User Comments - depredadora
depredadora
Posted on: Event Times
March 14, 2008 at 4:30 PMThanks a lot amber! The dialogue I got the phrase from was slightly misleading - the sentence could have implied either "You're being too polite *now* (by declining my offer)" or "Your *future acts* would make me seem like an outsider." (Would have altered the tone of the text completely) That's why I got confused.
Posted on: Buying Batteries
March 13, 2008 at 10:29 PM"you aint lived till you licked a 9volt battery..." And you dunno what pain is until 8 times that much voltage has surged through your hand*. The student who considered precautions superfluous and I have had severe trust issues since. (It's the current that kills you, not the voltage. ;-) 110 V are pretty much lethal, btw) @user21377 "I'm sure the pod intermediate method works for many people, but not for me. Is anyone else having the same difficulties ?" Well, I listen to all levels, even Advanced, though this is definitely way above my skills. Yet I benefit from the constant exposure to Chinese. btw, it took me about 6 months to reach intermediate, and it was really a plunge into ice cold water. Ah, I remember ordering a stack of books for Intermediate students, and feeling paralyzed upon opening them on the first page. A huge number of CPstudent has reported the same difficulties- perhaps you could really introduce a kind of Upper Elementary (containing just a few lessons, that will suffice) level to make the transition easier. Or even "wrap-up" lessons, to consolidate what we've learned so far. In order to produce these, you'd simply have to lump together several editions of "the fix" and a few grammar comments taken from the lessons, as well as the dialogues in natural speed. I think everyone would gain a lot from this. And, I vow to become a paying subscriber as soon as CP introduces more consolidation opportunities.
Posted on: Whatever...
March 13, 2008 at 6:47 PMIs it possible to express the notion "He can't make up his mind" with the saying 思前想后 or would that sound, umm, posh/weird?
Posted on: Event Times
March 13, 2008 at 5:58 PMSure: I've tried to translate "哪里，这样说就见外了". To cut a long story short, could you just tell me what it means? Then I'll see whether I was mistaken. ;-)
Posted on: 送孟浩然之广陵
March 12, 2008 at 8:16 PM0mb!
Posted on: Event Times
March 12, 2008 at 7:50 PM@niajhabenson gan ma? is the abbreviated form of "what are you doing", using exactly the phrase "干吗" concerned. You're completely right. (That's the way I was taught it, too) But obviously that didn't work in abovementioned context. @all I'm afraid my question got overlooked: "哪里，这样说就见外了" Have I overlooked a kind of negator - my translation of this sentence doesn't fit the context at all? (It should be reassuring.) thx ;-)
Posted on: Event Times
March 12, 2008 at 7:42 PM@facts50 Well, you should try to memorize at least some of the new expressions - within a few weeks you'll notice that they keep appearing, though perhaps not several times in every lesson, but still frequent enough. You also ought to use as many sources as you can get for your input - even at the basic/elementary there's a huge variation (when I started using the Practical Chinese Reader Vol. 2 I was startled to see that there was so much unknown vocab, though I'd been studying at this level for quite a while). Good luck! (I might not be an expert on Chinese but as I'm fluent in 8 languages, I might be able to give you a few hints regarding learning.)
Posted on: Event Times
March 10, 2008 at 8:41 PMThat's odd - there seem to be three forms for gàn má: I know the collocation 干吗 , but my dictionary says it's 干么, and in the example is 干嘛. The first one is better, according to amber: But what about the one my dictionary suggests? With the 吗 the sentence seems much clearer, so my question was almost foolish ;-) I will rely on your expertise once more: 哪里，这样说就见外了 I think I know what it means, but that does not fit the context at all (it ought to be a negative statement). What am I overlooking?
Posted on: Event Times
March 9, 2008 at 5:20 PM@wande - As a student (not that long ago) I used to be a computer game "addict" (could still afford idling around back then) - depredadora was my screen name. Just being a bit nostalgic, I suppose. (And it sounds bad-ass, doesn't it? ;-) ) btb, I spotted a user named "brokenwindow" - I reckon he works in IT. Hang on, isn't the Chinese sentence I asked about (thanks a lot!) equivalent to the german idiomatic expression "ein (langes) Gesicht ziehen/machen"? I never really studied German, I simply happened to have an exchange student from Germany as a room mate. The sentence was especially problematic because I had no clue why it should be a question at all. gan4 ma2 loosely translates as "why the heck..." but that's 么 , not the particle 嘛. And what functions does 着 fulfill?
Posted on: Getting Nationalities Straight
March 15, 2008 at 2:54 PMWell, I've also got a few confusion stories to share: Where ever I go most people insist I'm Arab or occasionally, Israeli (I do speak both languages, both that doesn't change my nationality). In China, however, they think I'm Indian, especially because my English sounds funny (= not a US accent). All of these guesses are way off the mark - my father's Irish (no, not Ken ;-) btw, how come Ken has not even a trace of an Irish accent? To much exposure to US Americans? No offense please.) and my mother was born in Bolivia (that explains the tan). I admit, I do look pretty odd, with my bright green eyes and dark skin/hair. But ye know, it gets really annoying when people(employers!) keep asking whether I'm muslim (I've got no clue why there so keen on knowing that). I'm fine just being your average 英国人.