FSI-Chinese/OptionalModule-WLF/FSI-StandardChinese-OptionalModuleWLF-StudentText.txt

FSI - Standard Chinese - Optional Module WLF - Student Text
Foreign Service Institute

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STANDARD CHINESE

A Modular Approach

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OPTIONAL MODULE:

Personal Welfare

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Optional Modules

Objectives for the Personal Welfare Module

Unit 1: Weather and Terrain Part 1 Winter and Summer

Part II Spring and Fall

Part III Terrain

Unit Vocabulary List

Unit 2: Clothing Part I Buying Clothes

Part II Buying Clothes

Part III Having Clothes Made

Unit Vocabulary List

Unit 3: Hair Care Part I At the Barber

Part II At the Hairdresser

Unit Vocabulary List

Unit U: In the Home Part I Personal Belongings..............

Part II Parts of the Home

Part II Taking Care of Children

Unit Vocabulary List

Unit 5: Minor Physical Complaints Part I Colds and Fevers

Part II Stomach Ailments

Part III Taking Temperatures and Blood Pressure ....

Unit Vocabulary List

Unit 6: Accidents and Difficulties Part I Losing a Driver's License

Part II A Motorcycle Accident

Part II I Crossing into a Restricted Area

Unit Vocabulary List

Appendices: 1. Parts of the Body

2. Medical Conditions and Illnesses

3. Furniture and Household Items

4. Parts of a House

Module Vocabulary List

OBJECTIVES

When you have finished this module, you will be able to:

1. Describe the weather in all four seasons for your present locale, a Chinese city, and your hometown.

2. Describe the location, geographical setting, population, and air quality of the three areas in №1.

3. Give the names of five or more items of clothing.

4. Get your hair cut or styled.

5. Describe several items you ordinarily carry with you when traveling.

6. Give the names of and describe the different rooms in a house.

7. Give simple directions to a babysitter.

8. Ask and answer questions about the common cold and its symptoms. Offer advice on what to do for a simple ailment. Understand the use of kāishuǐ, ’’boiled water.”

9. Describe what takes place during a visit to the doctor. Know how to give normal body temperature in Celsius and in Fahrenheit. Tell ’’where it hurts” (using a list of the parts of the body, if necessary. )

10. Describe accidents where injuries occur, and tell someone to call an ambulance.

11. Report the loss of a passport to the appropriate officials. Find out where to go to report the loss and be able to determine whether adequate translation facilities will be available.

12. Use the words for ”danger” and ”caution” in grammatical, situationally appropriate sentences. Describe how someone entered a restricted area and how and for what reasons he was escorted out.

Personal Welfare Module, Unit 1

Weather and Terrain

REFERENCE LIST

1. Jìntiān tiānqi hěn hǎo.	The weather is very nice today.

2. Nǐ lǎojiāde qìhòu zěnmeyàng?	How is the climate in your hometown?

3. Dōngtiān hěn lěng.	It’s cold in the winter.

4. Chángcháng xià xuě.	It often snows.

5. Xiàtiān hěn rè.	In the summer it’s hot.

6. Jìntiān tian qíng le.	It cleared up today.

7. Wo juéde Táizhōngde qìhòu hěn hǎo.	I feel that Taichung’s climate is very nice.

8. Shànghǎide dōngtiān hěn shǎo xià xuě.	It seldom snows in the winter in Shanghai.

9. Jìntiān zherde tiānqi hěn liāngkuai.	The weather here is very cool today.

10. chāng	often (alternate word for changcháng.)

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART I

Jìntiān tiānqi hěn hǎo: Notice that the time word Jìntiān ”today” is placed before the subject, not directly before the verb here. Most time words of more than one syllable may come either before or after the subject, but in either case before the verb. Examples:

Qùnián wo hái bú huì xiě zì.	Last year I still couldn’t write characters.

Wǒ xiànzài hui xiě yìdiǎn le.  Now I can write a little.

qìhòu: ”climate” Also pronounced qìhòu (with hou in the neutral tone).

Dōngtiān hěn lěng.: ”it's cold in winter” The adverb hěn is not translated here. Often hěn adds little or nothing to the intensity of the adjectival verb, and doesn’t need to be translated by ”very.” Later, you may notice that sometimes we translate the hěn literally and sometimes we choose to omit it from the translation. It is not a matter of right and wrong; it is more a matter of feeling, and may be, we admit, a somewhat arbitrary decision.

chángcháng: ”often, frequently, usually” An alternate form of this word is cháng.

Tā chángcháng qù Xianggang.	She often goes to Hong Kong.

Tā cháng kàn bàozhì.	He often reads the newspaper.

The phrase ”very often” is NOT formed by using hen with cháng; instead, Just use cháng or chángcháng. If you must stress that something happens very often, use a phrase like ”every few days.”

xià xuě: ”to snow” or more literally ”(there) falls snow.” The subject xuě ”snow” normally follows the verb xià ”to descend.” This reversal of subject and verb is the rule, not the exception, in weather expressions.

Ou, xià xuě le.	Oh, it’s snowing.

Xià xuě ma? Bu xià.	Is it snowing? No.
You méiyou xià xue? Méiyou.	Is it snowing? No.
Xià xuě le meiyou? Méiyou.	Is it snowing? No.
Jīntiān xià xuě bu xià xuě?	Is it going to snow today?
Xiànzài bu xià xuě le.	It's not snowing anymore.

tiān: ”heaven, sky, day.”

Aiya, wǒde tiān na!	Oh my heavens!
Tiān zhǐdao!	Heaven only knows!

qíng: ”to be clear, to clear up” In the sentence Tiān qíng le, the marker le tells us that a change has taken place. The meaning is not simply that the sky is clear, but that the sky is clear NOW, or rather, the sky has cleared up.

**************** ce qui est au-dessus a été corrigé directement dans le docbook **********


Juéde “to feel” Here juéde is used to mean “to feel, to think, to have an opinion about something.” It can also mean “to feel” in a physical way, as in “to feel sick.” Nǐ Juéde ... zěnmeyàng? can be well translated as “How do you like ... ?

hěn shǎo: “It seldom snows in Shànghǎi in the winter.” The adjectival verb shǎo “to be few” is used here as an adverb “seldom,” and as such comes before the verb. Notice that hěn shǎo, “seldom,” and chángcháng, “often,” are used as opposites.

English is no more logical when it comes to weather expressions: it uses the meaningless subject “it,” as in “it snows.”

Jīntiān zhèrde tiānqi hěn liángkuai: “Today the weather here is very cool.” Again, it is not necessary to translate hěn as “very” in this sentence; the meaning depends on the speaker’s intonation and emphasis.

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART I

An American woman is talking with a Chinese man in Běijīng.

M: Jīntiān tiānqi hěn hǎo, shì bu shi?	The weather is very good today, isn't it?

F: Shì a! Jīntiān tiān qíng le.	It is. Today it has cleared up.

M: Nǐ lǎojiāde qìhou zěnmeyang?	What's the climate like where you're from?

F: Wǒ lǎojiā zài Jiùjīnshān. Nàrde qīhou hěn hǎo. Dōngtiān bù lěng, xiàtiān yě bú tài rè.	My hometown is San Francisco. The climate there is very good. It isn't cold in the winter, and it isn't too hot in the summer, either.

M: Nǐ juéde Běijīng zěnmeyang?	How do you like Běijīng? Literally, ”How do you feel Běijīng is?”

F: Zhèi jǐtiān Běijīng tiāntiān xià xuě, tài lěng le.	It's been snowing these last few days in Běijīng and it's been too cold.

NOTES ON THE DIALOGUE

juéde: “to feel” This may mean “to feel (physically)” or “to feel (emotionally), to think.” It is often used, as in the Reference List sentence, to preface a statement of opinion. Wǒ juéde ... may sometimes be translated as “l think that ...”

Wǒ juéde tā kéyi zuò.	I think he can do it.

And here are some examples using juéde to mean “feel (physically )”:

Wǒ juéde hěn rè.	I feel hot.

Wǒ juéde bù shūfu.	I don't feel well. (Literally, “I feel not well.”)

Nǐ juéde Běijīng zěnmeyang?: “How do you like Běijīng?” or “What do you think of Běijīng?” More literally, “You feel Běijīng is how?”

tài lěng le: “it’s been too cold” The marker le is the marker for new situations. It is often used to reinforce the idea of “excessive.” Another example is Tài guì le! “it’s too expensive!”

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART I

An American woman is talking with a Chinese man in Taipei.

M: Nǐ lǎojiā zài náli?	Where’s your hometown?
F: Zài Niǔ Yuē.	It’s New York.
M: Niǔ Yuēde qìhòu zěnmeyàng?	What is New York’s climate like?
F: Niǔ Yuēde qìhòu bú tài hǎo. Dōngtiān lěng, xiàtiān rè. Nǐ lǎojiā zài náli?	New York’s climate isn’t too good. It's cold in the winter and hot in the summer. Where’s your hometown?
M: Zài Shànghǎi. Shànghǎide dōngtiān hěn shǎo xià xuě, kěshi yě hěn lěng.	It’s Shanghai. It seldom snows in Shanghai in the winter, but it's cold there, too.
F: Xiàtiān zěnmeyàng?	What’s it like in the summer?
M: Òu, xiàtiān hěn rè.	Oh, it's hot in the summer.
F: Jìntiān zhèrde tiānqi hěn liǎngkuai. Wǒmen chūqu zōuzou <footnote><para>Zǒuzou: “to walk around”</para></footnote>hǎo bu hǎo?	The weather today is cool. Let's , out and walk around, okay?
M: Hǎo.	Okay.

11. Dōngtiān chángcháng guā fēng.	It’s often windy in the winter.

12. Sānyuè jiù kāishǐ nuǎnhuo le.	By March it is already starting to get warm.

13. Chūntiān hěn duǎn.	Spring is very short.

14. Xiàtiān yǒude shíhou xià yǔ.	It sometimes rains in the summer.

15. Qiūtiān zuì hǎo.	Fall is the best (season).

16. Nǐ shi shénme shíhou líkāi Běijīngde?	When did you leave Běijíng?

17. Wǒ zhēn xiǎng Jiāzhōu.	I really miss California.

18. Xiàtiān bú shi hěn cháoshī.	It's not very humid in the summer.

19. Tīngshuō Táiwān chángcháng guā táifēng.	I hear that Taiwan often has typhoons.

20. cháng	to be long

Reference Notes on Part 2

guā fēng: “(there) blows wind” Guā literally means “to scrape,” but when used in connection with fēng, “wind,” it means “to blow.” Like other weather expressions, such as xià xuě “to snow,” the subject fēng usually follows the verb guā. To say “very windy,” you say that the wind is big, either Fēng hěn dà or Guā dà fēng.

Sānyuè: “by March” A time word before the verb may mean “by” a certain time as well as “at” a certain time.

Sānyuè jiù kāishǐ nuǎnhuo le: “By March it is already starting to get warm.” When the time word before it is given extra stress, the adverb jiù indicates that the event in question happens earlier than might be expected. The marker le after the state verb nuǎnhuo, “to be warm,” tells us that it is being used here as a process verb “to get warm.”

yǒude shiéhou: “sometimes” This is also said as yǒu shíyou.

xià yǔ:  “to rain” Literally, “(there) falls rain.” Now you have seen three weather expressions where the subject normally follows the verb: xià xuě, guā fēng and xià yǔ.

Wǒ zhēn xiǎng Jiāzhōu: “I really miss California” The verb xiǎng, translated here as “to miss,” is the same verb as “to think” (“I really think of California [with nostalgia]”).

xiàtiān bú shi hěn cháoshí: “it’s not very humid in the summer.” The shi is not obligatory in the sentence. It would also be correct to say bù hěn cháoshí.

táifěng: “typhoon” The Chinese word táifēng was borrowed into the English language as “typhoon.”

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART II

An American woman is talking with a Chinese man in Hong Kong:

F: Nǐ líkāi Běijīng duōshǎo nián le?	How many years has it been since you left Běijīng?

M: Yījīng yǒu èrshibānián le.	It’s already been twenty-eight years.

F: Nǐ líkāi zhème jiǔ, xiǎng bu xiǎng Běijīng?	It’s been so long since you left, do you miss Běijīng?

M: Yǒu shíhou xiǎng.	Sometimes I miss it.

F: Tīngshuō Běijīng qiūtiande tiānqi zuì hǎo, shì bu shi?	I hear that the autumn weather in Běijīng is the best, isn’t it?

M: Duì le, qiūtiānde tiānqi zuì hǎo, bù lěng yě bú rè.	Right, the autumn weather is the best; it’s neither cold nor hot.

F: Dōngtian xià xuě ma?	Does it snow in the winter?

M: Dōngtiān yǒu shíhou xià xuě, yě chángcháng guā fēng.	It sometimes snows in the winter, and it’s often windy, too.
	
F: Shénme shíhou kāishī nuǎnhuo?	When does it start to get warm?

M: Sānyuè jiu kāishǐ nuǎnhuo le. Kěshi chūntiān hěn duǎn, Wǔyuè jiu rè le.	It starts to get warm by March, But the spring is very short, In May it starts to get hot.

F: Xiàtiān cháoshí ma?	Is it humid in the summer?

M: Xiàtiān yǒude shíhou xià yǔ, kěshi bú shi hěn cháoshī.	It sometimes rains in the summer, but it’s not very humid.

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

Nǐ líkāi zhème jiǔ: “it’s been so long since you left” You have seen jiǔ, which means “to be long in time,” in the phrase duō jiǔ, “how long (a time)”

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART II

An American woman is talking with a Chinese man in Taipei:

M:   Nǐ juéde Taiběi chūntiande tiānqi hǎo bu hǎo?	Do you feel that the spring weather in Taipei is good?
F:   Wǒ juéde zhèlide chūntiān hěn hǎo, Sānyuè jiù nuǎnhuo le. Kěshi wǒ tīngshuō xiàtiān hěn rè, duì bu dui?	I feel the spring here is very good. It gets warm in March. But I hear the summer is hot, right?
M:   Duì le. Zhèlide xiàtiān hěn rè, chángcháng xià yǔ, hěn chāoshī.	Right. The summer here is very hot, and it often rains; it’s very humid.
F:   Tīngshuō yě chángcháng guā táifēng.	I’ve also heard that there are often typhoons.
M:   Duì le.	Yes.
F:   Táiběide qiūtiān ne?	How about the fall in Taipei?
M:   Òu, Jiǔ-Shíyuè hái hěn rè, Shíyíyuè jiù liángkuai le.	Oh, in September and October it’s still hot. By November it gets cool.

Part 3

21. Nǐ lǎojiā zài chéngli háishi zài xiāngxià?	Is your home in the city or in the country?

22. Nàli yǒu shān, yǒu sēnlín, hái yǒu hú.	There are mountains and forests there and lakes, too.

23. Fēngjǐng hěn hǎo, kōngqì hěn xīnxian.	The scenery is very nice and the air is fresh.

24. Nǐ lǎojiā fùjìnde huānjìng zěnmeyàng?	What’s the country like where you're from?

25. Nǐ lǎojiā nèige dìfang yǒu duōshǎo rénkǒu?	What's the population of your hometown?

26. Yǒu wǔqiān rén zuǒyòu.	There are about five thousand people.

2?. Nàr meiyou kōngqì wūrǎn.	There's no air pollution there.

28. Hǎibiān hěn qīngjìng.	The seashore is very quiet.

29. Zhèr fùjìn yǒu hé ma?	Are there any rivers in this area?

30. chěng	city

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART III

chéngli: “in the city,” literally “inside the city wall.”

xiāngxià: “country” Also pronounced xiāngxià (with neutral tone xià).

fùjìn: “vicinity” Also pronounced fǔjìn.

huánjìng: “environment, surroundings,” In №24 the phrase nǐ lǎojiā fùjìnde huānjìng is literally “the environment of the vicinity of your original home.”

nǐ lǎojiā nèige dìfang: “your hometown” Lǎojiā by itself only means “original home.”To get the meaning “hometown,” you must refer to the place (nèige dìfang) where your “original home” (lǎojiā) is. Notice the different phrasing in the following sentences:

Nǐ lǎojiā nèige dìfang yǒu duōshǎo rénkǒu?	What's the population of your hometown?

Nǐ lǎojiā nàr yǒu méiyou shān?	Are there mountains where your original home is?

Nǐ lǎojiā zài xiāngxià ma?	Is your original home in the country?

shān, hū, he: “mountain, lake, river” These three words are used with the four points of the compass to make several province names.

Shāndōng	east of the (Tàiháng) mountains
Shānxǐ	west of the (Tàiháng) mountains
Héběi	north of the (Yellow) river
Hénán	south of the (Yellow) river
Húběi	north of the (Dòngtíng) lake
Húnán	south of the (Dòngtíng) lake

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART III

An American woman is talking with a Chinese man in Běijīng:

M: Nǐ lǎojiā fǔjìnde huánjìng zěnmeyàng?	What’s the country like where you’re from?

F: Wǒ lǎojiāde fùjìn yǒu hěn duō shān.	There are a lot of mountains near where I’m from.

M: Nèige xiǎo chéngde fēngjǐng hěn hǎo ba!	That little town must have very good scenery!

F: Duì le. Nàrde fēngjǐng hěn hǎo. Yǒu sēnlín, hái yǒu hé.	Right. The scenery there is very good. There are forests and also rivers.

M: Nàrde kōngqi hěn xīnxian ba.	I suppose the air there is very fresh.

F: Shì a! Nàr méiyou kōngqi wǔrǎn.	Yes! There is no air pollution there.

M: Nèige xiǎo chéng yǒu duōshǎo rénkǒu?	What’s the population of that little town?

F: Yǒu sìqiān rén zuǒyòu.	There are about four thousand people.

NOTES ON THE DIALOGUE

nèige xiǎo chéng: “that little town” You’ve learned that chéngli means “in the city.” One word for “city” by itself is chéng [another is chěngshì].

Nǐ shuōde shi něige Huáshèngdùn? Shi zhōu háishi chéng?	Which Washington are you talking about? The state or the city?

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART III

An American woman is talking with a Chinese man in Taipei:

M: Nǐ lǎojiā zài chéngli háishi zài xiāngxià?	Is your home in the city or in the country?

F: Zài xiāngxià. Nàli yǒu shān, yǒu sēnlín, hái yǒu hú. Fēngjǐng hěn hǎo. Wǒ líkāi nàli yǐjīng yǒu wǔnián le. Wǒ hěn xiǎng wǒde lǎojiā.	It’s in the country. There are mountains there, and forests, and lakes, too. The scenery is very good. It’s already been five years since I left there. I miss my original home very much.

M: Nǐ lǎojiā nèige dìfāng yǒu duōshǎo rénkǒu?	What’s the population of your hometown?

F: Sānqiān rén zuǒyòu.	About three thousand.

M: Nà hěn qīngjìng ba?	Then it must be very quiet, I suppose?

F: Duì le, hěn qīngjìng. Kōngqì yě xīnxian. Nǐde jiā zài Zhānghuà shénme dìfang?	Right, it’s very quiet. The air is fresh, too. What part of Chang-hua is your home in?

M: Zài Tiánzhōng fùjìn. Nàli fēngjīng yě hěn hǎo, méiyou kōngqì wūrǎn.	Near T’ienchung. The scenery there is also very nice, and there’s no air pollution.

NOTES ON THE DIALOGUE

Wǒ líkāi nàli yǐjīng yǒu wǔnián le: “(Since) I left there it has been five years.” The marker le at the end of the sentence is new-situation le, and is necessary here. It shows that the duration stated (five years) is as of the present moment (“so far”). Another point to bear in mind is that Le is used at the end of most sentences containing yǐjīng.

Zhānghuà, “Changhua,” is the name of a city and a county on the west coast of central Taiwan. T’ienchung (Tiánzhōng) is a village in southeastern Changhua county.

Unit 1 Vocabulary

cháng	often
chángcháng	often
cháoshǐ	to be humid
chéng	city, town
chèngli	in the city
chūntiān (chūntian)	spring
dōngtiān (dōngtian)	winter
duǎn	to be short
fēng	wind
fěngjǐng	scenery
fùjìn (fùjìn)	area, neighborhood
guā	to blow (of wind, typhoons, etc.)
hǎibiān(r)	seashore
hé	river
hú	lake
huánjìng	environment
juéde	to feel
kāishǐ	to begin, to start
kōngqì (kōngqi)	air
kōngqì wūrǎn	air pollution
lěng	to be cold
liángkuai	to be cool
líkāi	to leave
nuǎnhuo	to be warm
qìhòu (qìhou)	climate
qíng	to be clear
qǐngjìng	to be quiet
qiūtiān (qiūtian)	fall, autumn
rè	to be hot
rénkǒu	population
sēnlín	forest
shān	mountain
shǎo	to be few; seldom
táifēng	typhoon
tiān	sky, heaven
tiānqì (tiānqi)	weather
tīngshuō	to hear that, to hear it said
wūrǎn	pollution
xiǎng	to miss, to think of
xiāngxià (xiāngxià)	to he in the country, the countryside
xiàtiān (xiàtiān)	summer
xià xuě	to snow
xià yǔ	to rain
xīnxiān (xīnxian)	fresh
yǒu(de) shíhou	sometimes
zuì	most, -est
zuǒyòu	approximately, about

Personal Welfare Module, Unit 2

REFERENCE LIST

Clothing

PART I

1.	 Tā jīntiān chuānde yīfu zhēn hǎo kàn.	The clothes she is wearing today are really pretty.

2.	  Wǒ xūyào jǐjiàn xīn yīfu.	I need some new clothes.

3.	 Wǒde dàyī tài jiù le, wǒ xiǎng mǎi (yí)jiàn xīnde.	My coat is too worn, I want to get a new one.

4.	 Běijīngde dōngtiān hěn lěng, nǐ yào mǎi hòu yidiǎnrde.	Winter in Beijing is very cold; you need to buy a heavier one.

5.	 Nǐ shénme shíhou qù fúzhuāngdiàn?	When are you going to the clothing store?

6.	 Gěi wo mǎi yìshuāng tuóxié, hǎo bu hǎo?	Buy me a pair of slippers, would you?

7.	 Táiběi cháng xià yǔ, nǐ xūyào yǔyǐ, yǔxié.	It often rains in Taipei; you need a raincoat and rainshoes.

8.	 Wǒde yǔsǎn huài le.	My umbrella has broken.

9.	 Wǒ hái xūyào yìtiǎo kūzi.	I also need a pair of pants.

10.	 Chūntiān lái le, wǒ xiǎng mǎi bǎo yidiǎnde qúnzi.	Spring is coming; I’d like to buy a lighter skirt.

11.	 Wǒ xiǎng mǎi yítào gànbufú.	I’d like to buy a cadre suit.

12.	 Wǒ shàngwu qù mǎile yìtiáo kùzi hé jǐjiàn chènshān.	This morning I went and bought a pair of pants and a few shirts.

13.	 xīn	to be new

REFERENCES MOTES ON PART 1

chuān: “to put on, to don” (clothes, shoes) Notice that Chinese uses an action verb, “to put on,” where English uses a state verb, “to wear.” You have to adjust your thinking a bit in order to use this verb correctly. When you want to say “She's NOT WEARING her coat,” you actually say “She DIDN’T PUT ON her coat,” Tā měi chuān dàyī.

Here are some example sentences using chuān “to put on.”

Wǒ chuānle yìshuāng hóng xié.	I’m wearing a pair of red shoes. (I’ve put on a pair of red shoes.)

Wǒ méi chuān xié.	I’m not wearing shoes. (I didn’t put on shoes. )

Ní chuān bái xié ma?	Do you wear white shoes? (HABIT) OR Will you wear white shoes? (INTENTION)

Wǒ bù chuān bái xié.	I don’t wear white shoes (HABIT) OR I won’t wear white shoes. (INTENTION)

Chuān is not the only verb meaning to put on in Chinese. There is another verb dài which is used for wearing or putting on hats, wristwatches, ornaments, jewelry, and gloves.

Dài is taught in Part II of this unit.

xūyào: “to need” This word may be used as a main verb or as an auxiliary verb. In either usage, it is always a state verb. It is, therefore, negated with bù.

Wǒ xūyào qián.	I need money.
Wǒ xūyào shíjiān.	I need time.
Wǒ xūyào ta.	I need her.
Wǒ xūyào huàn qián.	I need to change money.
Tā xūyào zhīdao.	He needs to know.

-jiàn: This is the counter for articles of clothing, as well as for things (dǒngxi, shìqing), and suitcases.

dàyī: “overcoat” literally “big clothes”

jiù; “to be old, to be worn” This is the word to use when describing things, whether concrete or abstract, but never people. [For people, use lāo: Tā lǎo le. “She’s gotten old.”]

Nà shi wǒde jiù dìzhǐ.	That’s my old address.

Tā háishi chuān jiù yīfu.	She’s still wearing old clothes.

mǎi (yí)jiān xīnde: The number yí- before a counter may be omitted when it directly follows a verb.

yào: “to need” In sentence №4, you see a new usage of yào (nǐ yào mǎi hòu yidiǎnrde “you need to buy a heavier one”). In addition to meaning “to want”, yào has many uses as an auxiliary verb. The meaning “to need” is one of the more common ones.

hòu: “to be thick” In sentence No. 4 (...nǐ yào mǎi hòu yidiǎnrde...), hòu is translated as “heavier.” The basic meaning of hòu is “to be thick.”

Zhèiběn shū hěn hòu.	This book is very thick.

Yèli xiàde xuě hěn hòu.	The snow that fell last night is very deep.

Báo “to be thin, to be flimsy (of cloth, paper, etc.),” is often the opposite of hòu.

tuōxié: “slipper,” literally “drag-shoes.” In most households in Taiwan shoes are not worn into the house, so plenty of pairs of slippers are kept at the front door. This custom, established by Japanese influence, has the practical value of keeping the floors dry, which would otherwise be difficult given Taiwan's rainy climate. (in mainland China, shoes are worn into the house.)

huài: This verb has a different meaning depending on whether it is a state verb or a process verb. As a state verb, huài means “to be bad,” as a process verb, “to go bad, to break.”

As a state verb:

Zuótiān tiānqi zhēn huài, jīntiān hǎo le.	Yesterday the weather was really bad, but today it's gotten better.

Hē! Tāde Zhōngguo huà zhēn bú huài, a?	Well! His Chinese is really not bad, huh?

As a process verb:

Wǒ zhèizhǐ bǐ huài le.	This pen of mine is broken.

Zhèixiē júzi huài le, bú yào le.	These tangerines have gone bad; we don't want them (throw them out).

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART I

The couple in this dialogue have recently moved to Taipei from Kaohsiung (Gāoxióng) in southern Taiwan. Here they are taking a walk in downtown Taipei. (Xiǎo Huá is their daughter.)

F: 	Zhèli fǔjìn yǒu hěn duō fúzhuāngdiàn, wǒmen qù mǎi yīfu, hǎo bu hǎo?	There are a lot of clothing stores in this area; why don’t we go buy some clothes?

M: 	Hǎo. Nǐ xiǎng mǎi shénme?	All right. What would you like to buy?

F:	 Wǒ xiǎng mǎi yìtiáo kùzi hé jǐjiàn chènshān. Wǒ hái xiǎng mǎi yíjiàn dàyī.	I’d like to buy a pair of slacks and a few shirts. I’d also like to buy an overcoat.

M: 	Duì, nī chuānde zhèijiàn dàyī tài jiù le, wǒmen qù gěi ni mǎi jiàn xīnde.	Right, this overcoat you’re wearing is too old. Let’s go buy you a new one.

F:	 Nǐ yě xūyào mǎi yíjiàn xīn dàyī, shì bu shi?	You need to buy a new overcoat too, don’t you?

M: 	Duì le. Táiběide dōngtiān yǒu shíhòu hěn lěng, wǒmen yào mǎi hòu yidiǎnde dàyī. Wǒ hái xūyào mǎi jiàn yǔyī, yě yào gěi Xiǎo Huá mǎi yìshuāng yǔxié.	Right. Winters in Taipei sometimes get very cold; we should buy heavier coats. I also need to buy a raincoat, and I want to buy a pair of rainboots for Xiǎo Hua, too.

F:	 Òu, hái yào mǎi jīshuāng tuōxié.	Oh, we should buy a few pairs of slippers, too.

M:	 Hǎo, wǒmen xiànzài jiù qù.	Okay, let’s go right now.

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART I

An American of Chinese descent (M) has gone back to visit relatives in Běijīng. Here he talks with his cousin (F).

F:	 Jīntiān xiàwǔ wǒmen qù mǎi dōngxi zěnmeyàng?	How about going shopping this afternoon?

M:	 Hǎo. Nǐ yào mǎi shénme?	Okay. What do you want to buy?

F:	 Wǒ xiǎng mǎi jǐjiàn yīfu, tiānqi nuǎnhuo le, xūyào mǎi bǎode chènshān hé qúnzi.	I’d like to get a few clothes; the weather is warmer now, and I need to buy a lighter weight blouse and skirt.

M:	 Wǒ yě xūyào mǎi yíjiàn chènshān, wǒ hái xiǎng mǎi yítào gànbufú.	I also need to buy a shirt, and I’d like to buy a cadre suit, too.

F: 	Nǐ yào mai gànbufú? Nà, wǒmen yìqǐ qù fúzhuāngdiàn. Ōu, duì le, Běijīng Qī-Bāyuè cháng xià yǔ, nǐ yǒu méiyou yǔxié, yǔsǎn?	You want to buy a cadre suit? Then we’ll go to the clothing store together. Oh, right, it often rains in Beijīng in July and August, do you have rain shoes and an umbrella?

M: 	Wǒde yǔxié tài jiù le, yǔsǎn yě huài le, dōu děi mǎi xīnde le.	My rain shoes are too worn, and my umbrella is broken. I have to buy new ones of both.

F:	 Hǎo.	All right.

PART II

REFERENCE LIST

14.		Qǐngwèn, náli yǒu mài nèiyī nèikùde?	Excuse me, where do they sell undershirts and underpants?

15.		Zhèjiàn jiǎkè shi nílóngde, shi ba?	This jacket is made of nylon, isn’t it?

16.		Jìntiān hěn lěng, nǐ bu dài màozi ma?	It’s cold today, aren’t you going to wear your hat?

17.		Wǒ nèidǐng pò màozi tài nánkàn le, wǒ bù xiǎng dài.	That old hat of mine looks awful, I don't want to wear it.

18.		Nǐde wàzi gòu bu gòu? Wǒ gěi ni mǎi jǐshuāng.	Do you have enough socks? I’ll buy you a few pairs.

19.	A:	Nǐ yào mǎi jiákè háishi wàitào?	Do you want to buy a jacket or a coat?

	B:	Wǒ gěi wo xiānsheng mǎi jiákè, gěi wǒ zìjǐ mǎi wàitào.	I want to buy a jacket for my husband and a coat for myself.

20.	Wǒ mǎile yìshuāng hēi yánsède píxié hé yitào shuìyī.	I bought a pair of black shoes and a pair of pajamas.

21.	A:	Zhèli yǒu ge sūubāo, shi shéide?	There’s a tote bag here; whose is it?

	B:	À, shì wǒde, wǒ wàng le.	Oh, it’s mine, I forgot it.

22.	A:	Wǒde máoyī pò le.	My sweater is worn through/torn/ damaged.

	B:	Nà nǐ dǎi qù mǎi xīnde le.	Then you have to go buy a new one

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART II

nèiyī, nèikù: Nèi means “inner.” Nèikù means “underpants” (kù as in kùzi)~ Nèiyī means “underclothes” in general, but when contrasted with nèikù takes on the specific meaning “undershirt.” The yī means “clothing, garment,” as in yīfu.

jiākè: “jacket,” a word borrowed from English. Jiākè refers only to Jackets cut above the waist; a suit Jacket would be wàitào (see note below). Also pronounced jiákè. In Běijīng, this word has an -r ending.

nílóng: “nylon,” another borrowing from English.

dài: “to put on, to don” a hat, wristwatch, gloves, glasses, jewelry or other things which are not necessary to one’s apparel. As with the verb chuān which you learned in Part I, when you use dài you have to adjust your thinking from the idea of “to wear” to the idea of “put on.” For “Do you wear glasses?” you would say “Do you put on glasses?”: Nī dài bu dài yǎnjìng? For “She’s not wearing glasses” you would say “She didn’t put on glasses”: Tā méi dài yǎnjìng. Contrast:

Tā bú dài màozi.	She doesn’t wear hats.
	OR
	She won’t wear a hat. (HABIT) (INTENTION

Tā méi dài màozi.	She didn’t put on a hat.
	OR
	She didn’t wear a hat.
	OR
	She doesn’t have a hat on.

(The translations given only cover some of the possible ones. Other aspect markers which you have not learned yet, such as the marker for action in progress [zài], the marker for duration [-zhe], the marker for lack of change [ne], etc., can be used to make more precise the meaning of a sentence.)

-dǐng: The counter for màozi, “hat.” Literally, -dǐng means “top.”

*yǎnjìng: “glasses” (counter: -fù)

pò: “to be broken/damaged/torn/worn out” In pò màozi, “old/ worn/ tattered hat,” pò stands before a noun to modify it. Pò is also frequently used as a process verb, “to break, to become damaged/torn/worn out.”

Wǒ kànkan, nǐde jiākè shì bu shi pò le?	Let me have a look, has your jacket been torn/worn through?

In Part I you learned huài, “to go bad, to break.” Huài means that something becomes unusable or stops working, while pò means that something develops a tear, cut, split, hole, break, etc. Jiù in Part I had for one possible translation “to be worn,” but jiù and pō are quite different: jiù le means to have changed color or shape after a long period of time or use, whereas pò le means that the thing is no longer intact, whether the damage is caused by time, use, or accident.

gòu: “to be enough” This adjectival verb is only used as the main verb of a sentence, never (like English “enough”) before a noun. You must therefore recast English sentences with “enough” into the Chinese pattern when you translate, e.g.

Do you have enough socks?	Are your socks enough?	Nǐde wàzi gòu bu gòu?

I don’t have enough shirts	My shirts aren't enough.	Wǒde chènshān bú gòu.

There aren't enough rice bowls.	The rice bowls aren't enough.	Fànwǎn bú gòu.

wàitào: This word has two meanings: 

(1) “coat, overcoat,” and

(2) a “jacket” which extends below the waist, like a suit jacket. (A jacket cut above the waist is jiākè.)

zìjǐ: “oneself; myself, yourself, himself, etc.” This is a special pronoun. It can be used by itself, or it can follow another pronoun like nǐ, wǒ, tā, etc. Here are some examples. (For the first, you need to know -zhǒng, “kind,” and for the last, you need to know zuò, “to make.”)

Mǎi yīfu, zuì hǎo mǎi zìjī xǐhuande nèizhǒng.	When buying clothes, it is best to buy the kind one likes oneself.

Nà shi wǒ zìjīde shì.	That's my own business.

Zhèi shi tā zìjī zuòde, bú shi mǎide.	She made this herself, it isn't (store-)bought.

píxié: Western-style “leather shoes,” a word commonly used where we would just say “shoes,” since traditional Chinese shoes (bùxié) are made of cloth.

shuìyī: “pajamas,” literally, “sleep-garment” This word can use two different counters, depending on the type of pajamas referred to. 
1) For two-piece pajamas, that is, a shirt and pants, the counter is -tào, “set.” (Although we say “a pair of pajamas” in English, you cannot use the counter -shuāng in Chinese. -Shuāng is only for things that match, like shoes.) 
2) Old-style one-piece pajamas take the counter -jiàn.

shūbāo: “tote bag, carryall,” literally, “book-sack.” Although still used with the original meaning of a student’s “bookbag,” shūbāo has now come to have a more general meaning, since bookbags are often used to carry things other than books. EThere are other words for “tote bag,” but shūbāo is so useful that you should learn it first. 3

wàng: “to forget; to forget to; to forget that”

Nǐ wàng le ba?	You've forgotten, haven’t you?

Wǒ méi wàng.	No, I haven't forgotten.

Wo wàng(le) qù le.	I forgot to go.

Wǒ wàng(le) dài màozi le.	I forgot to put on my hat.

Wǒ wàngle tā jǐdiǎn zhōng lái.	I forgot what time he is coming.

Wǒ wàngle tā jiào shénme míngzi.	I forgot what his name is.

Wǒ wàngle wǒ jīntiān méi kè.	I forgot that I don’t have any classes today.

máoyí: “sweater,” literally, “woolen-garment.”

Nà, “in that case, then,” is always used at the very beginning of a sentence, for example,

Nà, wǒmen shénme shíhou qù?	Then, when shall we go?

Nà nǐ děi qù mǎi xīnde le: The le here is optional. It stresses that having to go buy a new sweater is a new situation.

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART II

Tiānjīn. In the home of two senior cadres, a husband (M) and wife (F) discuss shopping plans. (They live together with the wife's older sister.)

F: 	Nǐ zuótiān bú shi shuō xiǎng qù mǎi nèiyi, nèikù ma?	Didn't you say yesterday that you wanted to go buy undershirts and underpants?

M: 	Shì a! Wǒ hái xiǎng mǎi jiàn wàitào.	Yes! I also want to buy an overcoat.

F:	 Mǎi wàitàor a?! Nǐ nèijiàn xīn jiākè bù hǎo ma?	Buy an overcoat?! Isn’t that new Jacket of yours good?

M: 	Hěn hǎo, kěshi tiānqi yǐjīng kāishǐ liáng le, nèijiàn jiákè tài bǎo, wǒ xiǎng mǎi jiàn xīn wàitào.	It's very good, but the weather has already started to get cold, and that jacket is too light, so I'd like to get a new overcoat.

F: 	Nà wǒmen shénme shíhou qù?	Then when shall we go?

M:	 Òu, nǐ yě xiǎng qù a?	Oh, you want to go too?

F:	 Wǒ xiǎng qù mǎi yítào shuìyǐ, mǎi liǎngshuāng nílóng wàzi.	I'd like to go buy a pair of pajamas and a couple of pairs nylon socks.

M:	 Òu, hǎo, nà wǒmen xiànzài jiù qù, hǎo bu hǎo?	Oh, all right, then let's go right now, okay?

F: 	Hǎo, nǐ chuān nèijiàn jiākè gòu bu gòu? Tiānqi hěn lěng a!	Okay. Will it be enough for you to wear that jacket? The weather is very cold!

M: 	Gòu le, wǒ hǎi chuānle mǎoyī ne.	It's enough. I have a sweater on too.

F:	 Ng, wǒde shūbāo ne?	Huh, where's my tote bag?

M: 	Nèige shūbāo shì bu shi?	Is that tote bag it?

F:	 Bú shi, nà shi wǒ jiějiede. À! Zài zhèr!	No, that's my older sister's. Ah! Here it is!

M: 	Hǎo le ba?	All set?

F: 	Hǎo le, zǒu ba!	All set. Let's go!

NOTES ON THE DIALOGUE

wǒde shūbāo ne?: Questions with ne frequently ask for the whereabouts of something or someone; thus the sentence may be translated, “Where is my tote bag?”

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART II

Taipei. Conversation between a husband and wife. (Xiǎo Míng is their son.)

F: 	Yīngmíng, xǐhuan wǒ jīntiān gěi nǐ mǎide zhèdīng màozi ma?	Yīngmíng, do you like the new hat I bought for you today?

M: 	Duōshǎo qián mǎide?	How much did you pay for it?

F:	 Bú guì a! Nǐ bù xǐhuan?	It wasn't expensive! You don't like it?

M:	 Òu, hěn hǎo kàn. Nǐ shàngwǔ qù mai dōngxi la?	Oh, it's nice. You went shopping this morning?

F:	 Duì le.	Right.

M:	 Ní hái mǎile shénme le?	What else did you buy?

F:	 Wǒ gěi nǐ mǎile liǎngjiàn chènshān. Wǒ kàn nǐ nàjiàn lán yánsède máoyī pòle, hái gěi ni mǎile liǎngjiàn máoyī. Yíjiàn shi huángde, yíjiàn shi lüde. Nǐ kàn. Xǐhuan ma?	I bought you two shirts. And since I saw that that blue sweater of yours is worn through, I also bought two sweaters for you. One is yellow and one is green. Look. Do you like them?

M:	 Ng, hěn hǎo kàn. Xièxie ni.	They're very nice, Thank you.

F:	 Wǒ hái gěi Xiǎo Míng mǎile nèiyī, nèikù, hé jǐshuāng wàzi.	I also bought a few undershirts and underpants and a few pairs of socks for Xiǎo Ming.

M:	 Nǐ gěi zìjī mǎi shénme le?	What did you buy for yourself?

F:	 Wǒ zìjī mǎile yíjiàn jiākè, yíjiàn wàitào, hái mǎile yìshuāng xié, yìshuāng hóng yánsède píxié.	I bought myself a jacket and an overcoat, and I also bought a pair of shoes, a pair of red leather shoes.

M:	 Hái yǒu méiyou?	Anything else?

F: 	Mm... méiyou le.	Um... no.

M:	 Nà nǐ wàngle gěi wǒ mǎi shuìyī le ba?	Then you forgot to buy pajamas for me, didn't you?

F:	 Òu! Wǒ wàng le! Wǒ míngtiān qù mǎi, hǎo bu hao?	Oh! I forgot! I'll go buy them tomorrow, all right?

M: 	Hǎo.	All right.

Part 3

REFERENCE LIST

22.		Nǐ yào zuò shénmeyàngde yīfu?	What kind of clothing do you want made?

23.	A:	Wǒ yào zuò yíjiàn qípáo.	I want to have a cheongsam made.

	B:	Nǐ yào zuò shénme liàozide?	What material do you want it made from?

	A:	Nǐ shuō yòng shénme liàozi hǎo?	What material do you think would be best to use?

	B:	Wǒmen zhèli yǒu hěn duō zhǒng liàozi, nín xǐhuan nǎyizhǒng?	We have many different kinds of material here; which kind do you prefer?

24.	A:	Nǐ yào zuò shénme yàngzide?	What style do you want it?

	B:	Wǒ xǐhuan wǒ shēnshang chuānde zhèijiàn.	I like the one I have on.

	B:	Nǐ kě bu kéyi zhào zhèige yàngzi zuò?	Could you make it in this style?

25.		Wǒ gěi nín liáng chǐcùn, hǎo bu hǎo?	I’ll take your measurements, all right?

26.		Nǐ kànkan zhèijiàn miǎn'ǎo héshì bu héshì.	See if this cotton-padded jacket fits you.

27.		xīzhuāng	Western-style clothes; Western-style suit

REFERENCE NOTES

zuò: “to make,” but in the Reference List sentence it is used for “to have made.” Zuò yīfu has two possible meanings: “to make clothes” or “to have clothes made.” The context will usually make clear which is meant.

Zài Táiwān zuò yīfu bù piányi le.	Having clothes made isn’t cheap in Taiwan any more.

shénmeyàng: “what kind, like what”

Nǐde dìtǎn shénmeyàngr?	What is your carpet like?

Láide rén shénmeyàngr?	What did the person who came look like?

Nǐ yàode dìtān shi shénmeyàngde?	What kind of carpet is it that you want?

Nǐde péngyou shi shénmeyàngde rén?	What kind of person is your friend?

qípáo: A close-fitting woman’s dress with high Chinese collar and slit side, now called in English a “cheongsam,” from the Guangdong dialect name. Qí refers to the Manchurian nationality; páo means a Chinese-style long gown. Thus the name qípáo comes from the fact that the ancestor of the modern cheongsam was originally worn hy Manchurian women.

liàozi; “cloth, fabric, material”

Nǐ shuō... : Literally, “You say...,” but often used as in this question to mean, “In your opinion” or “Do you think...”

-zhǒng: “kind, sort”

Nǐde lǚxíng zhípiào shi nǎ yizhǒngde?	What kind are your traveler’s checks?

Nǐ qù nèizhǒng dìfang zuò shénme?	What did you go to that kind of place to do?

Zhèizhǒng júzi hěn guì.	This kind of tangerine is very expensive.

yàngzi: (1) “appearance,” (2)  “shape, form,” (3) “style, design.”

Tāde yàngzi hěn hāo kàn.	Her appearance is very attractive.

Kàn tā nèi yàngzi!	Look at his appearance! (i.e., “Get a load of him.”)
Nǐ shuōde nèige dōngxi shi shénme yàngzide?	What does the thing you are talking about look like?
Tāde qípāode yàngzi hěn bú cuò.	The style of her cheongsam is quite nice.
Nǐde xīn yīfu shi shénme yàngzide?	What’s the style of your new dress?

shēnshang: “on one’s body, on one’s person”

Tā shēnshang yǒu yíjiàn lán dàyī.	He has a blue overcoat on.

Wǒ shēnshang méiyou qián.	I don’t have any money on me.

Wǒde qián xiànzài dōu zài tā shēnshang.	He has all my money with him right now.

kě bu kéyi: another way to say kéyi bu kéyi.

zhào: “according to”

Jiù zhào zhèige niàn.	Just read it the way it is here (according to this).

Jiù zhào zhèige páijià huàn ba!	Just exchange it according to this exchange rate.

Wǒ jiù zhào nǐde yìsi xiě, hǎo bu hǎo?	I’ll just write it the way you want it written, all right?

liáng: “to measure”

Nǐ gěi wǒ liángliang zhèikuài liàozi gòu bu gòu.	Measure this piece of cloth for me to see if there's enough.

chǐcùn: “measurements,” literally, “feet-inches.” Also pronounced chǐcun (with cun in the neutral tone).

mián'ǎo: “Chinese-style cotton-padded Jacket”

héshì: “to fit; to be suitable, to be appropriate”

Zhèijiàn yīfu hěn héshì, bú dà yě bù xiǎo.	This garment fits well, it’s neither too large nor too small.

Nǐ chuān zhèige yánsè bú tài héshì, huàn (yi)jiàn biéde ba.	That color doesn't look right on you, try a different one.

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART III

Běijǐng. A man (A) goes to a tailor shop to have some clothes made. (B) is the tailor.

A:	Wǒ yào zuò jǐjiàn yīfu.	I'd like to have some clothes made.
B:	Xíng a. Nín yào zuò shénmeyàngrde yǐfu?	Okay, what kind of clothes do you want to have made?

A:	Eng, wǒ yào zuò liǎngtào xīzhuāng, yítào chūntian chuānde, yítào dōngtian chuānde.	I’d like to have two Westernstyle suits made, one to wear in the     spring and one to wear in the winter.

B:	Hǎo. Wǒmen zhèr yǒu hěn duō zhǒng liàozi. Nín xǐhuan zuò něizhǒng liàozide? Zhèizhǒng liàozi zuò chūntian chuānde xīzhuāng hěn hǎo kàn. Nín kànkan nín xǐhuan bu xǐhuan.	All right. We have many kinds of cloth here. What kind of cloth do you like to wear? This kind of cloth would look very good as a spring suit. Take a look and see if you like it.

A:	O, hěn hǎo kàn. Jiù zuò yítào zhèizhǒng liàozide ba.	Oh, it's very attractive. Make one suit of this cloth.

B:	Nín kàn, zhèizhǒng liàozi zuò dōngtiān chuānde xīzhuāng zěnmeyàng? Bú cuò ba? Hěn nuǎnhuo.	What do you think of this cloth for the winter suit? Nice, isn’t it? It's very warm.

A:	Liàozi hěn hǎo, kěshi wǒ bu tài xǐhuan zhèizhǒng yānsè. Nín yǒu lán yánsède ma?	The cloth is very good, but I don't like this color very much. Do you have this in blue?

B:	Yǒu lán yánsède. Zhèige zěnmeyàng?	Yes, I do. How is this?

A:	Hǎo. Zhèige wǒ hěn xǐhuan. Xièxie ni.	Good. I like this very much. Thank you.


SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART III

Taipei. A woman goes to a tailor shop to have some clothes made.

A:	Qǐngwèn, nǐmen zhèli zuò bu zuo qípáo hé mián'ǎo?	Do you make cheongsams and cotton, padded coats here?

B:	Wǒmen zuò, zuò.	Yes, we do, we do.

A:	Wǒ xiǎng yòng zhè liǎngkuài liàozi zuò yíjiàn qípáo hàn* yíjiàn mián'ǎo.	I'd like to use these two pieces of material to make a cheongsam and a cotton-padded coat.

*hàn; A common pronunciation in Taiwan for the character hé, “and” or “with.”

B:	Qípáo yào zuò chángde háishi duǎnde?	Do you want the cheongsam long or short?

A:	Yào zuò chángde.	Long.

B:	Wǒ kànkan nǐde liàozi yǒu duōshǎo ba. Zhèikuài kéyi zuò chángde. Nèikuài zhǐ kéyi zuò duǎnde.	Let me have a look at how much material you have. With this piece you can make a long one. With that piece you can only make a short one.

A:	Nà jiù yòng nèikuài zuò mián’ǎo, yòng zhèikuài zuò qípáo. Kéyi ba?	Then use that piece to make the cotton-padded coat and use that piece to make the cheongsam. Will that be all right?

B:	Kéyi, kéyi. Nèikuài liàozi zuò mián’ǎo hěn héshì. Qípáo yào zuò shénme yàngzide?	Sure. That piece of material is very suitable for making a cotton-padded coat. What style do you want the cheongsam?

A:	Wǒ xǐhuan wǒ shēnshang chuānde zhèijiàn. Nǐ kě bu kéyi zhào zhèijiànde yàngzi zuò?	I like the one I have on. Can you make it according to the style of this one?

M:	Kéyi. Xiànzài wǒ gěi ni liáng chǐcùn, hǎo bu hǎo?	Yes. Now I’ll take, your measurements, okay?

Vocabulary

báo	to be thin; to be light (of clothing)
cháng	to be long
chènshān	shirt, blouse
chǐcun (chǐcùn)	measurement; size
chuān	to put on, to wear
dài	to put on, to wear (glasses, gloves, a hat, a watch, jewelry, etc.)
dàyī	overcoat
-dǐng	(counter for hats)
fúzhuāngdiàn	clothing store
gànbufú	cadre suit
gòu	to be enough
hàn	and (Taiwan pronunciation)
hé	and
héshì	to fit; to be suitable
hòu	to be thick; to be heavy (of clothing)
huài	to be bad; to go bad, to break
jiákè(r) OR jiākè(r)	jacket
-jiàn	(counter for clothing)
kùzi (yìtiāo)	pants
liáng	to measure
liàozi	material, fabric
máoyī	sweater
màozi (yìdǐng)	hat
mián’āo	cotton-padded jacket
nà	then, in that case
nèikù	underpants
nèiyī	underwear (undershirts, undershorts, briefs, slips, bras, etc.); just undershirt (when used in contrast to nèikù, underpants)
nílóng	nylon
píxié	leather shoes
pò	to be worn out; to break, to tear
qípáo	close-fitting woman’s dress with high neck and slit skirt; cheongsam
qù	to go
qúnzi	skirt
shénmeyàng	like what, what kind
shēnshang	on one’s body
-shuāng	pair
shūbāo	book bag, tote bag, carryall
shuìyī (yítào)	pajamas; nightgown
-tào	(counter for suits, sets of things)
-tiáo	(counter for long, winding things; counter for pants, translated ’’pair”)
tuōxié	slippers
wàitào(r)	coat, jacket (that extends below the waist)
wàng	to forget
wàzi	socks
xié	shoe
xīzhuāng	Western-style clothes; Western-style suit
xūyào	to need, to require
yàngzi	appearance; shape, form; style, design; pattern
yào	should; must; it is necessary, to need to
yīfu	clothes
yòng	to use
yǔxié	rainshoes; rubbers, galoshes
yǔyī	raincoat
zhào	according to
-zhǒng	kind, sort
zìjǐ	self, oneself (myself, yourself, etc.)
zuò	to make; to have made

Unit 3 Hair Care

PART I

REFERENCE LIST

Personal Welfare Module, Unit 3 Hair Care

1.		Jīntiān wǒ yǒu shì, qǐng ni kuài yidiǎn jiǎn.	I have things to do today, please cut [my hair] faster.

2.	A:	Jiǎn duǎn yidiǎn ma?	Do you want it cut short?

	B:	Bú yào jiǎn tài duǎn, liú cháng yidiǎn.	Don’t cut it too short, leave it a little long.

3.		Liǎngbiān jiǎn duǎn yidiǎn.	Cut the sides a little shorter.

4.		Gòu duǎn le.	It's short enough now.

5.		Wǒ yào xǐ tǒu.	I want a shampoo.

6.		Wǒ bú yào yóu.	I don’t want any (hair) oil.

7.		Hái yǒu tóufa, bù shūfu, qǐng ni nòng gānjing yidiǎn.	There's still some hair [e.g., on my neck] and it’s uncomfortable; please clean it up a little.

8.		Qǐng gěi wǒ guā yíxià húzi.	Give me a shave, please. (Literally, ”Please shave the beard for me.”)

9.		Nǐ yào chuí bèi ma?	Do you want your back pounded?

10.		Nǐ yào ànmó ma?	Do you want a massage?

11.		Nǐmen zhèli yǒu cā píxiéde ma?	Can I get a shoeshine here?

12.		liú húzi	to grow a beard

13.		lǐ fà	to have a haircut

14.		lǐfàdiàn/lǐfàguǎn	barbershop

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART I

yǒu shì: “to be occupied, to have something to do,” literally, “to have business.”

Nǐ xiànzài yǒu shì ma? 	Are you busy now? 

Méi shì.	No, I’m not busy.

jiǎn: “to cut (with a scissors), to clip, to trim” Chinese has several different words for English “to cut” depending on the method of cutting. Jiǎn only refers to cutting with a scissors or clipper.

bú yào: “don’t” In Transportation Module, Un t 3, you learned bié for “don’t” in negative commands. Bú yào means the same thing.

liǎngbiān: “two sides, both sides” In English it is enough to say just “the sides” and to add “two” or “both” seems superfluous, but liǎng is necessary in Chinese. Perhaps this is because Chinese has no way of indicating plural, as does the s in English, “the sides.”

Gòu duǎn le: “it’s short enough now” There are two things to notice in this short sentence: (1) In English we say “short enough,” but in Chinese you say literally “enough short”; in other words, gòu is used as an adverb to modify the adjectival verb duǎn. (2) le here indicates a new state of affairs: before, the hair wasn’t short enough, but now it is. Thus le can be rendered into English by the word “now.”

xǐ tóu: “to wash the hair” Tóu is literally “head,” but in many cases actually refers to the hair. In most Chinese barbershops a shampoo after the haircut is standard procedure, and you would not have to specify that you want one. (Xǐ tóu is translated as “to shampoo.” Liquid shampoo is called xǐfàjīng, “wash-hair-essence.”)

Notice that Wǒ yào xǐ tóu has been translated idiomatically as “I want a shampoo,” although literally xǐ tóu is a verb-object “to wash the head.” Many Chinese phrases made up of a verb plus object are ambiguous as to who performs the action. You might have been tempted to translate Wǒ yào xǐ tóu as “I want to wash the hair,” but in this context the sentence actually means “I want to have (my) hair washed,” that is, by someone else (the barber). The context should tell you which meaning is intended. Another example:

Wǒ qù xǐ yīfu.	I am going to wash clothes.

