User Comments - amber
amber
Posted on: I'm hungry!
April 27, 2007 at 1:32 AMHi Lester, The more commonly used of those two phrases is: 我肚子饿了。(Wǒ dùzi è le.) Now, why do we add the 了(le)? The 了 (le) used here indicates that a situation has arisen. It is the same 了 (le) we use in the sentence: 下雨了。(Xiàyǔ le.) It's raining. Hope that helps to clarify one of the many uses of 了 (le) for you! ~amber :)
Posted on: Requesting a Glass of Water
April 27, 2007 at 1:20 AMwmackie624, 开水 (kāishuǐ) means water that has been boiled. 热水 (rèshuǐ) on the other hand is hot water, but not necessarily boiled. excuter, The many forms of "cocoa": 可可 (kěkě) cocoa 热可可 (rè kěkě) hot cocoa 冰可可 (bīng kěkě) iced cocoa ~amber :)
Posted on: Quiet for the Baby
April 26, 2007 at 8:11 AMMan2Toe, 母乳 (mǔrǔ) is the correct term for (human) breast milk. 母奶 (mǔnǎi) is used when referring to animals' milk for their young. However, it is also used at times to speak of (human) breast milk. But 母乳 (mǔrǔ) is more correct. Andy, Your first two sentences are correct. In the third sentence you used 寂靜 (jìjìng). This word is only used to describe an environment as being calm, tranquil, quiet. It is not used when referring to people. For example: 到了晚上这里很寂静。(Dào le wǎnshang zhèlǐ hěn jìjìng.) When the evening comes it is very tranquil here. ~amber :)
Posted on: Requesting a Glass of Water
April 26, 2007 at 7:58 AMHi Man2Toe & Bazza, Good tries! Almost perfect. The most common way to ask a waiter for another glass of something is: 再来一杯_____。(Zài lái yī bēi _____.) Bazza--if you say "又给我..." (yòu gěi wǒ...) it has a slightly different meaning. Using 又 (yòu) denotes that the action has happened again, for a second (or more) time. So, for example, if you were telling a story in past tense about something that happened, and that it happened again and again, you would use this 又 (yòu). But if you are asking that an action be repeated in present tense, you use 再 (zài). Good job! Lantian, There is no "冬咖啡" (dōng kāfēi) in Mandarin. Only: 冰咖啡 (bīng kāfēi) 热咖啡 (rè kāfēi) As far as water goes, you can say: 热水 (rèshuǐ) hot water 冰水 (bīngshuǐ) ice water 温水 (wēnshuǐ) lukewarm water 凉水 (liángshuǐ) cool water 汤水 (tāngshuǐ) means soup or broth. It's not used when speaking about water. There is no 泡水 (pàoshuǐ)--however, you can use this 泡 (pào) to talk about making tea, i.e.: 泡一杯茶。(Pào yī bēi chá). Good job everyone! ~amber :)
Posted on: Chinese Onomatopoeia
April 26, 2007 at 7:27 AMHi Lester, I personally haven't seen Rice Krispies in China, however, I'm sure they are in some of the supermarkets here in Shanghai that carry imported products. In general, eating cereal for breakfast is pretty much unheard of in China. A loose translation for "snap, crackle, pop" could be: 噼啪 (pīpā) snap 噼里啪啦 (pīlipālā) crackle 啪 pā (pop) mroughton, Glad to have your comment. Good question! Yes, both 稀里哗啦 and 唏哩哗啦 (xīlihuālā) are acceptable. Onomatopoetic Chinese characters do not necessarily have the 口 radical in them, however, many of them do. hi huomao, Glad we can read your mind! And you're right, 叽里咕噜 (jīligūlū) can mean mumbling, or speaking gibberish, as you mentioned. ~amber :)
Posted on: Capital Punishment
April 26, 2007 at 4:14 AMMan2Toe, Great job. Just a little tweaking, and it's perfect: 美軍抓到薩達姆以後，伊拉克法院判了他死刑。大部分的人在網路上发现他被处决了。 (Měijūn zhuādào Sàdámǔ yǐhòu， Yīlākè fǎyuàn pàn le tā sǐxíng. Dàbùfen de rén zài wǎnglù shang fāxiàn tā bèi chǔjué le.) Everyone else, feel free to try, or to talk about their view on the death penalty in Chinese. ~amber :)
Posted on: Requesting a Glass of Water
April 26, 2007 at 4:01 AMHi Mike in Jubei, We haven't heard of the hand gestures for hot and cold around Shanghai here. Very interesting though! Those could come in handy. Auntie, 请给我... (qǐng gěi wǒ...) is most commonly used in China. 请来... (qǐnglái..) is not commonly used here. Man2Toe, 你去搞一杯水給我吧! (Nǐ qù gǎo yī bēi shuǐ gěi wǒ ba!) is not commonly used. Probably easier and more correct would be to just use "给我一杯水." (Gěi wǒ yī bēi shuǐ.) So, if you get your glass of water and you want another, does anyone want to guess how to ask for another glass or a refill in Chinese? Give it a try... ~amber :)
Posted on: Subway Announcements
April 26, 2007 at 1:39 AMHi Rich, If you'd like, you can tell us which hostel you are staying at, maybe we can help you to find out which is the closest subway stop for you. ;) ~amber
Posted on: Capital Punishment
April 26, 2007 at 1:34 AMHi tanmei, You're going to be a very happy camper, cause we have now restored the traditional character version of the PDF. You can see how to go about getting it here Auntie, Yes, when you say "被处决" (bèi chǔjué) it means to have been executed, or put to death. The "被" (bèi) tells us that it already has happened. Example sentence: 他被处决了。(Tā bèi chǔjué le.) He was executed. If you use the "被" (bèi) construction combined with 死刑 (sǐxíng) there is a slight difference in meaning. Firstly, you must use "被" (bèi) in combination with a verb, so in this case you would likely use "判" (pàn) (to sentence). The following example demonstrates the difference from the first sentence: 他被判死刑了。 (Tā bèi pàn sǐxíng le.) He was sentenced to death. Now, would anyone like to try to use this sentence in a context of current events? For example, recently Saddam Hussein was both sentenced to death and executed. Anyone want to try to recount what happened to him, using Chinese? (hint: 萨达姆 sàdámǔ) ~amber :)
Posted on: 武林外传
April 27, 2007 at 1:35 AMHi nateknow, The traditional are available. To find out how to get them, please see here. ~amber :)