) in 窮兵黷武 is no longer used ...
- 81.4k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible