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daydayupmandarinOffline
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Post 3Posted: Oct 28, 2009 - 06:00 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top
Post subject: online classroom:)Let's learn one sentence a day!

i figure since i'm sitting in the office doing nothing, why not to have a free chinese class online everyday Smile Lets improve everyday and make life easier Laughing

Given the fact that we're all on different levels, so everyday i'm gonna teach one daily-life sentence and one interesting/ more complicated sentence.


Notes:
the underlined text is in Chinese Pinyin
the italic text with* is explanation.

(if you dont know what is Pinyin, first check out http://www.freechineselessons.com/basic-chinese.php,
then go to http://www.pthxx.com/pinyin/fayin/ -- they have online pronunciation , the website is in chinese tho. after those two, if you still dont know what is pinyin, pls PM me, i can do one free pinyin class every week in my office)

Questions on learning Chinese are welcomed. pls post below Smile


okay. Here we go!


Lesson One
dì yī kè 第一课
* means lesson or class. so chinese class is Hàn Yǔ kè
*dì yī means the first. so the second is dì èr. the third is dì sān...
so lesson one translates like the first lesson in chinese


Are you free tonight?
Nǐ jīntiān wǎnshang yǒu kòng ma?

*tonight in chinese is today night-- jīntiān wǎnshang
*kòng means free time

*yǒu is to have, haven't is méiyǒu

*in Chinese a question's order is same as a statement's. if it's yes or no question, just put a ma at the end of the sentence. apart from using ma to make a question, there's affirmative-negative question as,

Nǐ jīntiān wǎnshang yǒu méiyǒu kòng? it translates like "are you free tonight or not?"






yǒu
negative--méiyǒu
past tense-- yǒu *(p.t doesnt affect yǒu) i.g. i had a meeting yesterday.-- wǒ zuótiān yǒu yí ge huìyì.

*ge is a measure word. huìyì is meeting

-------------------------------------------------------
now Chinese Idiom for senior students Smile

三天两头 sāntiān liǎngtóu

sāntiān liǎngtóu means "from time to time" or "almost everyday". It is used to indicate often or frequently.

sān
three
tiān
day
liǎng
two
tóu
head;aspect

e.g. 1. (if you are a boss, you can say) 你三天两头迟到!
nǐ sāntiān liǎngtóu chídào!
*chídào is a verb, means to be late.

2. 我三天两头出差。 Wǒ sāntiān liǎngtóu chūchāi.
* chūchā means to take business trip.


Last edited by daydayupmandarin on Nov 23, 2009 - 01:54 PM; edited 2 times in total
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daydayupmandarinOffline
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Post  Posted: Oct 29, 2009 - 04:08 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top
Post subject: Lesson 2

Lesson Two
Di èr kè

Qǐng wèn, qù jìng’ ān sì zěnme zǒu?
Excuse me, but could you please tell me how can I go to Jing’an Temple?

*qǐng wèn (could you please tell me…) is a polite expression for making an inquiry of somebody about something. It is used before the actual question.
*zěnme here means how (to do something)
* means temple
*Same as yes or no question, questions with interrogative pronoun is the same order as a statement.

Back to zěnme, more examples.
1. Nǐxiǎng zěnme jiǎn tóufa? (how do you want to cut your hair?)
2. Wǒmen zěnme qù shìjìgōngyuán?(how do you go to Century Park?)

Then what do we say “How about let’s go to see a movie together?”

*how about is zěnmeyàng? So the sentence “wǒmen yìqǐqùkàn diànyǐng zěnmeyàng?”
Zěnmeyàng appears at the end of the sentence.


*************************
]Chinese Idiom for today
Yìxīnyíyì 一心一意
*“yìxīnyíyì” means “wholeheartedly, without reserving any other thought.”

: one xīn: heart : will; intention; thought
*It translates like “one heart, one will”

e.g. zuòshénme shìdōu yào yìxīnyíyì.
(whatever you do, you need to do it wholeheartedly)


****************************************************[/size]

so much for today! no one is looking? Sad Sad
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daydayupmandarinOffline
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Post  Posted: Oct 30, 2009 - 04:41 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Three
Dì sān kè
Wǒ hái méi chīguò kǎoyā ne!
I haven’t tried roast duck yet.

*kǎoyā – roast duck. Yāzi—duck. Kǎo—to bake, roast, grill
*hái – yet, used before méi
*guò is an aspect particle. Verb + guò

The aspect particle “guò” is put after a verb to denote that anaction has occurred. This particle is usually used to highlight the experience.
e.g.
1. wǒ qù guò chángchéng. I’ve been to the Great Wall.
2. wǒ xué guò hànyǔ. I’ve learned Chinese.

