Here's a tougher one for WB to figure out
paulinurus
July 29, 2009, 02:07 AM posted in General DiscussionEnglish translation: Don't come up with anymore excuses for failing.
EB: 别为失败找借口了！bie2 wei4 shi1bai4 zhao3 jie4 kou3 le. Lit: Don't for to-fail look excuses.
Dunno why EB didn't keep the phrase 'don't look for excuses' intact. Why not write as: 为失败别找借口了, and if so, would the Chinese sentence, and the g-word be OK?
changye
July 31, 2009, 05:34 AMHi paulinurus
One of my grammar books devotes forty pages to explain about the position of "不" in Chinese sentences. Looks like the issue is much more complicated than I thought. For example, you have to say "对这个不感兴趣/离学校不远", but not "不对这个感兴趣/不离学校远".
Furthermore, both "我不跟小李打架" and "我跟小李不打架" are correct Chinese, but the book says that they have slightly different meanings. Explaining it is just beyond my competence, but I think it's worth pursuing the question further......... sometime in the future.
paulinurus
July 29, 2009, 03:06 AM
EB = East Brain(s)
WB = West Brain(s)
g-word = Chinese grammar
btw, I find it is easier to remember 借口 by its components: jie4= borrow/lend, and kou3 = mouth (of course!)
borrow/lend +mouth = excuse (can be used either as a verb or a noun).
paulinurus
July 29, 2009, 03:22 AMmiantiao, 一定男人喜欢的。
miantiao
July 29, 2009, 03:23 AM就是嘛！ 呵呵， 调皮蛋的你！
paulinurus
July 29, 2009, 02:40 AMmiantiao, it's a Cpod expansion sentence in Excuses for being late.
为失败别再找借口了 yes! more harmonious sentence for WB.
orangina
July 29, 2009, 04:11 AMI think in the original sentance the 别 connotes "don't... anymore". 别 has tricked me before so I looked it up and one of the definitions is "leave". "Leave off making excuses for lateness.”
changye
July 29, 2009, 06:11 AMHi paulinurus
Probably “不要在这儿抽烟” is more commonly used than “在这儿不要抽烟”, and I think the same logic works for "别为了失败借口". In general, words such as 想，不想，能，不能，别，不要，可以 are placed before prepositions such as 在，为，and 跟, just like 我不想跟你结婚！
paulinurus
July 31, 2009, 01:28 AMChangye, you've explained it well and I think I got it. Similarly, direct commands and personal statements/out bursts in English are also often spoken beginning with 'don't'.
Don't smoke here! Don't want to marry you !
Structure:
[don't] [topic] [predicate/clause]
[别] [为失败] [找借口了]！
[别] [以为自己是老板的儿子]，[我就会怕你]
我 [不 敢] [在中国开车]，[因为我只有一条命。] familiar sentence?
多谢！
paulinurus
July 31, 2009, 01:58 AMAnd also the sentence that was discussed before would fit in this language point:
我不希望你去北京。Lit: I don't hope/wish you go Beijing.
orangina
July 31, 2009, 02:20 AMNice examples paulinurus! I like the breakdown.
Also, I had forgotten 为 functions as a "be" verb. In my head it was stuck as a preposition.
paulinurus
July 29, 2009, 03:55 AM借口 used as a verb
他借口有事不来上班。 ta1 jie4kou3 you3 shi4 bu4 lai2 shang4ban1. He made the excuse that he had matters to attend do and could not go to work. (Wow! So many English words needed! Chinese is more succinct.)
借口 used as a noun 我不能相信他的借口. wo3 bu4 neng2 xiang1 xin4 ta1 de jie4 kou3. I cannot believe his excuse.
miantiao
July 29, 2009, 02:20 AMhey paulinurus
i'm not to sure of that translation. mainly due to the fact that the english includes the word anymore.
为失败别再找借口了。