OR

Wǒ qù xǐ yīfu.	I am going to have clothes washed.

Usually you won’t have any trouble deciding which the speaker means; the situation or other things the speaker says will make it clear.

yóu: Literally, “oil,” this word may be used in a looser sense to refer to all sorts of liquid preparations applied to the hair by hand (e.g., Vitalis). The specific word for “hair oil” is fàyóu or tóuyóu.

Hái yǒu tóufa...: This is the sentence to say when the barber leaves bits of hair on your neck. The average person would gesture to his neck and say this sentence.

shūfu: “to be comfortable; to feel good”

Zhèige yǐzi zhēn shūfu.	This chair is really comfortable.

Zhèige xiǎo fēng hǎo shūfu a!	This breeze (“little wind”) feels so good

Bù shūfu can either mean “to be uncomfortable” or “not to be well, that is, to feel ill.

A:	 Wáng Xiáojie wèishénme jīntiān méi lái?	Why didn’t Miss Wáng come today?

B: 	Tā jintiān bù shūfu.	She doesn’t feel well today.

nòng: An extremely versatile verb because it has such a general meaning: “to do/manage/handle/make.” Nòng often substitutes for a more specific verb. Also pronounced lòng or nèng.

Wǒ qù nòng fàn.	I’ll go get the meal ready.

Wǒ qù nòng nèige.	I’ll go take care of that.

Wǒ zìjǐ nòng ba.	Let me do it myself.

Bié nòng nèixie shìqing.	Don’t mess around with that sort of thing.

Tā nòngle hěn duō qián.	He came up with a lot of money.

But in the Reference List sentence, nòng is used in an even more common way, meaning “to make (someone/someth!ng a certain way)” or “to get (someone/ something into a certain condition).” Other examples:

nònggānjing: “to make/get something clean”

nònghuài: “to break, to put out of order, to ruin”

nòngpò: “to tear, to break”

guā húzi: “to shave”, literally, “to scrape the beard.” The verb object phrase guā húzi, like xǐ tóu in Reference List Sentence No. 5, may be translated in either of two ways depending on the context: either “to shave (someone)” or “to have someone shave oneself.”

gěi wǒ guā húzi: “shave me” Gěi is the prepositional verb meaning “for.” When you have a verb-object phrase like guā húzi you indicate the person upon whom the action is performed by using a gěi phrase.

Qǐng ni gěi wǒ xǐ tóu.	Please wash my hair for me (i.e., give me a shampoo).

chuí bèi: “to pound (someone’s) back” as in massage. Barbers in China often provide this service after the haircut. Here once again, chuí bèi is a verb-object phrase with the same ambiguity as xǐ tou and guā húzi: it may mean “to pound someone’s back” or “to have one’s back pounded.” Again, the context determines the interpretation. When the barber asks you Nǐ yào chuí bèi ma?, you can safely assume that he is offering to pound your back rather than asking you to pound his.

ànmó: This is the noun “massage.” In recent years, an increasing number of barbershops in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and a few in the TRC have added massage to their list of services. Chinese medical clinics and hospitals also give therapeutic massage.

cā píxíe: “to shine shoes/to have one’s shoes shined” (Cā is literally, “to wipe, to rub.”) Once again, there is potential ambiguity as to who is the performer of the action. Also note that Chinese must use the verb-object; there is no noun corresponding to English “a shoeshine.” The translation of the Reference List sentence using “a shoeshine” is idiomatic. Literally the sentence means, “is there someone who shines shoes here?” Cā píxiéde is a noun phrase meaning “someone who shines shoes, a shoeshiner.”

liú húzi: “to grow a beard,” literally liú, “to leave, to let be,” and húzi “beard, mustache.”

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART I

Taipei. A Chinese man (A) walks into a barbershop and sits down in a barber’s chair. The barber is B and the shoeshine boy is C.

B:	Jiǎnduǎn yìdiǎn ma?	Do you want it a little shorter?

A:	Bù, wǒ yào liú cháng yidiǎn.	I want to leave it a little long.

B:	Hǎo.	All right.

A:	Nǐmen zhèli yǒu méiyou cā píxiéde?	Do you have someone who shines shoes here?

B:	Yǒu, yǒu. È, zhèwèi xiānshēng yào cā píxié, kuài lái.	Yes, we do. (to the shoeshine boy) Hey, this gentlemen wants to have his shoes shined, come quickly!

C:	Hǎo.	Okay!

(Ten minutes later)

B:	Xiānshēng, nǐ kànkan hòubian zěnmeyang, hái yào bu yào zài jiǎn yìdiǎn?	Sir, take a look at how the back is, do you want more off?

A:	Bù yào le, hòubian hěn hǎo. Liǎngbiān me...	No, the back is fine. As for the sides...

B:	Liǎngbiān chángle yidiǎn?	The sides are a little long?

A:	Liǎngbiān yě hěn hǎo. Jiù zhèyangzi ba!	The sides are okay, too. Just leave it this way.

B:	Hǎo.	Ok.

(A few minutes later)

B:	Gěi nǐ chuí yíxià bèi zěnmeyàng?	Pound your back for you?

A:	Bú bì le.	That’s not necessary.

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

Liǎngbiān me...: me indicates hesitation, indecision or consideration. It is translated here by the words “as for.”

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART I

A barbershop in Běijīng. An American goes into a medium-sized barbershop. After sitting for a while in the waiting area, his number is called, he pays his fee to the cashier, and then sits down in a barber's chair. Since the American has been here three times before, the barber and he are already acquainted.

B:	Hèi! Nín zhè tóu gòu *Tóu, literally “head”, is used for “head of hair.* chángde le!	Hey, this hair of yours is getting awfully long!

A:	Zhèiliǎngge yuè tài máng, méi shíjiān na! Duǎn yidiǎnr ba!	I've been two busy the past couple of months, I haven't had any time! Cut it short for me, okay?

B:	Xíng a!	Sure!

B:	Zhèi hòubianr gòu duǎn le, liǎngbiānr zěnmeyàng? Duō liú yidiǎnr hǎo bu hǎo?	It's short enough in back. How about the sides? How about leaving them a little long?

A:	Bù yào liú le, nín jiù jiǎn ba.	Don't leave them long, just cut them.

B:	Xiànzài zěnmeyàng?	How is it now?

A:	Bú cuò.	Pretty good!

B:	Nà, dào nèibianr zuò, wǒ gěi nín xī tóu.	Then, have a seat over there and I'll give you a shampoo.

A:	Hǎo.	All right.

B:	Yào diǎnr you ma?	Want some oil?

A:	Bú yào, bú yào.	No, I don't.

B:	Guāgua húzi ba?	How about a shave?

A:	Bú yòng le, duō xiè nín, húzi wǒ zìjǐ guā ba! Nín gěi wo bǎ tóufa nònggānjingle jiu xíng le.	That's not necessary, thank you. I'll shave myself! Just clean up the hairs for me and that will be all right.

B:	Hǎo. Xiànzài shūfu le ba?	Okay, does that feel better?

A:	Shūfu duō le. Xièxie nín!	Much better. Thank you!

B:	Bú kèqi.	You're welcome.

Notes on the dialogue

méi shíjiān na: Na is a contraction of ne and a.

bú cuò: “not bad, pretty good” (MTG 2)

dào nèibianr zuò: The qù is omitted from this phrase.

PART II

REFERENCE LIST

15.	A:	Míngtiān wǒ yào zuò tóufa, wǒ xūyào yùyuē ma?	I want to have my hair done tomorrow; do I need to make an appointment?

	B:	Bù xūyào, wǎnshàng bādiǎn zhōng yǐqián lái jiù méi wèntí.	No. If you come before eight in the evening there won’t be any problem.

16.	A:	Nǐ yào jiǎn duōshǎo?	How much do you want cut off?

	B:	Wǒ yào jiǎn wǔfēn.	I want five fēn cut off.

17.		Háishi yǒu diǎn cháng.	It’s still a little long.

18.		Yào bu yao shìyishi liú cháng yidiǎn? Wǒ xiǎng yídìng hǎo kàn.	Do you want to try leaving it a little longer? I’m sure it will look good.

19.		Wǒ xiǎng tàng tóufa.	I’d like to get a permanent.

20.	A:	Nǐ yào juǎn tóufa ma?	Do you want to have your hair curled?

	B:	Bú yào, chuīgǎn jiù kéyi le.	No, Just blow-dry it and that will be fine.

21.		shū tóu	to comb/brush one’s hair

References Notes on part 2

zuò tóufa: “to do hair” or “to have one's hair done” (See the Reference Notes for part I on xǐ tóu, guā húzi, chuí bèi, cā píxié.)

yùyuē: “to make an appointment” literally “beforehand make-an-appointment.” This is relatively new PRC usage; this word used to have only the menings “a preliminary agreement” or “to pre-order a book which has not be published.” In taiwan (or the PRC for that matter), you may use instead the phrase xiān yuē yige shíjiān, “to arrange a time forehand.” Appointments are not generally required or accepted in barbersops and beauty parlors in the PRC or Taiwan.

wèntí: “problem or “question.” méi (yǒu) wèntí is just like the English “no problem.”  In addition to its literal meaning of “There is no problem,” méi wèntí can also “be used to assure someone that you are extending a favor gladly.

Kě bu kéyi qǐng ni gěi wo wèn zhèijiàn shì?	Could you please ask about this matter for me?

Méi wèntí.	No problem.

fēn: A Chinese unit of length equal to 1/3 of a centimeter, or slightly more than 1/8 of an inch. Fēn originally meant “one tenth.” You have also seen it meaning “one cent” (1/10 of a dime, máo). As a unit of length, fēn is one tenth of a Chinese inch (cùn). We have drawn a ruler marking off cùn (“inches”) and fēn so that you can contrast it with our American (British) inch.


Mesures.png
cùn
fēn
English inches

yǒu diǎn: Used before a state verb, you (yì)diǎn means “a little, slightly,” as in:

yǒu yìdiǎn rè	a little hot

yǒu yìdiǎn nán	a little difficult

The use of yǒu yìdiǎn deserves your special attention, since English speakers learning Chinese tend to make the mistake of saying yìdiǎn nán (which is incorrect) for “a little difficult” instead of the correct form yǒu yìdiǎn nán. Remember to put in that yǒu!

shìyishi: “to try, to give it a try” Shì is “to try” in the sense of “to experiment.” It does not mean “try” in the sense of “to make an effort” to do something.

yídìng: “certainly, surely, for sure, definite(ly)” Literally, sentence 18 means “I think it will surely be good-looking,” which can be translated more smoothly as “I’m sure it will look good.” The phrase “I’m sure ...” will often translate into Chinese as Wǒ xiǎng ... yídìng ... , for example:

Wǒ xiǎng nǐ yídìng xǐhuan. 	I’m sure you’ll like it.

Wǒ xiǎng tā yídìng lái. 	I’m sure he’ll come.

tàng tóufa; “to get a permanent” The use of the verb tàng for “to get a permanent” has an interesting background and shows how Chinese adapts words already in the language rather than borrow from other languages. Tàng originally meant (and still does) “to scald” or “to apply heat to” something. For example, tàng yīfu means “to iron clothes.” The earliest methods for giving a permanent wave used heated curlers; in fact, today in Běijīng (as in other parts of the world) electrically heated curlers are still used in one type of permanent called diàn tàng, “electric permanent.” After the introduction of chemical permanents, the verb tàng continued to be used, even though no heat is applied in the new process. Chemical permanents are called lěng tàng, “cold permanent.”

juǎn: “to curl, to roll up” You will find this verb used in many contexts, not Just in the area of hair styling. It is the all-purpose word for rolling or curling ribbons, paper, pastry, and building materials. [Curly hair is juǎnfà, straight hair is zhífà.]

chuǐgān: “to blow-dry” Chui is “to blow, to puff” and gān is the adjectival verb “to be dry.” These two verbs used together to form a compound which indicates both the action and the result: “to blow until dry” or “to blow with the result that (something) becomes dry.”

Chuīgān and the English word “blow-dry,” look as if they are exactly parallel, but they are not. In English you can leave off the word “blow” and just say “to dry someone's hair,” whereas in Chinese you cannot use gān to mean the action of drying something, only the state of being dry. You always need to use another verb with gān in order to tell the action which caused the drying. For example, cāgān means “to wipe (something) dry.”

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART II

A Canadian woman (C) walks into the Běijīng Hotel hairdresser's. First she talks with the cashier in front (A). Later the hairdresser (B) calls her.

C:	Jīntiān rén zhème duō, wǒ míngtiān zài lái ba. Qǐng wèn, wǒ kě bu kéyi yùyuē?	There are so many people today. I'll just come back tomorrow. May I ask, can I make an appointment?

A:	Bú bì yùyuē, nín děng shífēn zhōng jiù yǒu dìfang le.	No need to, there will be a seat if you Just wait ten minutes.

B:	Qǐng zuò. Nín xiǎng zěnme zuò? Yào bu yao jiǎn duǎn yidiǎnr?	Have a seat, please. How would you like it done? Do you want it cut a little shorter?

C:	Wǒ xiǎng wǒde tóufa yǒu yidiǎnr cháng le, zuì hǎo jiǎnyijiǎn.	I think my hair is a little long, I’d better have it cut a little.

B:	Jiǎn duōshao? Wǔfēnr gòu bu gou?	How much? Is five fen enough?

C:	Wǔfēnr? “Wǔfēnr” shi shénme yìsi?	Five fen? What does “five fen” mean?

B:	Ò, wǔfēnr jiù shi zhème yidiǎnr.	Oh, five fen is this much. (Holds her thumb and index finger five fen apart.)

C:	Òu, jiǎn wǔfēnr hǎo.	Oh, (it would be good to) cut off five fen.

B:	Hǎo, wǒmen xiān gěi nín xǐ tǒu, jiǎnduǎn, ránhòu zài zuò.	All right, first we’ll give you a shampoo and cut, and then set it.

C:	Hǎode.	Fine.

B:	Nín yào tàng háishi yào juǎn?	Do you want to have a permanent or do you want to have it curled?

B:	Wǒ bù xǐhuan tàng, jiù juǎnyijuǎn hǎo le.	I don’t like permanents. Just curl it a little.

B:	Hǎo, jiù juǎnyijuǎn, chuīgān. Yǒu shihour tàng tóufa yě hěn hǎo kàn. Xiàyicì nín kéyi shìyishi.	Okay, I’ll just curl it and blow-dry. Sometimes a permanent looks very good, too. Next time you can try . one.

C:	Hǎo, xiàcì wǒ shìyishi.	Okay, next time I’ll give it a try.

(Afterwards, the woman gets up and the barber takes her to the cashier at the front of the shop.)

B:	Xǐ tóu yíkuài qián, jiǎn tóu yíkuài wǔ, juǎn fà wǔ kuài wǔ, chuīgān yíkuài wǔ, o, yígòng shi jiǔkuài wǔmáo qián.	A dollar for a shampoo, a dollar and a half for a cut, five fifty for the set, a dollar and a half for blow drying, urn, altogether that’s nine fifty.

C:	Zhèr shi shíkuài, bú yòng zhǎo le.	Here’s ten dollars, keep the change.

B:	Bù, zhǎo nín wǔmáo qián.	No, here’s fifty cents change.

C:	Zàijiàn.	Good-bye.

B:	Zàijiàn.	Good-bye.

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

Tipping is not permitted in the PRC. This is why the barber insists on giving the woman her change.

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART II

Taipei. A woman student about to have her hair done is talking with the hairdresser.

A:	Xiǎojiě, nǐ yào zuò shénme yàngzide tóu?	What style do you want it, Miss?

B:	Wǒ méiyou zuòguo tóufa, měicì dōu shi xǐyixǐ, jiǎnyijiǎn, chuīgān jiu hǎo le.	I’ve never had my hair done before, every time I’ve just had it washed, cut and blow-dried, and that’s it.

A:	Zhèicì yào bu yào shìyishi ne?	Would you like to try this time?

B:	Wǒ xiǎng wǒ juǎn tóufa dàgài bù hǎo kàn.	I think I probably wouldn't look good with my hair curled.

(A shows B a photograph.)

A:	Xiǎojiě, nǐ kàn, zhège yàngzi hěn hǎo kànde, zhǐ juǎn yìdiǎndiǎn, nǐ yào bu yào shì yíxià?	Miss, look, this sample is very pretty. It’s only a little curled. Would you like to give it a try?

B:	Hǎo, wǒ shì yíxià.	Okay, I’ll give it a try.

A:	Wǒ xiǎng nǐ yídìng xǐhuan... . Nà wǒ jiù bù jiǎn le, tóufa cháng yidiǎn zuòde hǎo kàn.	I’m sure you’ll like it... . Well, then, I won’t cut it. The set will look better if the hair is a little long.

B:	Hǎo, xièxie ni.	Thank you.

A:	Bú kèqi.	You’re welcome.

NOTES ON THE DIALOGUE

hěn hǎo kànde: The -de here means “hat's how it is.” This usage is typical of southern dialects.

yìdiǎndiǎn: “a very little bit”, less than yìdiǎn.