*the expression “hái méi(yǒu) … … ne.” denotes that an action has not taken place or completed up to now.

Chinese Idiom
Xiè tiān xiè dì谢天谢地

Xiè tiān xiè dì” means “to thank God”. It is used to express the gratefulness or gladness because of having avoided something bad or getting a satisfactory result.

Xiè: to thank tiān: sky; heaven : the earth

e.g. tā dē bìng zhōngyú hǎo le, zhēn shì xiètiānxièdì.
He finally recovered. Thank God!

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Post  Posted: Oct 31, 2009 - 03:53 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Four
Dìsìkè
Wǒ huìshuō yìdiǎnr Hànyǔ.
I can speak a bit of Chinese.

A. yìdiǎnr – a little ;a bit
*add before noun, indicating small amount of something
e.g. Qǐng cháng yìdiǎnr wǒ zuò de cài.
Please have a taste of my cooking.
*sometimes yìdiǎnr doesn’t really mean a little bit. People use it just trying to make sentence more casual and polite.
apart from using with nouns, yìdiǎnr can be used with adjectives.
e.g. Qǐng màn yìdiǎnr.
Please slow down.

B. The difference between “yìdiǎnr” and “yǒu yìdiǎnr”.
adj. + yìdiǎnr
Yǒu yìdiǎnr +adj.
* yǒu yìdiǎnr +adj. is used when you are not satisfied with the situation.
e.g. zhè jiàn yifu yǒu yìdiǎnr dà, kěyǐhuàn yíjiàn xiǎo yìdiǎnr dē ma?
(This cloth is a little too big, can I change for a smaller one?)

C. yìdiǎnr and Yíxiàr
* Yíxiàr means for once. Used after verbs. Also it is used to make sentence more casual and polite.
e.g.
1. qǐng děng yíxiàr.
Please wait a second.
3. Qǐng nǐ bāng wǒ xǐ yíxiàr yīfu hǎo ma?
Can you help me wash the cloth?

Chinese Idiom
Yí wèn sān bù zhī 一问三不知

Yí wèn sān bù zhī” is used to describe someone knows nothing.

Wèn: to ask zhī: to know

e.g. Tā zuótiān méi lái shàngkè, suǒyǐjīntiān lǎoshīwèn tā wèntí de shíhou, tā shìyíwèn sān bù zhī.
Because yesterday he didn’t come to school, today when he was asked by the teacher, he knows nothing.
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janlynn
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Post  Posted: Nov 01, 2009 - 12:29 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top

xie xie! wo xihuan ni de ke.

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Post  Posted: Nov 01, 2009 - 04:13 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Your A legend!
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Post  Posted: Nov 02, 2009 - 05:30 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

第五课
Dì wǔ kè

Jīntiān wàimiàn lěng sǐ le!
It’s deadly cold outside today!


Lěng – cold —hot, warm
wàimiàn --- ouside Lǐmàin – inside
…sǐ le --- deadly;extremely sǐ--- dead
…jí le --- extremely

*there are some words used with adjectives to describe the degree,
Hěn < tǐng…de (quite)< fēicháng < tài…le < … sǐ le (or … jí le)

e.g.
1. Nǐ tǐng piàoliàng de. (you are quite pretty) --- (by saying this you might just want to be nice…)
2. Nǐ fēicháng piàoliàng! (you are really pretty) --- (a hawtie!!)
3. Nǐ piàoliàng jí le! (why don’t use “…sǐ le” ? you won’t say you are deadly pretty in English as a compliment, will you?)

**************************************************
Idiom for today!

Hú shuō bā dào 胡说八道

Hú shuō bā dào” means to talk nonsense.

: recklessly shuō: to say ; to talk : eight, dào: to say ; to talk

*You can understand like this ----“Talking recklessly and repeating for eight times!”

e.g. Tā zhègè rén zuìxǐhuǎn hú shuō bā dào le, nǐ kě bú yào nàme xiāngxìn tā dē huà.
He likes talking nonsense, so you should not so believe in his words.


*********************************************************
THank you guys! you are my motivation!

BTW, today is really cold! Take care !
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Post  Posted: Nov 04, 2009 - 12:01 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Six
Dìliù kè
Fēijīyào qǐfēi le.
The plane is about to take off.


