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Grammar-wiki-B1-33.txt.html

Grammar-wiki-B1-33.txt.html 3.4 KB
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  1. 

  2. <p>The character 才 (cái) can be used to emphasize that a number is small, or less than expected.</p>
    3. 

  3. <h2 id="structure">Structure</h2>
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  4. <div class="jiegou">
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  5. <p>才 (+ Verb) + Number + Measure Word + Noun</p>
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  6. </div>
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  7. <p>In English, we often express this by using &quot;only&quot; or &quot;just&quot; to emphasize that the number is small.</p>
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  8. <h2 id="examples">Examples</h2>
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  9. <div class="liju">
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  10. <ul>
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  11. <li>你 <em>才</em> 二十 岁 ？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ <em>cái</em> èrshí suì.</span><span class="trans">You're only twenty? </span></li>
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  12. <li>这 家 公司 <em>才</em> 三 个 人 。<span class="pinyin">Zhè jiā gōngsī <em>cái</em> sān gè rén.</span><span class="trans">This company only has three employees.</span></li>
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  13. <li>这 个 班 <em>才</em> 两 个 学生 。 <span class="pinyin">Zhège bān <em>cái</em> liǎng gè xuéshēng.</span><span class="trans">This class only has two students.</span></li>
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  14. <li>你 男朋友 工资 <em>才</em> 两 千 ？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ nánpéngyou gōngzī <em>cái</em> liǎng qiān?</span><span class="trans">Your boyfriend's salary is only two thousand RMB?</span></li>
    15. 

  15. <li>你 <em>才</em> 捐 十块 ？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ <em>cái</em> juān shí kuài? </span><span class="trans">You only donated ten kuai?</span></li>
    16. 

  16. <li>她 <em>才</em> 来 上海 两 个 月 。<span class="pinyin">Tā <em>cái</em> lái Shànghǎi liǎng gè yuè.</span><span class="trans">She's only been in Shanghai for two months.</span></li>
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  17. <li>这 顿 饭 <em>才</em> 花 了 二十 块 。<span class="pinyin">Zhè dùn fàn <em>cái</em> huā le èrshí kuài.</span><span class="trans">This meal only cost twenty kuai.</span></li>
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  18. <li>你 才 一百 斤 ，还说 要 减肥 ？<span class="expl">One &quot;jin&quot; = 500g</span><span class="pinyin">Nǐ cái yī bǎi jīn, hái shuō yào jiǎnféi?</span><span class="trans">You're only 100 jin and you're talking about losing weight?</span></li>
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  19. <li>我 <em>才</em> 吃 一 个 ，可以 再 吃 一 个 吗 ？<span class="pinyin">Wǒ <em>cái</em> chī yī gè, kěyǐ zài chī yī gè ma?</span><span class="trans">I only ate one. Can I have one more?</span></li>
    20. 

  20. <li>他们 认识 <em>才</em> 三 个 星期 就 结婚 了 。<span class="pinyin">Tāmen rènshi <em>cái</em> sān gè xīngqī jiù jiéhūn le.</span><span class="trans">They only knew each other for three weeks before they got married.</span></li>
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  21. </ul>
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  22. </div>
    23. 

  23. <h2 id="see-also">See Also</h2>
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  24. <ul>
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  25. <li><a href="&quot;Just&quot;_with_&quot;jiu&quot;" title="wikilink">&quot;Just&quot; with &quot;jiu&quot;</a></li>
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  26. <li><a href="Comparing_&quot;cai&quot;_and_&quot;jiu&quot;" title="wikilink">Comparing &quot;cai&quot; and &quot;jiu&quot;</a></li>
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  27. <li><a href="Expressing_lateness_with_&quot;cai&quot;" title="wikilink">Expressing lateness with &quot;cai&quot;</a></li>
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  28. </ul>
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  29. <h2 id="sources-and-further-readings">Sources and Further Readings</h2>
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  30. <h3 id="books">Books</h3>
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  31. <ul>
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  32. <li><a href="Integrated_Chinese:_Level_2,_Part_1" title="wikilink">Integrated Chinese: Level 2, Part 1</a> (p. 302) <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887276792/ref%3das_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=allset-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369&amp;creativeASIN=0887276792">→buy</a></li>
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  33. </ul>
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  38. 

  39. <p><a href="Category:B1_grammar_points" title="wikilink">Category:B1 grammar points</a> <a href="Category:_Adverbs" title="wikilink">Category: Adverbs</a></p>
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