Unit 3, Vocabulary

ànmó	massage
bú yào	don’t
cā	to rub, to wipe
chuí bèi	to pound (someone’s) back
chuīgān	to blow-dry (with a dryer)
fēn	one tenth of a Chinese inch (cùn)
gānjing	to be clean
guā	to scrape
guā húzi	to shave (the beard)
húzi	beard OR mustache
jiǎn	to cut (with scissors)
juǎn	to curl, to roll up
liǎngbiān	both sides, two sides
liú	to remain, to stay; to keep, to save; to grow, to let grow; to leave
liú húzi	to grow a beard or mustache
méi wèntí	no problem
nòng	to do, to handle, to manage, to make
nòng gānjing	to clean up
shì	to try
shì(yi)shi	to give it a try
shūfu	to be comfortable
shū tóu	to brush or comb hair
tàng	to get a permanent
tóufa	hair (on the head)
wèntí	question, problem
xǐ	to wash
xǐ tóu	to shampoo, to get a shampoo
yídìng	certainly, surely, for sure
yóu	oil, grease
yǒu shì	to be occupied, to be busy, to have things to do
yǒu (yì)diǎn	a little bit, somewhat
yùyuē	to make an appointment (PRC)
zuò tòufa	to do one’s hair, to have one’s hair done

Personal Welfare Module, Unit 4 In the Home

PART I

REFERENCE LIST

1.	Yǎnjìng gēn zhīpiàoběn dōu dài le.	I have both my glasses and checkbook with me (on me).
2.	Xiǎoběnzi zài wǒ xīzhuāng kǒudàili.	My notebook is in my suit pocket.
3.	Zhàoxiàngjí zài xiāngzili.	My camera is in the suitcase.
4.	Nǐ dàile yíge lùyīnjī, duì bu duì?	You have a tape recorder with you, don’t you?
5.	Wǒ méi dài shǒushi lai.	I didn’t bring any jewelry with me.
6.	Nǐ bǎ nǐ dàide dōngxi dōu xiě zai shēnbàodānshang le ma?	Did you write everything you have with you on your declaration?
7.	Wǒ dàile èrshijuǎn lùyīndài.	I have twenty reels of recording tape with me.
8.	Wǒ zhīdao hěn dūo Zhōngguo fùnǚ bú dài shǒushi, suóyi wǒ yě méi dài shǒushi lái.	I knew that a lot of Chinese women don’t wear jewelry, so I didn’t bring any either.
9.	Qǐng nǐ bǎ xiāngzi dǎkai gěi wo kànkan.	Please open your suitcase and let me take a look.
10.	Méi shì le.          Everything is all right OR There's no further business.
11.	Nǐ yào dàide dōngxi dōu yùbeihǎo le ma?	Have you got all the things you want to take with you ready?
12.	zhīpiào	check (as in personal check)

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART I

yǎnjìng; “eyeglasses” Don’t mix this up with yǎnjìng, “eye.” In Běijīng speech these words are pronounced yǎnjìngr (“eyeglasses”) and yǎnjing (“eye”), keeping them even more distinct from each other.

zhīpiàoběn: “checkbook” Zhípiào is a “check,” literally “pay-ticket.” Běn(r) is a booklet.

dài: “to bring” This word sounds exactly like another you learned in Unit 2, dài, “to wear, to put on (glasses, gloves, a hat, a wristwatch, jewelry, etc.).” They are different words, however, written With different characters ( 带 for “to bring” and 戴 for “to wear”). The translation of the first Reference List sentence is idiomatic; we would say “I have ... with me” or “I have ... on me” when Chinese says literally, “I have brought... .”

xiǎoběnzi: “notebook,” literally “small book.” In Reference List sentence No. 2, xiǎoběnzi is translated specifically as “address book.” Actually the word is more neutral in meaning (“notebook, booklet”), but picks up the specific translation from the context.

xiāngzi: “box, trunk, case” Xiāngzi corresponds to the English “suitcase,” while xíngli is the equivalent of “luggage.”

shēnbàodān: “declaration form” Shēnbào is the verb “to report to a higher body, to declare something at customs.” Dān is the noun meaning “bill, list, note.”

xiě zai shēnbàodānshang: “write it on the declaration form.” Notice that the place phrase (zài ... shang) is placed alter the verb here, rather than in its usual place before the verb. When the location tells where the result of the activity is supposed to end up, that location phrase may appear after the verb (a position where other “results” also show up). Compare these two sentences:

Zài zhuōzishang xiě zì.	Write (with paper) on the desk.

Bú yào xiě zai zhuōzishang!	Don’t write on the desk! (Said to a child making marks on the table.)

fùnǚ: “women, womankind” This the term for “women” in the general sense. The term nǚrén is less polite and more biological: “female.” (in Taiwan, fùnǚ refers only to married women. Nǚde may be used for “women, woman. ”)

Wǒ zhīdao hěn duō Zhōngguo fùnǚ bú dài shǒushi, suóyi wǒ yě méi dài shǒushi lái: The first verb dài means “to wear,” and the second verb dai is “to bring with one.”

bǎ xiāngzi dǎkai gěi wo kànkan: “open the suitcase for me to take a look” or “open the suitcase and let me take a look.” You have learned gěi as a main verb “to give” and as a prepositional verb meaning “for” (Qǐng ni gěi wo huànhuan, “Please change it for me”). In Reference List sentence No. 9 you see gěi used in a longer type of sentence. Compare the following examples:

bǎ xiāngzi dǎkai gěi wǒ kànkan	open the suitcase for me to take a look

niàn gěi wǒmen tīngting	read it aloud for us to listen

mǎi nèidǐng màozi gěi tā dài	mǎi nèidǐng màozi gěi tā dài

zuò nèige diǎnxīn gěi háizi chī	make that pastry for the child to eat

When gěi comes after the verb, it can mean either “to give” or “for, let.” For example, Bǎ nèiběn shǔ náchulai gěi wo kànkan could mean either “Take out the book and (actually) give it to me to look at,” OR “Take out the book for me to see (show it to me, not necessarily hand it to me).” The context will help you decide which is meant; often, only one will make sense.

CAUTION: Although gěi is sometimes idiomatically translated as “to let,” you should not take this to mean that English “to let” may always be translated into Chinese with gěi. There is a very limited correspondence between “let” and gěi. Usually you will translate “to let” as ràng, which is introduced in Unit 6, Part III, of this module.

Méi shì le: “Everything is all right now” OR “There's no further business.” Here, this means “Now that I’ve looked over your suitcase I find that there isn't anything further we need to take up.”

yùbeihǎo le: “prepared” You have already learned the word zhǔnbèi, “to prepare, to get ready” or “to plan to.” Yùbei is a close synonym. Yùbeihǎo or zhùnbèihǎo both mean “to get all ready.” The ending -hǎo on
certain verbs indicates bringing something to a satisfactory conclusion.

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART I

An American woman is going through customs in Guǎngzhōu (Canton).

M:	Nǐ bǎ nǐ dàide dōngxi dōu xiě zai shēnbàodānshang le ma?	Did you write everything you have with you on your declaration?

F:	Dōu xiě le.	Yes, I wrote everything.

M:	Nǐ dàile yíge zhàoxiàngjī, yíge lùyīnjī, yíge shōuyīnjī, duì bu dui?	You have a camera, a tape recorder and a radio with you, don't you?

F:	Duì le.	Right.

M:	Nǐ dàile duōshao lùyīndài?	How much tape do you have with you?

F:	Wǒ dàile èrshijuǎn.	I have twenty reels with me.

M:	Nǐ dàile shǒushi méiyou?	Do you have any jewelry with you?

F:	Wǒ zhīdao hěn duō Zhōngguo fùnǚ bú dài shǒushi, suóyi wǒ yě méi dài shǒushi lái.	I knew that many Chinese women don’t wear jewelry, so I didn’t bring any jewelry either.

M:	Nǐ dàile duōshao Měijǐn?	How much American money do you have with you?

F:	Wǒ dàile sānqiān wùbǎikuài.	I have three thousand five hundred dollars.

M:	Qǐng ni bǎ xiāngzi dǎkai gěi women kànkan.	Please open your suitcase and let us take a look.

F:	Hǎo.	Certainly.

M:	Hǎo. Xièxie ni. Méi shi le. Nǐ kéyi zǒu le.	Okay, thank you. Everything is all right. You may go now.

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART I

A Chinese couple in Taipei are talking just before the husband is to leave on a trip.

F: Nǐ yào dàide dōngxi dōu yùbeihǎo le meiyou?	Have you got all the things you want to take with you ready?

M: Wǒ xiǎng wǒ dōu yùbeihǎo le. Yǎnjìng gēn zhīpiàoběn dōu dài le. Xiǎoběnzi zài wǒ xīzhuāng kǒudài lǐmiàn.	I think I have them all ready. I have my glasses and my checkbook with me. My address book is in my suit pocket.

F: Nǐ shuō nǐ yào zhào xiàng. Nǐ dài zhàoxiàngjī le meiyou?	You said you wanted to take pictures. Do you have your camera with you?

M: Wǒ dài le. Zài xiāngzili.	Yes. It’s in my suitcase.

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

zhào xiàng: “to take photographs” (WLF 6)

PART II

REFERENCE LIST

14.	Nǐ zhù fángzi háishi gōngyù?	Do you live in a house or an apartment building?

15.	Zhèige fángzi yígòng yǒu jǐge fángjiān?	How many rooms does this house / apartment have?

16.	Zhèige fángzi yǒu sānjiān wòshì.	This house/apartment has three bedrooms.

17.	Wǒ dài ni kànkan.	I’ll take you and show you.

18.	Wǒmen bǎ fángzi zūchuqu le.	We rented out the house/apartment.

19.	Wǒmen xiān dào kètīng zuò yíxià, hē diǎn chá.	Let’s first go and sit in the living room and drink some tea.

20.	Zhèige fángzi hǎoxiàng hěn dà.	This house / apartment seems very large

21.	Zènme dàde fángzi, gǎo wèishēng hěn máfan ba?	It must be a bother to do the cleaning with such a large house.

22.	Píngcháng Xiǎo Lán gēn wo yìqǐ shōushi wūzi.	Usually Xiao Lán straightens up the place (rooms) with me.

23.	Wǒmen dào fàntíng chī fàn qu ba.	Let’s go to the dining room and eat.

24.	Wǒ shi zìjǐ zuò fàn.	I do my own cooking.

25.	chúfáng	kitchen

26.	xǐzǎofáng	bathroom

27.	shūfáng	study, library (of a house)

28.	wòfáng	bedroom (alternate word for wòshì)

REFERENCE NOTES FOR PART II

gōngyù: “apartment building,” literally “public residence” In the PRC, the word gōngyù is seldom used (only in the names of some buildings, and in technical contexts), but in Taiwan it is widely used. “Apartment building” may be translated as either gōngyù or gōngyùlōu. Gōngyù is sometimes used for an “apartment.”

Nǐmende gōngyù yǒu jǐjiān fángjiān?	How many rooms does your apartment have?

But you would use dānyuán, “unit,” not gōngyù, for “apartment” in:

Zhèige gōngyùlóu yǒu duōshao dānyuán?	How many apartments are there in this apartment building?

Although an apartment-dweller will usually refer in English to his “apartment,” in everyday conversation, Chinese usually just speak of their fángzi. In other words, any type of residence—house or apartment—can be called a fángzi. Use the word gōngyù when you need to distinguish clearly between “apartment” and “house.

-jiǎn: This is the counter for rooms. Don’t confuse it with the falling tone -jiàn, the counter for articles of clothing, which you learned in WLF 2.

dài: This is the verb you learned meaning “to bring (along), to take (along).” Here it is used with the extended meaning of “to take” or “lead” someone to a place.

Wǒ dài ni qù.	I’ll take you there.

Xiàwu qǐng ni dài háizi dào gōngyuán qu wánr.	In the afternoon, please take the children to the park to play.

zūchuqu: “to rent out” The verb zū by itself means “to rent” in the opposite direction, that is, to rent something from the owner. Contrast:

Wǒ bǎ fángzi zūchuqu le.	I rented out the house.

Wǒ zūle yige fángzi.	I rented a house (to live in).

kètīng: “living room,” literally, “guest-hall.”

dào kètīng zuò yíxià: “go to the living room and sit a while” This is roughly the equivalent of dào kètīng qù zuò yíxià. The verb qù is sometimes omitted after a dào phrase when the meaning of “go” does not need to be emphasized.

hē chá: “to drink tea” This is not an involved ritual as the Japanese have, but it is not simply the taking of a beverage, either. Hē chá, in a social setting means talking and relaxing while sipping tea. Books have been written on tea in China, its social significance, and the art of serving it. We cannot do justice to the topic in this small note. Let us just leave you with two tips:

1. Except with close friends, don’t turn down a cup of tea when offered. It is as much a gesture of friendship and a means of communication as it is a beverage.

2. Don’t ask for sugar, lemon or milk. Unless you are in a restaurant ordering it, lemon and milk will most likely be unavailable. It is a double embarrassment to your host, who may not keep lemon and milk on hand, and who hates to see someone defile the good taste of pure tea.

hǎoxiàng; “to seem, it seems as if” Use this word as an adverb, placing it before the verb phrase.

Tā hǎoxiàng bù dong.	He seemed not to understand. OR He didn’t seem to understand.

Nǐ hǎoxiàng bú tài xǐhuan zhèige fāngzi.	You don’t seem to like this house too much.

Nǐ hǎoxiàng zài xiǎng shénme shì.	You seem to be thinking about something.

Tā gēge hǎoxiàng chángcháng shēng bìng.	His older brother seems to get sick very often.

Hǎoxiàng is sometimes used merely to express that the speaker thinks a situation is so, but cannot confirm his suspicion. In such sentences, hǎoxiàng is best translated as “it seems to me that ...”or “I think ...” or “I seem to remember ... .” Notice that the word order in Chinese stays the same.

Wǒ hǎoxiàng zài nǎr kànjianguo zhèige zì.	It seems to me I’ve seen this character somewhere before.

Nǐ hǎoxiàng gàosuguo wo zhèijiàn shìqing.	I seem to remember your telling me about this before.

Zài nèige shíhou, tā hǎoxiàng hái zhù zài Jiāzhōu.	At that time, he was still living in California, I think.

Měiguo hǎoxiàng méiyou zhèige duì bu dui?	It seems to me you don’t have this in America, do you?

gǎo wèishēng: “to. clean,” literally “to do sanitation” This is an expression used in the PRC. The verb gǎo, “to do,” originally a word found in southern dialects of Mandarin Chinese, is now widely used in Standard Chinese, even in Běijīng. In Taiwan, gǎo does not have as wide a usage as in the PRC, where many new expressions have been created since 1949 using this verb.

máfan: “to be troublesome, to be a nuisance, to be inconvenient” In the Money module, you learned the verb máfan for “to bother, to inconvenience (someone),” as in Máfan nǐ le, “Sorry to trouble you.” Here you learn máfan as an adjectival verb.

Nà tài máfan le.	That’s too much trouble

Zhēn máfan.	What a bother.

píngcháng: “usually, generally, ordinarily” Like other two-syllable time words, píngcháng may come before or after the subject, but always before the verb.

Píngcháng wǒmen dōu zài kètīng kàn diànshì. We usually watch television in the living room.
Wǒmen píngcháng dōu zài kètíng kàn diànshì.	We usually watch television in the living room.

Wǒ píngcháng jiǔdiǎn zhōng cái xià ban.	I don’t usually get off workuntil nine o’clock.

shōushi: “to straighten up, to tidy up (a place)” or “to put away, to put in order, to clear away (things).” Use shōushi when you’re talking about neatening up a place, use gǎo wèishēng when you’re talking about soap and water cleaning in the PRC [and gǎo qingjié “to (soap and water) clean” in Taiwan].

Tā hǎoxiàng yǒu bànnián méi shōushi wūzi le.	It looks as if he hasn't picked up his place in half a year.

Nǐ kuài yìdiǎnr shōushi xíngli, wǒmen yào zǒu le.	Pack your things quickly, we want to leave.

wūzi and fángjiān: Both of these words means “room, chamber.” Wūzi is seldom used in Taiwan, however. For rooms in public places, like hotels, use fángjiān rather than wūzi.

fàntīng: “dining room,” literally “meal-hall.”

chī fàn: “to eat,” literally “eat food.” Fàn is literally, “cooked rice,” but in the expression chī fàn it refers to food in general or a meal. This is another example of a verb plus general object, like niàn shū, “to study” or shuō huà “to speak.” (See BIO, Unit 7.) This verb chī may, of course, be followed by a specific object such as píngguǒ, “apples,” as in:

Wǒ chīle yíge píngguǒ.	I ate an apple.

But if you mean “eat” in the sense of “to eat food” or “to have a meal,” then you should use the general object fàn:

Nǐ chī fàn le méiyou?	Have you eaten? (Have you eaten a meal?)

Tā zuì ài chī fàn.	He loves to eat most of all.

zuò fàn: “to cook,” literally “to make food.” This is another verbgeneral object combination. As with chī fàn, the verb alone may be used with more specific objects.

chúfáng: “kitchen,” literally “kitchen-room.”

xǐzǎofáng: “bathroom” This is a room for taking a bath, and not necessarily a room with a toilet. Xǐzǎo, which is introduced in Part III of this unit, means “to take a bath.” Remember, if you want to ask where there is a toilet, ask for the cèsuǒ, “toilet;” or use the polite Westernized term, xǐshǒujiān, “washroom.” In rural areas, you would ask where the cèsuǒ is.

In Taiwan, modern houses and apartments usually have the toilet in the same room as the bathtub. In the PRC, apartment buildings built during the 1950’s may have a room with a bathtub in the apartment. Apartment buildings built since then usually only include a toilet and sink in each apartment, and no bathtub.

You should usually lower your voice to ask where the bathroom is. Many people even consider it polite to put one’s hand in front of the mouth when asking Cèsuǒ zài náli? Another polite way to ask is Wǒ keyi yòng yixià nǐmende cèsuǒ ma? “May I use your toilet?”

shūfáng: “study,” literally “book-room.”

wòfáng: “bedroom,” literally “sleeping-room.” Wòfáng and wòshì are both used for “bedroom.”

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART II

A Chinese woman (Fl) has been invited to dinner at the home of an American couple in Taipei.

F1:	Yòu! Nǐmen jiā hěn piàoliang, shōushide zhēn gānjìng!	Oh, your house is lovely, so neat and clean!

F2:	Xièxie ni. Wǒmen xiān dào kètīng zuò yíxià hē diǎn chá.	Thank you. Let’s first go and sit in the living room a while and and drink some tea.

F1:	Hǎo.	Fine

F2:	Wǒ xiānshēng yǒu shì dào Táizhōng qù le. Jīntiān wǎnshàng jiù shi wǒmen liǎngge rén chī fàn.	My husband has gone to T'aichung on business. This evening it will be just the two of us eating.

F1:	Nà wǒmen yìqǐ zuò fàn, hǎo bu hǎo?	Well then, let’s cook together, all right?

F2:	Bú yòng le. Chúfāng hěn xiǎo. Wǒ yíjīng bǎ wǎnfàn dōu yùbeihǎo le.	There’s no need to. The kitchen is small. I’ve already prepared dinner.

F1:	Ò, zhèige fángzi hǎoxiàng hěn dà. Nǐmen yǒu jíjiān wòshì?	Oh, this house seems to be quite large. How many bedrooms do you have?

F2:	Zhèige fángzi bú tài dà. Wǒmen yǒu liǎngjiān wòshì. Zài kètíng yòubiān. Kèting zuǒbiān yǒu yíge shūfáng. Píngcháng wǒmen dōu zài shūfáng kàn diànshì. Wǒ dài ni kànkan, zěnmeyàng?	This house isn't very large. We have two bedrooms. They are to the right of the living room. To the left of the living room there’s a study. We usually watch television in the study. Would you like me to show you?

F1:	Hěn hǎo.	Sure.

