User Comments - Grambers
Grambers
Posted on: Manly Beards or Pretty Boys?
August 24, 2012 at 8:41 AMWould I be right in saying that in most casual speech, the sentence 穿黑色衣服的那个, would be prononced with all of the last four characters sounded with a 轻声? I've never heard the 那 pronounced with a tone 4 in this kind of construction in daily life. Rather it is pronounced chuan1hei1se4yi1fu5de5na5ge5. Four tone 5s in a row....some kind of record?
Posted on: Manly Beards or Pretty Boys?
August 24, 2012 at 8:25 AMIn reply to and0709 above, I think 'toy boy' and 'boy toy' have quite different meanings. 'Toy boy', to the best of my knowledges, refers to the younger male partner of a middle-aged to elderly woman. I have never really heard the word 'boy toy' used either, but it immediately conjured up an image of a young and innocent-looking male, of which any given boy band must have at least one example (otherwise the fat, sleazy marketing men go CRAZY!). In other words, (and John will no douby correct me if I am wrong), a boy toy is that kind of perfect, clean-cut, fresh-faced and no-doubt well-ripped male specimen which [some] women might fantasise using as some kind of sex toy on the basis of his innocence and absolute pliability. Um....
NB. The reason I can't reply to and0709 directly is that during the last couple of days Chinesepod has been playing up on my browser (Chrome). I think it's a Javascript issue, but not being a Javascript expert, I'm not sure how or why. All I know is that when I try to either, 1) hit reply, or 2) hit the button saying 'show all comments', a blank white space appears. Any ideas?
Posted on: Romantic Movies and Real Life
August 24, 2012 at 8:12 AM明白了，谢谢Connie：）
Posted on: Romantic Movies and Real Life
August 24, 2012 at 8:10 AM那就是说我的本来的想法不对劲儿，谢谢你的解释，骄杰（两千课以后才知道怎么拼你的名字！）
Posted on: Romantic Movies and Real Life
August 23, 2012 at 4:56 PM...and how about 养活得了 vs. 养得起?
Posted on: Romantic Movies and Real Life
August 23, 2012 at 4:53 PMAnyone fancy explaining the difference between 降温 and 冷却? Is the former 'medical and formal' and the latter 'cool and hip'?
Posted on: A Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
August 23, 2012 at 12:40 PMI stand corrected. I watched the first episode of 媳妇的美好时代 last night and, though thoroughly ridiculous by Ken Loach standards of kitchen-sink realism, it was actually very well made (though the early Dallas-style split screens early on alarmed me). There was the slightly mawkish, soft-focus stuff during the boating scene to negotiate but, overall, I enjoyed myself very much. Good recommendation. As you can perhaps guess from my earlier comments, I'm not much one for the soap opera, but I think I could get into this series, not least 'cos - like you said - it's genuinely funny. Nice one!
Posted on: Romantic Movies and Real Life
August 22, 2012 at 10:42 AMMaybe a wife will choose him?:)
Posted on: Romantic Movies and Real Life
August 22, 2012 at 9:23 AMPlayas gon' play
Posted on: Manly Beards or Pretty Boys?
August 24, 2012 at 3:29 PMAs that great/loathsome [delete according to taste] American Noam Chomsky would no doubt say, "Wot! You talkin' bolloxxxxxxxx, mate. Boy Toy an' that uva one, wot was it? Toy Boy, yeah. They are exactly the same, innit? The Surface Structure may be different, but Deep Structure is exactly....the.....fricking.....same. Word." No doubt he would say exactly that.
As for the other bone of contention, do you chaps/guys/lot have 'plays' over there in the States? Does Broadway have 'plays' ? Do plays not involve acting? Thus 'to act up' and 'to play up' can be unified according to the rules of Universal Grammar, and we can all go off to the pub/bar for a drink of ale/beer and forget this unsavoury/sweet nonsense.
Two nations divided.....