A. Fēijī -- airplane Qǐfēi-- to take off
yào…le -- be about to, to be going to

*The construction “yào…le” indicates that an action or a state of affairs is about to happen. The adverb “yào”, which means that something is going to happen in the immediate future, is put before a verb or an adjective, which the modal particle “le” is placed at the end of the sentence.
e.g. Huǒ chē yào kāi le。
The train is about to leave.
*One may put “jiù” or “kuài” before “yào” to stress urgency.
e.g.Tā jiù yào lái le.
He is about to come.

B. The difference between “jiùyào…le” an “kuài yào…le
One may put an adverbial of time before “jiùyào…le”, but not before “kuài yào…le”,
e.g. “Tā míngtiān jiùyào zǒule” is correct, but “Tā míngtiān kuài yào zǒule” is not.


Idiom for today!

Huǒshàng – jiāoyóu 火上浇油

Huǒshàng – jiāoyóu” means ‘to pour oil on the fire’. It is a metaphor that is used to describe to boost the morale of someone’s anger or to encourage a negative trend.

Huǒ: fire yóu: oil; gasoline

e.g. Jīnglǐyǐjīng hěn bù gāoxìng le, nǐháishìbié huǒshàng – jiāoyóu le.
The manager is unhappy. Don’t make him angry any more.
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Post  Posted: Nov 04, 2009 - 12:07 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Seven
Dì qī kè
Wǒ (shì) zuò fēijī lái de.
I come here by plane.

A. zuò – sit fēijī– airplane lái – come

*The sentence with the “shì…de” construction is used to stress when, when, where or how the action occurred in the past. “shì” may be put before the stressed part or sometimes omitted, with “de” at the end of the sentence.
e.g. Tā(shì) zuótiān lái de.
He came here yesterday.
B. The sentence with the “shì…de” construction may be used sometimes to highlight the agent of an action.
e.g. (shì) tā gàosù wǒ de.
It’s he told me.


Idiom for today!

Rénshān-rénhǎi 人山人海

Rénshān-rénhǎi” is used to describe huge crowds of people.

Rén: people shān: mountain hǎi: sea


e.g. Jīntiān shì xīngqītiān, suǒyǐ jiēshàng rénshān-rénhǎi.
Today is Sunday so the street is crowded.
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Post 7Posted: Nov 04, 2009 - 01:56 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Very useful. Thank you Smile
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Post  Posted: Nov 04, 2009 - 02:08 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Teacher,

What Chinese learning center do you recommend?
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Post  Posted: Nov 04, 2009 - 08:28 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top
Post subject: Good work

Your idea is really good. I am sellyanes and I have to do is that I will have to learn one sentence per day. It is very easy to learn a language and It is good for our-self and It is very easy to remember that sentence.

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Post  Posted: Nov 05, 2009 - 09:44 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Eight
Dì bā kè
Wǒ huìshuō hànyǔ.
I can speak Chinese.


A. huì:can shuō: speak, say hànyǔ: Chinese

* huì” is to show that one masters a skill through learning.
e.g. ta huì shāocài.
He can cook.
* huì”’s negative form is “búhuì”.
e.g. wǒ búhuìkāichē.
I can’t drive a car.
B. *huì” is also to express possibility.
e.g. A: xiànzài shídiǎn le, tā huì lái ma?
B: bié zhāojí, tā huì lái de.
A: Now 10 o’clock , will he come?
B: Don’t worry, he will come.


Idiom for today!

Qiúzhī-bùdé 求之不得

Qiúzhī-bùdé” means ( often of something unexpected ) more than one could wish for.

Qiú: to beg; to seek zhī: used in place of a person or thing as a object
: to get

e.g. Zhègè gōngzuò shìměi gè rén dōu qiúzhī-bùdé de. Nǐzhēn de bù xiǎng zài zuòle ma?
Everyone want to take the job. Are you sure never want to do it again?
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Post  Posted: Nov 05, 2009 - 10:40 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top

FTM wrote:
Teacher,

What Chinese learning center do you recommend?


I can't give you an unbiased answer, cuz i myself work for a Chinese learning center ( check out my id... ) Embarassed so i would recommend us.. Embarassed Embarassed
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Post  Posted: Nov 05, 2009 - 10:42 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top

JJinSH wrote:
Very useful. Thank you Smile


i'm glad you found it useful. Smile High Five!!
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Post  Posted: Nov 05, 2009 - 10:45 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top
Post subject: Re: Good work

sellyanes wrote:
Your idea is really good. I am sellyanes and I have to do is that I will have to learn one sentence per day. It is very easy to learn a language and It is good for our-self and It is very easy to remember that sentence.


hi Sellyanes! Thank you! i'm glad i can help a bit Smile

Razz
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Post  Posted: Nov 06, 2009 - 10:10 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top


Lesson Nine
Dìjiǔ kè
Wǒ xiǎng zài jiā kàn diànshì.
I want to watch TV at home.