F2:	Hǎo, wǒmen dào fàntīng qu chi fàn ba.	Okay, let’s go to the dining room and eat.

F1:	Hǎojíle.	Great.

NOTES AFTER THE DIALOGUE

Wǒ xiānshēng yǒu shì dào Táizhōng qu le: “My husband has gone to T’aichung on business.” More literally, “My husband had some business and went to T’aichung.”

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART II

An American man (M) is talking with a Chinese women (F) in Běijīng.

F:	Nǐde jiā zài Měiguo shénme dìfangr?	Where is your home in America?

M:	Zài Huáshèngdùn.	In Washington.

F:	Nǐ yǒu fángzi ma?	Do you have a house?

M:	Wǒmen yǒu yige fángzi.	Yes, we do.

F:	Nǐ lái Běijīng, fángzi zěnme bàn?	When you came to Běijīng, what did you do with the house?

M:	Wǒmen bǎ fángzi zūchuqu le.	We rented it out.

F:	Nǐmende fángzi dà bu da?	Is your house large?

M:	Bu hěn dà, yě bù hěn xiǎo. Lóuxià yǒu kètīng, fàntīng, shūfáng, gēn chúfáng. Lóushàng yǒu sānjiān wòshì gēn liǎngjiàn xǐzǎofáng.	It’s not very large and it’s not very small. Downstairs there’s the living room, the dining room, the study, and the kitchen. Upstairs there are three bedrooms and two bathrooms.

F:	Òu, yǒu zhème duō fángjiān. Gǎo wèishēngde shíhour hěn máfan ba.	Oh, there are so many rooms. It must be troublesome when you do the cleaning.

M:	Bú tài máfan. Háizimen dōu dà le. Tāmen yě gǎo wèishēng.	It’s not too troublesome. The children are all grown up. They do the cleaning, too.

F:	Nǐ xǐhuan bu xǐhuan nǐ xiànzai zhùde gōngyù?	Do you like the apartment building where you’re living now?

M:	Mámahūhū. Zhèrde gōngyù hái kéyi.	So-so. The apartment buildings here aren’t too bad.

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

hái kéyi: Literally “still okay,” this phrase actually means “isn’t too bad.”

FART III

REFERENCE LIST

29.	 Háizi xǐngle yǐhòu jiào tāmen xǐ liǎn.	After the children wake up, have them wash their faces.

30. 	Wǎnshàng shuì jiào yǐqián jiào tāmen shuā yá, xǐzǎo.	Before they go to sleep at night, have them brush their teeth and take a bath.

31.	 Xǐle liǎn gěi tāmen hē niúnǎi.	When they’ve washed their faces, give them some milk to drink.

32. 	Bǎ háizi gěi wo, wǒ bàoyibào.	Give the baby to me, I’ll hold him.

33. 	Wáng Āyí, háizimen chī fàn yǐhòu děi shuì wǔjiào.	Auntie Wáng, after they’ve eaten, the children have to take a noontime nap.

34.	 Rè shuǐ shāohǎo le méiyou?	Have you heated up the hot water?

35. 	Guò mǎlùde shíhou yào xiǎoxǐn.	Be careful when crossing the street.

36.	 yágāo	toothpaste

37. 	shūshu	uncle

REFERENCE NOTES FOR PART III

xǐng: “to wake up” This is a process verb. It describes the change from sleep or unconsciousness to waking or consciousness: “to become awake, to become conscious, to become sober.” In completed affirmative sentences, you will see the marker le; in negative sentences you will see méi (not bù — this is not a state verb. Some of the quirks you faced with a verb like bìng “to get sick,” not “to be sick”), you also face here. When you are thinking in English of “He IS NOT awake,” you should think “He HAS NOT awakened” in Chinese.

Tā xǐngle méiyou?	Did he wake up? OR Is he awake yet?

Tā hái méi xǐng.	He is not awake yet.

jiào: “to ask, to order, to tell (someone to do something)” This is a prepositional verb, which means that it and its object precede the verb.

Fùqin jiào hàizimen huílai.	The father told the children to come back.

Nǐ jiào ta guòlai.	Ask him to come over.

shuì jiào: “to sleep, to go to bed”

Tā bādiǎn zhōng jiù shuì jiào le.	He went to bed at eight o’clock (already).

Nǐ jǐdiǎn zhōng shuì jiào?	What time do you go to bed?

Tā měitiān shuì bāge zhōngtóu.	He sleeps eight hours a night.

Nǐ shuìde hǎo bu hǎo?	Did you sleep well?

Nǐ shuìhǎole ma?	Did you sleep well? OR Have you finished sleeping?

shuā yá: “to brush teeth” Besides brushing teeth, you can shuā yǐfu, “brush clothes,” and shuā xié, “brush (off) shoes.” Do not use shuā for use for brushing hair, however [see shū tou “to comb or brush one’s hair”, WLF, Unit 3)]. [The noun for a “brush” is shuāzi.J

niúnǎi: Literally, “cow-milk,” and used only to refer to cow's milk. The word nǎi by itself does not specify the kind of milk.

bào: “to embrace, to hug” people, or “to hold in one's arms” a child, package, etc.

Lái, baba gěi ni bàobao.	Come, papa will hold you. (said to child as he is handed from mother to father)

Ayí: “auntie” This is a term of address used by children for friends of the family, not blood relatives.

shuì wǔjiào: “to take an afternoon nap,” literally, “sleep noon-nap.” The wǔjiào, a nap after lunch, is very popular in China. Many institutions, factories, and schools give time off every day for this purpose.

shǎo: “to heat, to cook” (Another meaning is “to burn.”) Since the verb shǎo by itself means to put heat to something, a resultative ending is needed when you want to indicate “boiling” or “heated up.”

Wǒ qù shāo diǎnr shuǐ.	I'll go put some water on (the stove).

Rè shuǐ shāohǎo le.	The hot water has been heated up.

Shuǐ yǐjīng shāokāi le.	The water is already boiling.

mǎlù: “paved road.” This is the word usually used for paved city streets. Mǎlù is literally “horse-road,” that is, a road on which horses and people can go. A theory has also been advanced that the mǎ is a transliteration of the first syllable of “macadam” (a road made with layers of rolled broken stones, with a tar or asphalt base).

xiǎoxīn: “to be careful,” literally “small-heart.”

É, xiǎoxīn diǎnr!	Hey, be a little more careful!

shūshu: “uncle” This is a term of affection used by children for older male friends of the family.

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART III

A Canadian woman (A) is talking to her new maid (C) in Běijīng.

A:	Wáng Ayí, háizimen chī fàn yǐhòu děi shuā yā, rànhòu zài shuì wǔjiào. Píngcháng tāmen shuì yìliǎngge zhōngtóu. Xǐngle yǐhòu gěi tāmen xǐ liǎn, zài dài tāmen chūqu wānrwanr.	Auntie Wang, after lunch the children have to brush their teeth and then take their naps. Usually they sleep an hour or two. After they wake up, wash their faces for them, and then take them out to play.

C:	Hǎo.	

A:	Xiàwu sìwǔdiǎn zho1ng gěi tāmen hē niúnǎi.	At four or five in the afternoon, give them some milk to drink.

C:	Tāmen wǎnshàng yào chī shénme?	What will they eat in the evening?

A:	Wǒ yijīng zuòhǎo le. Dōu zài zhèr. Wǎnshàng shuì jiào yǐqiān jiào tāmen shuā yā, xǐzǎo. Háizimen yìtiān yào shuā sāncì yá.	I’ve prepared it already. It’s all here. At night before they go to bed, have them brush their teeth and take a bath. The children are supposed to brush their teeth three times a day.

C:	Hǎo.	Fine.

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART III

In Taipei on a Sunday afternoon, a young mother (Huìmǐn) and father (Tíngsōng) are at home:

M:	Huìmǐn, wǒ xiǎng hē diǎn chā, nǐ yào bu yào?	Huìmǐn, I want some tea, do you?

F:	Yào, dànshi rè shui méiyou le. Wǒ qù shāo.	Yes, but there’s no more hot water. I’ll go put some on.

M:	Bú yào, bú yào, wǒ zìjǐ qù.	No, no, I’ll go myself.

F:	Hǎo, wǒ qù kànkan Xiǎo Bǎo xǐng le meiyou.	Okay, I’ll go check if Xiǎo Bǎo (thebaby) is up yet.

(They both leave the room. Later when Huìmǐn (the wife) returns, Tíngsōng is sitting on the sofa.)

F:	Tíng, Xiǎo Bǎo xǐngle. Nǐ bào yíxià. Wǒ qù bǎ niúnǎi nònghǎo.	Tíng, Xiǎo Bǎo is up. You hold him for a minute. I’m going to go get his (cow’s) milk ready.

M:	(To the baby) Lái, ràng bàba bàobao.	Here, let daddy hold you.

(Huìmǐn comes in with a bottle and hands it to Tíngsōng.)

M:	Nǐ kàn, shuì wǔjiào yǐhòu, tā zhēn è.	Look, he’s so hungry after his nap.

F:	Shi, tā měicì dōu shi zhèiyang.	Yes, he’s like this every time.

Notes on he dialogue

*“Tíng” is the wife's affectionate abbreviationof her husband's name, Tíngsōng.

** è: “to be hungry”

Unit 4, Vocabulary

Āyí	auntie
bào	to hold, to embrace
chá	tea
chī fàn	to eat
chúfáng	kitchen
dài	to bring, to take with one
dài	to lead, to take
dǎkai	to open
fángjiān	room
fàntīng	dining room
fùnü	women
gǎo	to do, to engage in
gǎo wèishēng	to do cleaning
gōngyù	apartment building; apartment
gōngyùlóu	apartment building
hǎoxiàng	to seem (to be), to appear that
hē	to drink
-jiān	(counter for rooms)
jiào	to tell/ask (someone to do something)
-juǎn	reel (of recording tape); to curl, to roll up
kètīng	living room
kǒudài	pocket
liǎn	face (of a person)
lùyīndài	recording tape
lùyīnjī	tape recorder
máfan	to be troublesome, to be a bother; bother, trouble
mǎlù	street, avenue (paved)
méi shì (le)	everything is all right (now); there is no (further) business
niúnǎi	(cow’s) milk
píngcháng	usually, generally, ordinarily
shāo	to heat; to cook
shāohǎole	to have heated up; to have finished cooking
shēnbào	to declare, to report
shēnbàodān	customs declaration (form)
shōushi	to tidy up
shǒushi (shǒushì)	Jewelry
shuā	to brush
shuā yà	to brush one’s teeth
shūfáng	study (room)
shuǐ	water
shuì jiào	to sleep
shuì wǔjiào	to take a noontime nap
shūshu	uncle
wòfáng	bedroom
wòshì	bedroom
wūzi	room
xiāngzi	suitcase, box
xiǎoběnzi	small notebook
xiǎoxīn	to be careful, to take care
xǐng	to wake up
xǐzǎo	to take a bath
xǐzǎofáng	bathroom
yá	tooth, teeth
yágāo	toothpaste
yǎnjìng(r)	glasses (spectacles)
yùbei	to prepare
yùbeihǎo le	to have prepared
zhàoxiàngjǐ	camera
zhīpiào	check (as in personal check)
zhīpiàoběn	checkbook
zūchūqu	to rent out
zuò fàn	to cook

Personal Welfare Module, Unit 5 Minor Physical Complaints

PART I

REFERENCE LIST

1.	A:	Nǐ nǎr bù shūfu a?	Where do you feel bad?

	B:	Wǒ tóu téng, hóulong yē yǒu diǎnr téng.	I have a headache and my throat is a little sore.

2.		Wǒ xiǎng nǐ gǎnmào le.	I think you’ve caught a cold.

3.		Wǒ xiǎng wǒ bù fāshāo.	I don’t think I have a fever.

4.		Nǐ zuì hǎo chī diǎnr zhèige yào ba.	You’d better take some of this medicine.

5.	A:	Zuótiān wǒ qù kàn dàifu le.	Yesterday I went to see a doctor.

	B:	Nǐ kàn shénme?	What did you want treated?

	A:	Wǒ késou.	I have a cough.

6.		Nǐ dào něige yīyuàn qù kàn bìng?	Which hospital are you going to to see a doctor?

7.		Liú Dàifu shi nèikē yīshēng háishi wàikē yīshēng?	Is Dr. Liú a physician or a surgeon?

8.		tòng	to hurt (another pronunciation for téng)

9.		āsīpīlín	aspirin

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART I

téng: “to hurt, to ache” When talking about body aches and pains, you use a topic-comment pattern. For example œI have a headache,” in Chinese is literally ”As for me, the head hurts”:

Wǒ 	tǒu	téng.
As for me,	   head	   hurts.

gǎnmào: “to catch a cold; a cold” This may be used either as a verb or as a noun. [To say “to have a bad cold,” use gǎnmào hěn lìhai, lìhai meaning “severe.”]

Wǒ gǎnmào le.	I’ve caught a cold.

Nǐde gǎnmào hǎo yidiǎn le ma?	Is your cold a little better now?

fāshāo: “to have a fever,” literally, “develop-fever” This may be used as a state or a process:

STATE

Wǒ fāshāo.	I have a fever.

Wǒ bù fāshāo.	I don’t have a fever.

Wǒ yǒu diǎn fāshāo.	I’m a little feverish.

PROCESS

Wǒ fāshāo le.	I have a fever (more literally, “I have developed a fever”).

Wǒ méi fāshāo.	I don’t have a fever (more literally “I haven’t developed a fever”).

Wǒ fāshāo yǐhòu jiu bù xiǎng chī dōngxi le.	After the fever came on, I didn’t feel like eating anything.

chī diǎn zhèige yào: “take some of this medecine,” literally, “eat medicine,” is the way to say, “to take medicine.” Of course, for liquid medicines you could also say hē, “to drink,” but one still usually says chī.

kàn dàifu: “to see a doctor” Also kàn yīshēng.

Wǒ děi qù kàn dàifu.	I have to go see a doctor.

Nǐ kàn shénme?: In another context, this could mean “What are you looking at?” Here, however, kàn is used in the sense of “to have (a medical complaint) treated” or “diagnosed” by a doctor.

Nǐ qù kàn gǎnmào le ma?	Did you go have that cold of yours treated?

Wǒde hóulong bú tài shūfu, děi qù kànkan.	My throat doesn’t feel too well; I'll have to go get it treated.

Zhèige bìng děi dào dà yīyuàn qù kàn.	For this illness you have to go to a large hospital to get it treated.

késou: “to cough”

nèikē: (1) “department of internal medicine” (of a hospital), or (2) “internal medicine” (as a field). Nèi means “internal” and kē means either (1) “department, section” or (2) “branch (of a study).”

yīshēng: “doctor,” literally, “heal-er.” In Bēijǐng, dàifu is the more conversational word and yīshēng the more formal. In Taiwan, however, dàifu is not used much.

nèikē yishēng: “physician”

wàikē: (1) “department of surgery” (of a hospital), or (2) “surgery,” (the branch of medicine).

wàikē yīshēng: “surgeon”

tòng: “to hurt, to ache,” another pronunciation for téng.

āsipilín: “aspirin” Also pronounced āsipilín, àsipilíng, àsipǐlíng.

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART I

A man from Shànghài (A) is visiting his classmate (B) in Beijing.

A:	Nǐ shuō “tóu tòng” háishi “tóu těng”?	Do you say tóu tòng (“to have a headache”) or tóu téng?

B:	Běijīng rěn dóu shuō “tóu těng,” wǒ xiǎng “tòng” shi nǐmen Shànghǎi rén shuōde. Zěnme? Nǐ xiànzài tóu téng a?	People from Běijīng all say tóu téng. I think tòng is what is said by you people from Shànghǎi. Why? Do you have a headache now?

A:	Ng, wǒ yǒu diǎnr tóu téng.	A little.

B:	Shì ma? Nǐ hái yǒu nǎr bù shūfu?	Do you? Where else do you feel bad?

A: Hóulong yě yǒu diǎnr téng, hěn xiǎng chī diǎnr lěngde dōngxi. Wǒ yídìng shi gǎnmào le.	My throat hurts a little, too. I really feel like having something cold to eat. I must have caught a cold.

B:	Fā shāo ma?	Do you have a fever?

A:	Dàgài bù fā shāo, wǒ méi juéde rè.	Probably not, I don’t feel hot (OR haven’t felt hot).

B:	Jìntiān xiàwu wǒmen bú qù gōngyuánr le, nǐ zài jiā xiūxi xiuxi ba. Wǒ xiànzài qù gěi ni mǎi diǎnr yào, míngtiān zài dài ni qù kàn dàifu.	This afternoon let’s not go to the park. You rest a little at home. Right now I’ll go buy you some medicine, and tomorrow I’ll take you to see the doctor.

A:	Hǎo ba!	Okay!

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART I

In Běijīng, a parent drops in on a neighbor to talk about his daughter’s illness:

A:	Nǐ zhǎo wo yǒu shénme shìr a?	Are you looking for me for something in particular?

B:	Xiǎo Huá gǎnmàole, késoule yíge xīngqī le, jìntiān fāshāo fāde hěn gāo, hóulong yě hěn téng.	Xiǎo Hua caught a cold and has been coughing for a week. Today she has a very high temperature and her throat hurts a lot.

A:	Nǐ dài ta qù kànguo le ma?	Have you taken her to have it treated?

B:	Kànguo le. Tā chīle hěn duō yào, kěshi hái méiyou hǎo.	Yes. She’s taken a lot of medicine, but she still hasn’t gotten better.

A:	Nà wǒ qù zhǎo wǒ yíge zài Běijīng Yīyuàn gōngzuòde péngyou, tā shi wàikē yīshēng.	Then I’ll go look up a friend of mine who works at the Běijīng Hospital. He’s a surgeon.

B:	Wàikē yīshēng! Xiǎo Huá késou, fāshāo, zěnme qù kàn wàikē?	A surgeon! Xiǎo Huá is (just) coughing and has a fever. Why go to see the surgery department?

A:	Òu, wǒde yìsi shi qǐng wǒde nèige péngyou gěi Xiǎo Huá zài nèikē yùyuē yige shíjiān. Tā yǒu hěn duō nèikēde péngyou.	Oh, I mean I’ll ask that friend to make Xiǎo Huá an appointment in the department of internal medicine. He has a lot of friends in the department of internal medecine.

B:	Hǎo, nà jiu tài máfan nín le.	All right, then I’ll trouble you to do that. (OR I’m putting you to too much trouble.)

