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ChineseGrammarWiki


			
				
					
						
						
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  <h1></h1>

  <p>Often heard when scolding or giving advice (like when parents talk to children) is <span class="hanzi">少</span> (<span class="pinyin">shǎo</span>), which can mean "<b>to do less of something.</b>"</p>

  <h2>Contents</h2>

  <ol>
    <li>Structure<br/></li>

    <li>Examples<br/></li>

    <li>See also<br/></li>

    <li>Sources and further reading<br/></li>

    <ol>
      <li>Books<br/></li>
    </ol>
  </ol>

  <h2 id="structure">Structure</h2>

  <p>Just as you can use <span class="hanzi">多</span> to talk about <a href="Doing_something_more_with_&quot;duo&quot;" title="wikilink">doing something more</a>, you can use <span class="hanzi">少</span> to talk about doing something less.</p>

  <div>
    <div class="deux">
      Subj. + <span class="hanzist">少</span> + Verb-Obj.
    </div>
  </div>

  <p>Note that in English we don't use the word "<b>less</b>" so much. For example, rather than saying "<b>drink less water</b>," we might say "<b>don't drink so much water.</b>" In Chinese, though, using <span class="hanzi">少</span> is quite natural and common. Avoiding the negative command (telling someone not to do something) is also a subtle way of sounding less bossy and annoying.</p>

  <h2 id="examples">Examples</h2>

  <div class="exemple">
    <ul>
      <li><span class="hanzi">我 妈 让 我 少 吃 辣 。</span> <span class="pinyin">Wǒ mā ràng wǒ shǎo chī là.</span><br/><span> My mother tells me to eat less spicy food.</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">你 应该 少 抽烟 。</span> N<span class="pinyin">ǐ yīnggāi shǎo chōuyān.</span><br/><span> You should smoke less.</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">少 喝 点 ，下午 还要 上班 呢 。</span> <span class="pinyin">Shǎo hē diǎn, xiàwǔ háiyào shàngbān ne.</span><br/><span> Don't drink so much. You're going back to work this afternoon.</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">少 吃 垃圾 食品 。</span> <span class="pinyin">Shǎo chī lājī shípǐn.</span><br/><span> Eat junk food less.</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">少 废话 ，快 说 吧 。</span> <span class="pinyin">Shǎo fèihuà, kuài shuō ba.</span><br/><span> Cut the crap. Spill it out.</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">肉 太 贵 了 ，少 点 一些 。</span> <span class="pinyin">Ròu tài guì le, shǎo diǎn yīxiē.</span> <span> Meat is too expensive. Don't order too much.</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">少 买 点 ，吃不完 会 坏 的 。</span> <span class="pinyin">Shǎo mǎi diǎn, chī bù wán huì huài de.</span><br/><span> Don't buy too much. It will go bad if we can't finish eating all.</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">你 能 不 能 让 他 少 放 点 盐 ？</span> <span class="pinyin">Nǐ néng bu néng ràng tā shǎo fàng diǎn yán?</span><br/><span> Can you tell him to put salt less?</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">少 看 电视 ，多 看书 。</span> <span class="pinyin">Shǎo kàn diànshì, duō kànshū.</span> <span> Watch TV less. Read more.</span></li>

      <li><span class="hanzi">医生 让 我 少 熬夜 ，多 休息 。</span> <span class="pinyin">Yīshēng ràng wǒ shǎo áoyè, duō xiūxi.</span><br/><span> The doctor told me to stay up less and take more rest.</span></li>
    </ul>
  </div>

  <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2>

  <ul>
    <li><a href="Doing_something_more_with_&quot;duo&quot;" title="wikilink">Doing something more with "duo"</a></li>
  </ul>

  <h2 id="sources-and-further-reading">Sources and further reading</h2>

  <h3 id="books">Books</h3>

  <ul>
    <li>Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (3rd ed) (pp. 39)</li>
  </ul>
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