A. Jiā: home, my house kàn: watch, see diànshì: TV, television

* “xiǎng” expresses the will of a person, emphasizing one’s intention or desire.
e.g. A: nǐxiǎng qù gōngyuán ma?
B: wǒ bùxiǎng qù gōngyuán, wǒ xiǎng zài jiā shuìjiào.
A: Do you want to go to park?
B: I do not want to go to park, and I want to sleep at home.

NOW~~ Let’s learn another modal verb “yào”.
Wǒyào mǎi jiàn yīfu.
I want to buy a dress.

A. yào” is to express the wish of a person. It’s negative form is “bù xiǎng”.
e.g. A: Nǐyào kàn zhè běn shū ma?
B: Wǒ bù xiǎng kàn, wǒ yào kàn nà běn zázhì.
A: Do you want to read this book?
B: No, I want to read that magazine.
B. yào” can also express practical necessity. Its negative form is usually “bú yòng”.
e.g. A: Yào huàn chē ma?
B: Yào huàn chē (bú yòng huàn chē).
A: Do you want to change a car?
B: I want to change my car. (I do not want to change my car.)

************************************************************

Idiom for today!

yìyánwéidìng 一言为定

yìyánwéidìng” means keep one’s word and never go back on it.

Yán: speech; remark wéi: to take as; to mean dìng: settled; determined

e.g. A: Wǒmen dǎsuàn xīngqīyīhé guìgōngsīqiān hétong.
B: Hǎo, yìyánwéidìng.
A: We intended to sign the contract with your company on Monday.
B: O.K. A promise is a promise.
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Post  Posted: Nov 07, 2009 - 05:45 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Ten
Dìshíkè

Wǒ néng yòng hànyǔ tánhuà.
I can talk in Chinese.


yòng : to use hànyǔ: Chinese tánhuà: to talk , to speak

A. * “néng” is to express capability.
e.g. xiǎo wáng néng yòng yīngwén chànggē.
Mr. Wang can sing in English.
B. * “néng” can also express objective permission.
e.g. A: Nǐ míngtiān shàngwǔ néng lái ma?
B: Bù néng lái, míngtiān wǒ yǒu shì.
A: Can you come here tomorrow morning?
B: No, I can’t. I have something to do.

NOW~~ Let’s learn another verb “kěyǐ”.
* kěyǐ” is to express objective or rational permission.
e.g. A: Wǒmen kěyǐ zǒu ma?
B: Kěyǐ.
A: Can we leave here?
B: Yes, you can.


Idiom for today!

Mùzhōng-wúrén 目中无人
“Mùzhōng-wúrén” means look down upon everyone else.

: eyes zhōng: in : not have

e.g. [size=18]Tā zhǒngshìMùzhōng-wúrén, suǒyǐtā hé shuíde guānxi dōu bù hǎo.

He always cares for nobody, so he keeps good relationship with no one.[/size]
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Post  Posted: Nov 09, 2009 - 04:23 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Eleven

Dìshíyīkè

Wǒ kěyǐkànkan nǐde dìtú ma?
May I have a look at your map?


kàn: look, see dìtú: map

A. *Some verbs can be reduplicated to make a sentence sound casual or informal. Sometimes a verb is reduplicated to indicate that the action is of very short duration, or to imply that what is done is just for the purpose of trying something out.
* In the case of a verb with one syllable, the reduplication follows the pattern “AA” or “A yi A”; in the case of verb with two syllables, the reduplication follows the pattern “ABAB”.

e.g.
1.Qǐng chángchang zhè jiǎozi, wèidào zěnmeyàng?
Please try the flavor of the dumplings. How is the taste?

2.Xīngqītiān zài jiā kànkan diànshì, tīntin yīnyuè, xiūxi xiūxī, zhēn hǎo!
On Sunday, watching TV , listening to the music and relaxing at home, so great!

_____________________________________________


Idiom for today!

Guà yángtóu mài gǒuròu 挂羊头卖狗肉

“Guà yángtóu mài gǒuròu” means to use the name of a good thing as a cover and actually do an evil thing.

guà: to hang yáng: goat tóu: head
mài: to sell gǒuròu: dog-meat

e.g. Zhè jiā xiǎo diàn cóng wàimiàn kàn shìkāfēi diàn, qíshíshìguà yángtóu mài gǒuròu, lǐmiàn dōu shìmài dàobǎn DVD de.