A:	Zhèi méiyou shénme. Jìntiān ràng Xiǎo Huá duō xiūxi xiuxi. Dàgài míngtiān jiu kéyi qǐng dàifu gěi ta kàn le.	This is nothing. Today have Xiǎo Huá get a lot of rest. Tomorrow I can probably ask a doctor to treat it for her.

NOTES AFTER THE DIALOGUE

ràng: “to let, to allow, to have (someone do something)” This is a prepositional verb which you will see more of in Unit 6.

...duō xiūxi xiuxi: “rest a lot” The adjectival verb “to be many, to be much, to be a lot” is used here as an adverb modifying the verb “to rest”, xiūxi. As an adverb, duō may mean “a lot,” “more,” or “too much,” depending on the context. In duō xiūxi xiuxi it obviously means “a lot” or “more.”

Yǐhòu, wǒ yào duō xiàng nín xuéxí.	From now on, I shall learn from you more.

Duō shuō yě bù hǎo, shǎo shuō yě bù hǎo.	It isn’t good to say too much, nor is it good to say too little.

Lǐfà yǐhòu xiǎng chuí yixià bèi shì bu shi yào duō gěi qián?	If you want to have your back pounded after a haircut, do you have to pay extra?

Some students get into the bad habit of always translating duō as “more.” Remember that the adverb duō can also mean either “a lot” or “too much.” Thus, if someone invites you to dinner, even before you have started to eat, the host may say to you Duō chī yidiǎnr! Since you haven’t yet touched the food this sentence cannot mean, “Have some more”; it simply means “Eat amply.” We might say in English, “Have as much as you like,” or WHelp yourself.” Here are some more examples showing duō does not always mean “more.”

Zhèizhǒng píngguǒ zènme piányi a? Nà wǒmen jiu duō mǎi diǎnr ba!	These apples are this inexpensive? In that case, let’s get a whole bunch of them!

Duō láile yíge rén.	One person too many came.

Tā duō gěile shíkuài qián.	He gave ten dollars too much.

Duō mǎi jǐběnr.	Buy a few extra volumes.

Contrast Duō láile yíge rén, “One person too many came,” with Yǒu láile yíge rén, “One more person came.”

PART II

REFERENCE LIST

10.	A:	Wǒ dùzi hěn bù shūfu.	My belly [lower abdomen] feels bad.

	B:	Nǐ xiè dù ma?	Do you have diarrhea?

11.		Wǒ tóu yūn, xiǎng tù.	I’m dizzy and nauseous.

12.	A:	Nǐ tǐwēn shi duōshǎo?	What’s your temperature?

	B:	Sānshibādù.	Thirty-eight degrees.

13.		Wǒ yǒu wèibìng.	I have stomach trouble.

14.		Wǒ yǒu diǎnr dàbiàn bù tōng.	I'm a little constipated.

15.		Qǐng ni tǎng zài zhèr.	Please lie down here.

16.		Qǐng ni bǎ shàngyī tuō le.	Please undress down to the waist. (Please take off your upper clothing.)

17.		Āiyòu!	Ouch.

18.		Qǐng ni gěi wo kāi ge yàofāng.	Please write a prescription for me.

19.		Wǒ tàitai shēng bìng shēngde hěn lìhai.	My wife is seriously ill.

20.		lā dùzi	to have diarrhea

21.		xiǎobiàn	to urinate; urination

REFERENCE NOTES FOR PART II

dùzi: “belly, lower abdomen” This has often been translated as “stomach,” but actually when someone says Wǒ dùzi téng or Wǒ dùzi bu shūfu, they are most often referring to lower abdominal or intestinal pains. Nevertheless, you may sometimes want to translate it as “stomach,” in the looser sense of “belly,” for example:

Nèige rénde dùzi hěn dà.	That man has a big stomach/belly.

Wǒ dùzi è le.	I'm hungry. (Literally, “My stomach is hungry.”)

A colloquial expression for “to be pregnant” is dùzi dà le, literally, “the abdomen has become big,” or dà dùzi le.

xiè dù: “to have diarrhea” There are several expressions for “diarrhea” in Chinese; xiè dù is a good choice to use when talking to your doctor, since it is neither too informal not too technical. (See also lā dùzi, below.)

yūn: “to be dizzy” Often used after tóu, “head”: tóu yūn. Pronounced with the Falling tone, yùn, this word is used in the expressions yùn chē, “to be carsick/trainsick,” yùn chuan, “to be seasick,” and yùn fēijǐ, “to be airsick.”

Wǒ kàn shū kànde tóu dōu yūn le!	I've been reading so much that I'm dizzy!

In this sentence, dōu doesn't mean “all,” but “even, to such an extent that.” This type of dōu is always used with le at the end of the sentence.)

tù: “to vomit” Xiǎng tù, literally “to feel like vomiting,” means “to feel nauseous.”

tǐwēn: “body temperature” Only used for the temperature of a body. [The general word for “temperature” is wēndù, which is presented in Part 3 of this unit.] [Tǐwēnbiāo is a medical thermometer.]

-dù: “degree” This noun does not take a counter.

wèibìng: “stomach trouble; gastric disease,” literally, “stomach illness.”

dàbiàn bù tōng: “to be constipated” Dàbiàn (literally “major-convenience)” means “to have a bowel movement” or “feces.” (Xiǎobiàn, “minor-convenience,” means “to urinate” or “urine.”) Bù tōng means “doesn’t go through, is blocked up.”

tǎng: “to lie, to recline” Notice that the zài phrase goes after the verb tang in the sentence Qǐng ni tǎng zài zhèr. This is because the zài phrase shows the result of the verb tǎng: you end up being here (zài zhèr) as a result of the action of lying (tǎng). Tāngxià or tǎng xiàlái means “to lie down.” In some of the following sentences, notice that tǎng corresponds to “be in bed.”

Tā gānmào le, tǎngle yìtiān.	He got a cold and stayed in bed for a day (OR and has been in bed all day today).

Tā xǐhuan tǎngzhe kàn shū.	He likes to read lying down.

Yǐjīng bādiǎn zhōngle, nǐ hái tǎngzhe ne!	It's eight o'clock already, and you're still in bed!

Tǎngxialai xiūxi yihuǐr ba.	Lie down and rest for a while.

shàngyǐ: “upper garments” [Also sometimes means “coat.”]

tuō: “to take off” (clothes, shoes) This is the opposite of chuān, “to put on.”

Kuài bǎ dàyī tuōxialai.	Come on and take off your coat.*

Tā zhèng tuōzhe yīfu, jìnlai yige rén.	Right when he was taking off his clothes, someone came in.

Qǐng ni tuōle xié zài jìnqu.	Please remove your shoes before going in.**

*This is said by the host to a guest when he arrives. You might have thought that the use of the word kuài, usually translated as “hurry up and ...” sounds impatient and impolite. Actually, it is the exact opposite. Here, kuài indicates the host’s concern that the guest, although wanting to take his coat off, would be too polite to do so immediately.

**In Taiwan, most households have kept the Japanese custom of removing shoes before entering the living areas. (Guests, though, are not in every case expected to take off their shoes, especially for short visits during dry weather.)

kāi: You have seen kāi meaning “to open.” Here it means “to write out” a prescription, list, receipt, check, etc.

shēng bìng: “to get sick” Shēng means literally, “to develop, to happen.” Tā shēng bìng le means virtually the same thing as Tā bìng le.

Jīnnián chūntiān shēng bìngde rén hěn duō.	Lots of people are getting sick this spring.

Tā shēng bìng shēngle liǎngge xīngqī le, hái méi hǎo.	He has been sick for two weeks now and hasn’t recovered yet.

Nǐ hái shēngzhe bìng ne, zěnme kéyi chūqu?	You’re still sick; how can you go out ?

Tā shēngde shi shénme bìng?	What illness is it that he has?

lā dùzi: “to have diarrhea,” a more colloquial, but not at all improper, word for xiè dù.

Tā lā dùzi lāde hěn lìhai.	He has a bad case of diarrhea.

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART II

A man in Taipei calls a doctor’s office to ask what he should do for his wife’s illness.

A: 	Wéi.	Hello.

B:	 Wéi, qǐngwèn Zhāng Yīshēng zài bu zài?	Hello, is Dr. Zhāng there, please?

A: 	Zhāng Yīshēng xiànzài zài kàn bìng. Qǐngwèn nǐ yǒu shì ma?	Dr. Zhāng is seeing patients now. What can I do for you?

B:	 Wǒ tàitai shēng bìng le, bìngde hěn lìhai. Tā cóng zuótiān kāishí tóu yūn, fāshāo. Zuótiān tǎngle yìtiān, jīntiān zǎoshàng hái fāshāo, dùzi yě hěn bù shūfu, hái tù.	My wife is very sick. Yesterday she began to be dizzy and to run a fever. Yesterday she stayed in bed all day, but this morning she still had a fever, and she has abdominal pains, and she’s even vomiting.

A: 	Tā xiè dù ma?	Does she have diarrhea?

B: 	Xièle jǐcì.	She’s had it a few times.

A: 	Tāde tǐwēn shi duōshǎo?	What’s her temperature?

B:	 N, sānshibādù wǔ.	Uh, 38.5 degrees.

A: 	Nǐ gěi tā chī shénme yào le ma?	Have you given her any medicines?

B:	 Tā bù néng chī yào, měicì chīle dōngxi jiù tù.	She can’t take medicines, every time she takes any food or drink she vomits.

A:	 Nà nǐ mǎshàng bǎ ta sòng dao zhèli lái.	In that case bring her here right away.

B: 	Hǎo. Wǒmen mǎshàng jiù lái.	All right. We’ll be there right away.

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART II

In Běijīng, a young man (A) visits a clinic.

N:	 Èrbǎiwǔshíhào!	Two hundred fifty!

A: 	Shì wǒ.	That’s me.

N: 	Qǐng jìn.	Please come in.

...

D: 	Nī zěnme bù shūfu a?	What’s the matter with you?

A:	 Wǒ tóu yūn, xiǎng tù, zǎoshang wǒ kāishǐ dùzi téng.	I’m dizzy, nauseaous, and since this morning my “stomach” has been upset.

D:	 Òu. Xiè dùzi ma?	Oh. Any diarrhea?

A:	 Bú xiè, hái yǒu diǎnr dàbiàn bù tōng.	No, I'm even a bit constipated.

D: 	Ng? Qǐng nín bǎ shàngyī tuōle, tǎng zài zhèr, wǒ tīngting. Zhèr téng ma?	Oh? Undress down to the waist, please, lie down here, and I'll have a listen. Does it hurt here?

A:	 Bù téng.	No.

D:	 Zhèr ne?	How about here?

A:	 Āiyòu! Zhèr hěn téng.	Ouch! It hurts there!

D:	 Nǐ cóngqiǎn yǒu wèibìng ba?	Have you ever had stomach trouble before?

A:	 Xiǎode shíhou yǒu, kěshi hěn duō niǎn méiyou téngguo le. Zuótiān wǎnshàng yǒu kāishǐ bù shūfu le. Yèli shuì jiào yě shuìde bù hǎo, xǐngle hǎo jǐcì.	When I was a child I did, but I haven't had any pain for many years. Last night it began to feel bad again. During the night I slept very poorly, too. I woke up several times.

D:	 Hǎo, wǒ gěi ni kǎi ge yàofāng. Chīle yào, xiūxi xiuxi, yàoshi bù hǎo, xiàge xīngqī zài lái kànkan.	All right. I’ll write you a prescription. After you take the medicine, get some rest, and if it doesn't get better, come and see me again next week.

A:	Hǎo, xièxié ni!	Okay, thank you.

PART III

REFERENCE LIST

22.	A:	Nǐ liángguo tǐwēn le meiyou?	Have you taken your temperature?

	B:	Liángguo le, wēndù bù gǎo, sānshiqǐdù duō yìdiǎn.	Yes. My temperature isn’t high, a little over 37 degrees.

23.		Nǐ yào duō xiūxi xiūxi, duō hē kāishuǐ.	You need to rest a lot and drink a lot of (boiled) water.

24.		Wǒ gěi ni liáng yíxià xuěyā.	I’m going to take your blood pressure.

25.		Wǒ xuěyā gǎo.	I have high blood pressure.

26.		Nǐ xiǎng bu xiǎng zhǎo zhēnjiū dàifu gěi ni kànkan?	Do you want to see an acupuncturist?

27.		liúxíngxìng gǎnmào	influenza, flu

28.		kāi dāo	to operate; to be operated on

29.		dī	to be low

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART III

liáng: “to measure” You first saw this verb in the context of taking measurements for clothing. Here you see it used for taking temperatures. It can also be used for measuring a piece of land or the dimensions of a room.

tǐwēn and wēndù: Both of these are translated as “temperature” in the sentences above, but they should be distinguished. Tǐwēn is literally “body temperature” and thus is used when talking about taking human temperatures. Wēndù is literally “temperature degree” and is generally used in measuring heat or cold.

Nǐ wūzilide wēndù shi duōshǎo?	What’s the temperature in your room?

[There is another word qìwén, literally “air temperature,” used, for
example, in weather reports.]

wēndù bù gāo: “the temperature is not high” Normal body temperature (98.6’ F) is 37° Celsius. Each additional degree Celsius is 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit.

kāishuǐ: “boiled water” This is water that has been boiled, but is not necessarily hot. Often kāishuǐ is served as a hot beverage, however. The Chinese commonly believe that ice cold beverages are not good.

xuěyā: “blood pressure,” literally “blood pressure.” Xuěyā gāo is “high blood pressure,” and xuěyā dǐ is “low blood pressure.”

zhēnjiū: “acupuncture and moxibustion” Also pronounced zhēnjiǔ. Acupuncture is a practice of traditional (but not necessarily orthodox) Chinese medicine where parts of the body are pierced with needles to treat disease or relieve pain. This is based on the idea that the body’s energy (qì) forms an integral system which must be maintained for good health. This is done by applying pressure or releasing pressure to restore the balance of qì. Moxibustion (traditionally more important than acupuncture) involves the smoldering of herbs on certain body points. In some cases the herbs are placed directly on the skin and lit with a stick of incense; at other times, a slice of ginger is first placed on the skin and the herbs burned on top.

Nǐ xiǎng bu xiǎng zhǎo zhēnjiū dàifu gěi ni kànkan?: This has been translated on the Reference List as “Do you want to seean acupuncturist?” which is the conversational English equivalent. A translation more revealing of the structure of the question might be: “Do you want to look for an acupuncture doctor to give you treatment?”

liúxíngxìng gǎnmào: “influenza, flu,” literally “epidemic cold.” Liúxíng: the verb “to be prevalent, to be popular, to be common.” -Xìng means “quality, characteristic,” and when used as a suffix corresponds to “-esque” in “picturesque,” or “-like” in “childlike.” Liúxíngxìng is then “having the characteristic of being prevalent,” specifically “epidemic.”

kāi dāo: “to operate; to be operated on,” literally “to open or operate the knife.”

DIALOGUE FOR PART III

In Běijīng a worker pays a return visit to a health clinic.

D:	Chīle wǒ gěi nide yào, hǎo yìdiǎnr le ma?	Are you a little better after having taken the medicine I gave you?

A:	Háishi tóu téng, hóulong téng, shuì jiào shuìde hěn bù hǎo, yèli chángcháng xǐng.	I still have a headache, and I’m not sleeping well at all. I often wake up at night.

D:	Wǒ kànkan nide hóulong.	Let me have a look at your throat.

A:	Ā.	Ahhh.

D: 	Nǐde hóulong hěn hóng. Qǐng bǎ shàngyī tuōle. Késou yishēng.* Hǎo. Nǐ xiān liángliang tǐwēn, ránhòu wǒ zài gěi nǐ liáng xuěyā. ... Wēndù bù gāo, sānshiqī dù. Nǐ cóngqián yǒu xuěyā gāo ma?	Your throat is very red. Please take off your upper clothes. Cough. Okay. First I’ll take your temperature, and then I'll take your blood pressure. ... Your temperature isn't high, 37 degrees. Have you had high blood pressure before?

A:	 Méiyou.	No.

D: 	Jīntiān nǐde xuěyā yǒu diǎnr gāo, dàgài shi zuótiān yèli shuìde bù hǎo.	Your blood pressure is a little high today. It's probably that you didn't sleep well last night.

A:	 Yīshēng, yíge lǐbài le, zěnme hái méi hǎo?	Doctor, it's been a week. How come I’m still not better?

D: 	Liúxíngxìng gǎnmào hěn bù róngyi hǎo. Wǒ gěi nǐ kāi ge yàofāng, zài chī diǎnr āsipilín. Nǐ hái yào duō hē diǎnr kāishuǐ, duo xiūxi xiuxi.	Influenza is really not easy to get rid of. I'll write you a prescription, and you take some more aspirin. Also, drink a lot of (boiled) water, and get a lot of rest.

A: 	Hǎo, xièxie nǐ.	Okay, thank you.

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

*kesou yishēng: Literally, “cough one sound.” -Sheng is the counter for utterances.

Vocabulary

āiyòu	ouch; oh dear
āsīpīlín	aspirin
chī	to take (medicine)
dàbiàn	bowel movement
dàbiàn bù tōng	to be constipated
dàifu	doctor
dī	to be low
-dù	degree (e.g., on a thermometer)
dùzi	belly, abdomen, stomach
fāshāo	to have a fever
gǎnmào	to catch cold; a cold
hóulóng (hóulong)                  throat
kāi dāo	to operate; to be operated on
kāi yàofāng	to write a prescription
kāishuǐ	boiled water
kàn bìng	to have an illness treated/diagnosed
kàn dàifu	to see a doctor
késou	to cough
lā dùzi	to have diarrhea
liáng	to measure
liáng tǐwēn	to take a person’s temperature
lìhai	to be severe, to be fierce
liúxíngxìng gǎnmào	influenza, flu
nèikē	internal medicine, general medicine; department of internal medicine
nèikē yīshēng	internist, physician
shàngyī	upper garment
shēng	to develop (as in shēng bìng)
shēng bìng	to get sick, to become ill
tǎng	to lie, to recline
téng (tòng)	to hurt, to ache
tǐwēn	(body) temperature
tóu	head
tóu téng	to have a headache; headache
tù	to vomit
tuō	to take off (clothing)
wàikē	surgical department
wàikē yīshēng	surgeon
wèi	stomach
wèibìng	stomach trouble, gastric disease
wēndù	temperature
xiǎng tù	to feel nauseous
xiǎobiàn	to urinate; urination
xiè dù(zi)	to have diarrhea
xuěyā	blood pressure
xuěyā dī	low blood pressure
xuěyā gāo	high blood pressure, hypertension
yào	medicine
yàofāng(r)	prescription
yīshēng	doctor
yīyuàn	hospital
yūn	to be dizzy
zhēnjiū (zhēnjiǔ)	acupuncture and moxibustion

Unit 6

PART I

REFERENCE LIST

Personal Welfare Module, Unit 6 Accidents and Difficulties

1.	Zāogāo! Zěnme bàn? Wǒde hùzhào diū le.	Oh, no! What am I going to do? I've lost my passport.

2.	Wǒ xiǎng nǐ děi dào jǐngchájú qù zhǎo jǐngchá tányitan.	I think you should go to the police station and find a policeman to talk it over with.

