User Comments - amber
amber
Posted on: Roommates and What Chinese Think of Foreigners
April 21, 2008 at 9:52 AMhi jhklhjk, Because most nouns in Chinese are made up of two characters combined, when there is a noun that is only one character, often 子 (zi) is added to make it into two characters, as in: 房子 (fángzi)，车子 (chēzi)，桌子 (zhuōzi)，椅子 (yǐzi), etc.
Posted on: Going to the Pharmacy
April 21, 2008 at 9:50 AMhi jhklhjk, Because most nouns in Chinese are made up of two characters combined, when there is a noun that is only one character, often 子 (zi) is added to make it into two characters, as in: 房子 (fángzi)，车子 (chēzi)，桌子 (zhuōzi)，椅子 (yǐzi), etc.
Posted on: Just Looking
April 21, 2008 at 9:39 AMhi sarahjs, The meaning doesn't change when the verb is doubled up, the tone is just softer. Kind of like: 你看看 (nǐ kànkan) Have a look. 你试试 (nǐ shìshi) Have a try. One rule to keep in mind however is that you cannot use the duplicated verb pattern if you are indicating an action is happening right now using 在 (zài), as in: 我在看看 (wǒ zài kànkan) - this is incorrect. You can only say: 我在看 (wǒ zài kàn) I'm looking.
Posted on: Fruit Salad
April 19, 2008 at 1:40 AMhi Channa, Sorry about that guys, seems to be a glitch. We will fix it as soon as we can.
Posted on: What is a Chengyu?
April 18, 2008 at 3:42 AMhi hadsipopovska, 七上八下 (Qīshàngbāxià) has more to do with thoughts being in confusion, or worried.
Posted on: What is a Chengyu?
April 18, 2008 at 3:39 AMhi small2medium, 脸上贴金 (Liǎnshàngtiējīn) is used with reference to being boastful only... like 'tooting your own horn'.
Posted on: Tomb Sweeping Day
April 18, 2008 at 2:48 AMHi deathblade13, Yes you can say that. It's not as common to say, but it is sometimes used when you want to be very specific.
Posted on: What is a Chengyu?
April 17, 2008 at 6:51 AMhi emberswift, Here are some insights on your questions above: 1) 结果 (jiéguǒ) is used to describe a situation that arises from a certain circumstance, i.e.: 我以为四个字的都是成语，结果好多只是普通词组。 Wǒ yǐwéi sì ge zì de dōu shì chéngyǔ, jiéguǒ hǎoduō zhǐshì pǔtōng cízǔ. “最后” zuìhòu is used to denote time or order/sequence, i.e.: 我先去了北京，然后去了上海，最后去了广州。 Wǒ xiān qùle Běijīng, ránhòu qùle Shànghǎi, zuìhòu qùle Guǎngzhōu. 2. 词组 (cízǔ) is two words combined to make one expression (i.e. 锻炼身体 (duànliàn shēntǐ) means to exercise) 词句 (cíjù) means words and phrases, and is not commonly used. 3. 好多 (hǎoduo) and 很多 (hěnduō) are the same. 好多 (hǎoduo) has a little bit of a cuter sound to it. 4. The order of the words changes the meaning. See the English translations below: 好多成语都是从.... Hǎoduō chéngyǔ dōu shì cóng.... Many idioms... 成语好多都是从...... Chéngyǔ hǎoduō dōu shì cóng...... A large number of idioms are...
Posted on: What is a Chengyu?
April 17, 2008 at 5:59 AMhi wjeffreys, It would sound nice to say: 我是搞天文研究的. Wǒ shì gǎo tiānwén yánjiū de.
Posted on: Going to the Pharmacy
April 23, 2008 at 2:51 AMHi Derek, There's not really an equivalent to "Chill Pill", however, you can say: 消消气 (xiāo xiāoqì) to tell someone to cool down.