User Comments - sebire

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sebire

Posted on: Chinese Hospitality and Finding Vegetarian Food
December 26, 2008 at 5:41 PM

Indeed, it is interesting. But first Clay, now Amber? That sucks.

Posted on: Chinese Hospitality and Finding Vegetarian Food
December 26, 2008 at 5:23 PM

I hope Amber hasn't left, DA and QW are great shows.

Posted on: Always in Chinese: 总是 (zǒngshì) and 老是 (lǎoshi)
December 23, 2008 at 12:58 AM

Light, sounds like a fun trip, you can see pandas! I guess the apostrophe is to stop it looking like xian as in 现在 or 先生 etc.

Posted on: ChinesePod News
December 21, 2008 at 10:57 AM

Good work Calkins, I hope you continue to dig out 真酷的照片!

Posted on: Stupid Doctor
December 8, 2008 at 9:32 PM

I think I intuitively get what the difference is, sometimes, but I couldn't actually describe it in words.

Posted on: Stupid Doctor
December 8, 2008 at 7:00 PM

dunderklumpen,

My grammar book says 着 follows a verb to express a continuing action, a continuing state resulting from an action, or the mode of an action. How it differs from 在 I am a little hazy about.

Posted on: Using 除了。。。以外 (Chúle... Yǐwài)
December 8, 2008 at 12:47 AM

Tvan, I really don't have your problem. 我越学中文越忘法文。But then again, my French is really bad.

Posted on: Stupid Doctor
December 7, 2008 at 10:20 PM

The problem here is that this:

particle [直译: verb plus 着 placed before another verb, indicating an accompanying action or state] ⓐ (verb plus 着 serving as an adverbial modifier)

doesn't mean a whole lot to me!

Posted on: Stupid Doctor
December 7, 2008 at 9:39 PM

billgloveruk

着: I remember the "iron your clothes" podcast has the line "老看着", which means "keep looking". John then explains that you need the 着 to make it one continuous stare, rather than keep looking back, and then away, and then back again. So yeah, my current mental shortcut is stick an "-ing" on the end. Whether this is applicable in all cases...

I think with 有一个小朋友生病了, the 了 is a "a new situation has come about" 了, so the kid has fallen sick, and it's a new situation. Is that right, guys?

Posted on: To bag or not to bag?
December 2, 2008 at 11:32 PM

I drank boiled water. In fact, I think I drank mainly tea. Those flasks with an inbuilt tea-strainer are amazing contraptions and should be introduced throughout the world, along with boiling water on trains (though the taps are dubious and when you think you're turning it off it comes on full blast over your hand and shoes - that's not so good).