The small shop looks like a coffee house from outside. In fact, it’s selling horse-meat as beefsteak and selling pirated DVDs inside.
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Post  Posted: Nov 11, 2009 - 09:37 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Twelve
Dìshíèr kè
Nà tiáo qúnzi yòu piányi yòu hǎokàn.
That skirt is cheap and nice.


qúnzi: skirt piányi: cheap, inexpensive
hǎokàn: nice, good-looking

yòu…yòu…” “… and …”
* It means that two characteristics or situations ate found at the same time.

e.g. tā jiějie yòu niánqīng yòu yǒuwéi.
His sister is young and promising.

*************************************************************
HOHO!!!
Idiom for today!

Kǒushì-xīnfēi 口是心非
Kǒushì-xīnfēi” has the meaning of say one thing and mean another. It is used to describe someone’s statement is not consistent with what he thinks.

Kǒu: mouth shì: yes
xīn: heart fēi: no

e.g. Zhè gè rén zǒngshìkǒushì-xīnfēi, wǒ cóng bù xiāngxìn tā.
The man is always double-faced, so I never believe him.

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Post  Posted: Nov 11, 2009 - 11:24 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Thirteen
Dìshísān kè

Tīngshuō nàge diànyǐng hěn yǒu yìsi, wǒmen qù kàn hǎo ma?
I have heard that the film was very interesting. Shall we go to see it together?


diànyǐng: film yǒu: have yǒu yìsi: interesting
: go kàn: see, look hǎo: OK

*“… , hǎo ma” is often used to make a request or a suggestion and for the opinion of the person addtessed. The first part of such a sentence is usually a statement.
*The answer to it is “hǎo a” or “hǎo”, including consent or agreement of the person addressed.
e.g.A: Wǒmen zài gōngyuán jiànmiàn hǎo ma?
B: Hǎo a/ Hǎo.
A: Shall we meet at the park?
B: OK.


*************************************************************

Idiom for today!

Hǎohǎo-xiānsheng 好好先生
Hǎohǎo-xiānsheng” is used to describe one who tries not to offend anybody.

Hǎo: good xiānsheng: Mr. , sir

e.g. Tā shìwǒmen gōngsī lǐ de hǎohǎo-xiānsheng, tā hé měi gè rén de guānxi dōu búcuò.
He is the yes-man in our company, and he keeps good relationship with everyone.

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Post  Posted: Nov 11, 2009 - 11:18 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Is it correct to say, "Ren ming guang chang shi santian liangtou renshan-renhai"?

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Post  Posted: Nov 12, 2009 - 09:28 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Lesson Fourteen
Dìshísìkè

Zuò fējī tài guìle, wǒmen hái shìzuò huǒchē ba.
Going by plane is too expensive. We should better go by train.

Zuò: sit, travel by, take fēijī: airplane, plane
Tài: too, very guì: expensive, costly
huǒchē: train

* “hái shì” is an adverb indicating a relatively satisfactory choice after comparison.
e.g. A: Nǐyào nǎ gè yánsè de?
B: Hái shì hǒngsè de ba.
A: Which color do you want?
B: Red is better.

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Very Happy Very Happy

Idiom for today!

Māo kū lǎoshǔ 猫哭老鼠
Māo kū lǎoshǔ” is a metaphor for the act of pretending to be sympathetic or compassionate. It is similar to ‘crocodile tears’ in English.

Māo: cat : to cry(for)
lǎoshǔ: mouse; rat

e.g. Míngmíng shìtā hài nǐbèi lǎobǎn mà,hái guò lái ānwèi nǐ,zhēnshìāo kū lǎoshǔ!
It is obviously that you’re scolded by the boss is because of her. She came to comfort you, and it’s a cat crying at the mouse’s death!

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Post  Posted: Nov 12, 2009 - 11:25 AM  Reply with quote  Back to top

aLeGna wrote:
Is it correct to say, "Ren ming guang chang shi santian liangtou renshan-renhai"?


Well done!!

But~~It's better to say "renming guangchang santian-liangtou renshan-renhai."

"shi" is used in sentence like "A is B".
e.g. "wǒ shì lǎoshī" means "I'm a teacher".

and "renshanrenhai" is an adjective.
for example, " I'm very busy" you would say it like "wǒ hěn máng" instead of "wǒ shì hěn máng. "

so same as here, no "shi".

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Post  Posted: Nov 12, 2009 - 10:08 PM  Reply with quote  Back to top

Ah....fabulous! xie xie ni, women de laoshi! Smile

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