New Guy
BangWo
November 07, 2012, 11:13 PM posted in General DiscussionHey, just sorta started studying Chinese, so I get a little over focused when I see something that confuses me. Thought someone might lend me a hand on this grammar point which is probably super easy to understand....
你这房子真不错！
Why isn't it "ni de fangzi..." The ChinesePod translation is "Your house is really great."
thanks ahead of time
TomMangione
November 08, 2012, 03:59 AMChinese doesn't always use a 的 with pronouns to show possession. This is especially true if something is seen to have a close relationship. For example, you often see examples like 我爸 "my Dad", 你妈 "your Mom" and 我国 "my country".
@Mr_Trendy - You're right. 你这房子 could also be translated as "This house of yours..." However, we chose not to use it in the translation as it sounds awkward in English.
BangWo
November 08, 2012, 08:15 PMThanks for the fast answer.
Right-Wingnut
November 08, 2012, 01:33 AMI think the sentence really translates to "This house of your's ...".
It sounds a bit odd to my English ears as well, but I guess its just one of thing you have to accept and move on.
I suppose it could be written more fully as 你这里的房子...