User Comments - amber
amber
Posted on: Man or Woman?
September 5, 2007 at 5:55 AMhi kettle, These are certainly not a blanket rule, but gives you a general outline: for women: 美 (měi) beautiful、漂亮 (piàoliang) beautiful, pretty、好看 (hǎokàn) good looking for men: 帅 (shuài) handsome、英俊 (yīngjùn) handsome man、酷 (kù) cool
Posted on: Man or Woman?
September 5, 2007 at 3:55 AMhi goulniky, No, the feminine form of 妳 (nǐ) is not used in China now.
Posted on: All About 所有 (suǒyǒu) and 都 (dōu)
September 3, 2007 at 9:37 AMno problem, actually, it's a good idea. I will make sure do that everytime from now on.
Posted on: Man or Woman?
September 3, 2007 at 9:36 AMhi nicklyth, 哪个 can be pronounced either: (nǎge) or (něige) both are correct, it's a matter of personal preference and/or regional differences.
Posted on: City Stats
September 3, 2007 at 8:37 AMbabliku, yes the John with the blue face you see above is, in fact, the John from the podcasts.
Posted on: All About 所有 (suǒyǒu) and 都 (dōu)
September 3, 2007 at 8:24 AMHi everyone, Here are the example sentences used in the podcast, transcribed in characters and pinyin: 这些东西都是我的。 Zhèxiē dōngxi dōu shì wǒ de. 我们都是女生。 Wǒmen dōu shì nǚshēng. 你们都很聪明。 Nǐmen dōu hěn cōngming. 大家都不知道。 Dàjiā dōu bù zhīdào. 你去过中国所有的城市吗？ Nǐ qù guo Zhōngguó suǒyǒu de chéngshì ma？ 所有的加拿大人都像你这么漂亮吗？ Suǒyǒu de Jiānádà rén dōu xiàng nǐ zhème piàoliang ma？ 上海所有的公交车都很挤。 Shànghǎi suǒyǒu de gōngjiāochē dōu hěn jǐ. 我想吃所有的东西。 Wǒ xiǎng chī suǒyǒu de dōngxi. 你和你朋友都来吗？ Nǐ hé nǐ péngyou dōu lái ma？ 帮助所有的人。 Bāngzhù suǒyǒu de rén. 我们可以回答你们所有的问题。 Wǒmen kěyǐ huídá nǐmen suǒyǒu de wèntí. 你们所有的问题我们都会回答。 Nǐmen suǒyǒu de wèntí wǒmen dōu huì huídá.
Posted on: Man or Woman?
September 3, 2007 at 8:16 AMhi art, haha, yes, Pat is so 90's.... ;) There are a few terms you could use for androgynous: 不男不女 (bùnánbùnǚ) having both masculine and feminine characteristics 中性 (zhōngxìng) neuter gender a supplementary word, cause someone may be too shy to ask: 变性 (biànxìng) to have a sex change
Posted on: Man or Woman?
September 3, 2007 at 8:12 AMhi lvbin, 人妖 (rényāo) is a very specific term, to mean a person who has undergone a sex change operation, often that perform... kind of like a transvestite--that sort of thing. It's the term that is used to describe the transvestites common to Thailand, if that helps.
Posted on: Man or Woman?
September 3, 2007 at 8:06 AMhi ingmar, Yes, good idea. You can say: 喉结 (hóujié) Adam's apple 看他有没有喉结 (Kàn tā yǒu méiyǒu hóujié) Check if he has an Adam's apple or not.
Posted on: Flattery in the Office
September 5, 2007 at 6:02 AMfoleadu and Masaier, In these two sentences, the direction word (那儿/这儿) has a different function. In the first sentence: 这几年我们从您那儿学了不少东西. Zhè jǐ nián wǒmen cóng nín nàr xué le bùshǎo dōngxi. When the word 从 (cóng) is used in a sentence, it means 'from', and requires a direction to indicate 'from where'. So, in this sentence, the 那儿 (nàr) combined with the '您' (nín) indicates where the person learned all these things. It cannot be omitted. The second sentence you mention: 你们这儿几点关门? Nǐmen zhèr jǐ diǎn guānmén? Is a different kind of sentence pattern. In this sentence, the 这儿 (zhèr) is optional. When you include it, it emphasizes the place.