3.	Jǐngchájú yǒu fānyì ma?	Are there interpreters at the police station?

4.	“Wàishì” jiù shi wàiguo rénde shìqing.	”Wàishì” means matters having to do with foreigners.

5.	Wǒ bǎ jiàshǐ zhízhào diū le.	I've lost my driver's license.

6.	Jīntiān zǎoshang wǒ cái fāxiàn diū le.	I didn't discover I'd lost it until this morning.

7.	Wǒ xīwàng néng kuài yìdiǎnr lǐng yíge xīnde.	I hope I can get a new one quickly.

8.	Yàoburán bù néng kāi chē, bù fāngbian.	Otherwise it will be inconvenient not being able to drive.

9.	Nǐ qù zhào xiàng.	Go and have your picture taken.

10.	Gōng'ānjú	Bureau of Public Security

11.	wàishì jǐngchá	foreign affairs policeman

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART I

zāogāo: “too bad, oh darn, how terrible, what a mess,” literally, “rotten-cake.” This is used as an exclamation of dismay. It is often equivalent to “Oh no!”:

Zāogāo! Wǒ wàngle dài fēijīpiào le!	Oh, no! I forgot to bring the plane tickets!

As an adjectival verb, zāogāo means “to be in a mess, to be in a bad state,” as in:

Nàrde qíngxing hěn zāogāo.	The situation there is a mess.

Zhèiběn shū xiěde zhēn zāogāo.	This book is terribly written.

Tā hěn zāogāo.	He's in a very bad way.

Yàoshi zhèige bìngrén láide zài wǎn yìdiǎnr jiù zāogāo le. 	If this patient had come any later than he did, he would have been in a real mess (in big trouble).

diū: “to lose” You can analyze the sentence Wode hùzhào diū le this way:

Wǒde hùzhào	diū le.
As for my passport,	(it has been) lost.

In some areas of China (including Taiwan) you would hear the word diào instead of diū: Wǒde hùzhào diào le.

fānyì: “to translate, to interpret; translator, interpreter” Also pronounced fānyi (with a neutral-tone yi).

shìqing: “matter, affair, business, thing.” Shìqing refers to abstract things, while dōngxi refers to concrete things.

jiàshǐ zhízhào: “driver's license” jiàshǐ is “to drive (a vehicle).” Zhízhào is a “license, permit.”

fāxiàn: “to discover, to find, to find out”

Wǒ zài zhèr fāxiànle yige wèntí.	I've discovered a problem here,

Zhèi shi gāng fāxiànde yìzhǒng xǐnde yào.	This is a new kind of medicine which has just been discovered.

The object of fāxiàn may also be a clause:

Wǒ huílaile yǐhòu jiu fāxiàn tā yǐjīng zǒu le. 	When I came back I discovered thathe had already left.

The expression Wǒ fāxiàn ... can often be translated as “I notice that ...”or “I find that ...”. It often prefaces a personal observation, as in:

Wǒ fāxiàn hěn duō Měiguo rén juéde yǒu háizi hěn máfan.	I find that many Americans feel that it’s a lot of trouble to have children.

Wǒ fāxiàn nǐ hěn xǐhuan xīnde dōngxi.	I notice (or, “I get the impression”) that you like new things very much.

As a noun, fāxiàn means “discovery”:

Zhèi shi yíge hěn zhòngyàode fāxiàn.	This is a very important discovery.

cái: “then and only then, not until” This adverb should be used when an event happens relatively late: “not until this morning.” Cái is the opposite of jiù, the word for “then” when something happens sooner or earlier. When a sentence using cái describes a completed action, the verb will hardly ever take the ending -le; notice that fāxiàn in sentence 6 cannot have -le. Here is another example:

Tā zuótiān cái gàosu wǒ.	He didn’t tell me until yesterday.

kuài yidiǎnr: “a little more quickly,” or as in No. 7, “soon.” Kuài yidiǎnr gives the impression of being even sooner than zǎo yidiǎnr. Both mean “soon.”

lǐng: “to receive, to get, to pick up, to collect” something that is issued or given (a prize, salary, materials, passport, etc.)

yàoburán: “otherwise,” literally “if-not-thus.” Like kěshi “but” and dànshi “but, however,” yàoburán always comes at the front of the clause in which it occurs.

Wǒ děi mǎshàng zǒu, yàoburán wǒ jiù wǎn le.	I have to go right away, otherwise I'll be late.

Wǒ děi zuò fēijī qù, yàoburán jiù tài màn le.	I have to take a plane, otherwise it’ll be too slow.

zhào xiàng: “to take a picture,” literally, “illuminate-image.” You already learned zhàoxiàngjī, “camera,” in WLF Unit 4, Part I. The counter for xiàng “-pictures” is -zhāng (the same one as for tables, sheets of paper and other flat things). Zhào jǐzhāng xiàng thus means “to take a few pictures.” (When NOT using the word xiàng as the object of zhào, however, you should use zhàopiàn or xiàngpiàn for “photograph.”)

Like many verb-object expressions, zhào xiàng has the potential ambiguity of meaning either “to (verb) an (object )” or “to have an (object) (verb)-ed”: “to take a picture” or “to have one's picture taken.” You saw this with several verb-object expressions in Unit 3:

jiǎn tóufa   	to cut hair           	to have one’s hair cut
xǐ tóu       	to give a shampoo     	to get a shampoo
guā húzi     	to shave              	to have a shave
cā píxié     	to shine shoes        	to have one’s shoes shined
tàng tóufa   	to give a permanent   	to get a permanent
juǎn tóufa   	to curl hair          	to have one's hair curled
zhào xiàng   	to take a picture     	to have one’s picture taken

For example, in the case of zhào xiang, a photographer might say Wǒ qù zhào xiàng, “I am going to take pictures”; but a person going to a photographer’s studio might say the same sentence, Wǒ qù zhào xiàng, meaning “I am going to have my picture taken.”

The fact that such sentences may mean either of two things rarely causes any misunderstandings in practice. The context almost always makes it perfectly clear which meaning is intended.

With these verb-object expressions, if you want to specify the person on whom the action is performed, you have to use a gěi phrase (you can’t make the person the direct object because the verb already has a direct object). For example, to say “I’m going to take a picture of you,” say:

Wǒ gěi nǐ zhào xiàng.	I’m going to take a picture of you.

Likewise:

Tā tàitai gěi ta jiǎn tóufa.	His wife cuts his hair.

*Although misunderstandings are rare, they are not impossible. Here is a short exchange illustrating how zhào xiàng might be misunderstood and how the misunderstanding might be cleared up. (For this example you need to know zhàopiàn, “photograph,” and zhàoxiàngguǎn, “photography studio.”)

A: 	Wǒ jīntiān zhào xiàng qu le.	Today I went to take pictures / to have my picture taken.

B: 	Zhào shénme? Zhào fēngjǐng ma?	What did you take pictures of? Did you take pictures of scenery?

A: 	Bú shì a. Yīnwèi wǒ yào lǐng hùzhào, děi yǒu zhàopiàn, suóyi wǒ qù zhàoxiàngguǎn qǐng tamen gěi wo zhào xiàng.	No. I’m going to get a passport and need photographs, so I went to a photo studio and had them take my picture.

Here “A” meant by his first sentence “Today I went to have my picture taken.” but “B” understood him to mean “Today I went to take pictures.”

wàishì jǐngchá: “foreign affairs policemen,” those who Heal with foreign nationals.

DIALOGUE FOR PART I

A foreign official in Běijǐng talks with a Chinese colleague.

M: 	Nǐ jǐntiān zěnme lái zěnme wǎn?	How come you are so late today?
F: 	Zhēn zāogāo!	It's Just awful!
M:	Zěnme le?	What happened?
F: 	Wǒ bǎ jiàshǐ zhízhào diū le. Wǒ shi zuò chūzū qìchē láide. 	I’ve lost my driver's license. I had to come by taxi.
M: 	Zài nǎr diūd'a?	Where did you lose it?
F: 	Wǒ bù zhīdào. Jǐntiān zǎoshang wǒ cái fāxiàn diū le. Wǒ zěnme bàn? Yào dào jǐngchájú qù ma?   I don't know. I didn't discover I'd lost it until this morning. What am I to do? Should I go to the police station?
M: 	Wǒ wènyiwèn Gǒng'ánjú zěnme gěi ni lǐng yíge xǐnde. 	I'll ask the Bureau of Public Security how to get you a new one.
F:	Wǒ xīwàng néng kuài yìdiǎnr. Yàoburán bù néng kāi chē bù fāngbiàn. 	I hope it will be soon. Otherwise it will be' inconvenient not being able to drive.
M: 	Nà nǐ xiān qù zhào xiàng. Wǒ gěi ni wènwen zěnme bàn.	Well, then, you go and get your picture taken. I'll ask for you what you should do.

NOTES ON THE DIALOGUE

Zài nǎr diūd'a?: “Where did you lose it?” d'a is a contraction of de and a. The whole sentence would be Nǐ shi zài nǎr diūde a?

Part 2

REFERENCE LIST

12.	Ài! Shéi lái bāngbang máng!	Hey! Will someone please come help!

13.	Tā bèi qìchē zhuàng le.	He was hit by a car.

14.	Tā qí mōtuōchē qíde tài kuài le.	He was driving his motorcycle too fast.

15.	Wǒde tuǐ téngsǐ le!	My leg is hurting me to death!

16.	Nǐ liú xuě le ma?	Are you bleeding?

17.	Wǒmen xiān bǎ tā tái dao lùbiānrshang qu ba.	Let’s first carry him to the side of the road.

18.	Wǒde tuǐ dòngbuliǎo, dàgài gútou duàn le.	I can’t move my leg, the bone is probably broken.

19.	Qǐng ni mǎshàng gěi yīyuàn dǎ diànhuà.	Please call the hospital immediately.

20.	Bié zhāojí.	Don’t get upset.

21.	Wǒ zài zhèr kānzhe ta.	I’ll stay here and look after him

22.	-liáng	counter for vehicles

23.	jiùhùchē	ambulance

REFERENCE NOTES FOR PART II

shéi: “someone” The question word shéi “who” can also be used to mean “someone.”

bèi: This is the prepositional verb which indicates the doer of the action, similar to the English “by” in passive sentences. In sentences with bèi, it is the subject (tā in sentence 12) which received the action and the object of bèi (qǐchē in sentence 12) which did the action.

Wǒde zìdiǎn bèi xuésheng názǒu le. 	My dictionary was taken by a student.

Tā bèi rén dǎsǐ le. 	He was beaten to death by someone. (dǎsǐ is literally “hit to death”)

Bèi has a special characteristic other prepositional verbs do not share: it can occur WITHOUT AN OBJECT. Its passive meaning is still evident in the rest of the sentence:

Wǒde xīn qìchē bèi zhuàng le.	My new car was hit.

Wǒde yǔsān bèi názǒu le.	My umbrella was taken.

qí: “to ride/drive by straddling” While zuò is the verb “to ride” down, qí is the verb “to ride” used generally - and specifically when sitting with horses, motorcycles and bicycles.

téngsǐ le: “to hurt a lot,” literally “to hurt to death (figuratively speaking)”

liú xuě: “to bleed,” literally “to flow blood”; Xuě is also pronounced xiě and xuè.

tái: “to lift or carry (by two or more persons)”

Qǐng bǎ zhèige zhuōzi táijìnlái.	Please carry this table in (with me or someone else).

Qǐng bǎ zhèi liǎngjiàn dà xíngli táishang chē qu.	Please carry (with me or someone else these two large suitcases onto the train.

Bǎ diànshì táixià 1óu lai.	Bring the television downstairs with me.

dòng: “to move (either oneself or something else)”

Bié dòng!	Don’t move.

Xiān bú yào dòng ta.	Let’s not move him just yet.

Dòng can also mean “to touch” something, so Bié dong can also mean “Don’t touch it.”

dòngbuliǎo: “unable to move” The endings -deliǎo “able” and -buliǎo  “unable” are used with action verbs to show the result of the action.

Zènme duō xíngli, wǒ yíge rén nábuliǎo.	I can’t carry all this luggage by myself.

Tā kāi dāo bù jiǔ, hái zǒubuliāo lù.	It hasn’t been long since the operation. She’s not yet able to walk.

Xià zhème dà yǔ. Xiànzài zěubuliǎo.	It’s raining so hard. We can’t leave now.

mǎshàng: “immediately, right away,” literally “on a horse”

dǎ diànhuà: “to make a phone call,” literally “to hit electric-speech.” To indicate who you are calling, use the prepositional verb gěi “for, to.”

Nǐ gěi shéi dǎ diànhuà? 	Who are you calling?

Lǎo Wáng yòu gěi ni dǎ diàn huà le.	Lao Wáng called you again,

The noun diànhuà by itself can mean either “telephone” or “telephone call.”

Nǐ hái méiyou diànhuà ma?	Are you still without a phone?

Yǒu nǐde diànhuà.	There’s a call for you.

Sometimes you can use diànhuà where English would have “telephone number”: 

Nǐde diànhuà shi duōshao?	What is your telephone number?

zhāojí: “to get upset, to get excited with worry, to feel anxious”

Nǐ tài zhāojí. Wǒmen zhèr méiyou shénme wèntí. 	You’re too anxious/worried. We don’t have any problems here.

kān: “to look after (something)” The verb kàn “to look, to see” changes tones when it means “to look after something.”

Nǐ qù Xiānggǎngde shíhou, shéi gěi ni kān fángzi?	Who’ll be looking after your house when you go to Hong Kong?

Shéi gěi ni kān háizi? 	Who looks after the children (OR babysits) for you?

-zhe: This is the marker of DURATION. It may be added to an action or process verb to indicate that the action lasts for some amount of time. In the sentence Wǒ zài zhèr kānzhe ta “I’ll stay here and look after him,” the speaker is saying that he will do this and CONTINUE it for some time. -Zhe can be used whether the time is past, present or future.

Tā zài nèibiān zuòzhe, Xiǎo Lán pǎojinlai gàosu ta bàba huílai le.	She was sitting there when Xiāo Lán ran in and told her papa had returned.

Tā hāi bìngzhe ne.	He’s still sick. (The -zhe tells you that the illness is lasting for some time. Without -zhe, bin, means “get sick,” not “be sick. Ne tells you this is not a new situation [absence of change!]

Zuòzhe ba.	Sit for a while.

DIALOGUE FOR PART II

A passerby (B) on a street in Beijing is called by the driver of a motor cycle (A) who has Just had an accident with a pedestrian (C).

A:	Wèi, lái bāngbang máng!	Hey, someone quick come help us!

B:	Zěnme le?	What happened?

A:	Zhèiwèi tóngzhì bèi wǒ zhuàng le.	This comrade was hit by me.

B:	Bèi nǐ zhuàng le? Zhèiliàng mótuōchē shi nǐde?	Hit by you? Is this your motorcycle?

A:	Hài, bié shuō le. Wǒ qíde tài kuài, méi kànjian ta.	(Sigh) Don’t even talk about it. I was riding too fast, I didn’t see him.

C:	Àiyo, wǒde mā yo... . Àiyo! Téngsǐ wo le... . Wǒde tuī...	Ow, my mother*... Ow! It hurts like crazy... . My leg... .

B:	Liúle zhème duō xuě, zhēn zāogāo! Xiànzài zěnme bàn ne? Wǒmen xiān bǎ ta tài dao lùbiānrshang qu ba!	He’s lost so much blood. This is terrible. What should we do now? First, let's carry him to the side of the road.

C:	Ào, wǒde tuī dòngbuliǎo, dàgài gútou duàn le.	Oh, I can't move my leg. It's probably broken.

A:	Wǒ xiǎng zuìhǎo xiān bú yào dòng ta, wǒ zài zhèr, nǐ qù dǎ diànhuà jiào liàng jiùhùchē lái, zài dǎ ge diànhuà jiào jǐngchá lái.	I think it would be best not to move him for the time being. I'll stay here. You call for an ambulance, and then call for the police to come.

*He’s not calling for his mother; this is a moan.

B:	Hǎo, nǐ zài zhèr kānzhe ta. Wǒ mǎshàng jiù qù. (to C): Nèiwei tóngzhì nǐ bié zhāojí. Dále diànhuà jiùhùchē mǎshàng jiù dào.	Okay, you stay here and watch him. I’ll go right away, (to C): Don’t get upset, comrade. The ambulance will be here right after I call.

A:	Nín ... nín kuài qù ba! Xièxie nín le!	You ... you go quickly! Thank you.

Part 3

REFERENCE LIST

24.	Nǐ méi kànjian zhèige páizi ma?	Didn't you see this sign?
25.	Wǒ méi zhùyì.	I wasn't paying attention.
26.	Yǐhòu nǐ yào xiǎoxīn.	From now on you must be careful.
27.	Nǐmen bù kéyi zài zhèli yóuyǒng.	You can't swim here.
28.	Nǐmen zài zhèli yóuyǒng yǒu wéixiǎn.	It's dangerous for you to swim here.
29.	Wǒ bú shi gùyì jìnlaide. 	I didn't enter here [the restricted area] on purpose.
30.	Ràng wo kànkan nǐde hùzhào.	Let me see your passport.
31.	Zhèli shi jūnshì dìqū.  	This is a military area here.
32. 	Zhànzhu!  	Halt!

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART III

páizi: “sign, poster, plate,” also a “brand name, trademark”

Nǐ mǎide shi shénme páizide zhàoxiàngjī? 	What brand of camera did you buy?
Nèige hóng páizishang xiěde shi shénme? 	What is written on that red sign ?

zhùyì: “to pay attention to, to take notice of”

Wǒ méi zhùyì tā shi gēn shéi zǒude.	I didn't notice who he left with.

Zhùyì diǎnr!	Please pay a little more attention!

kéyi bù kéyi: “cannot” Of the three uxiliary verbs néng, huì and kéyi, kéyi is the one to use when the “can”  or “cannot” is due to someone granting or withholding permission.

yóuyǒng: “to swim”

Nǐ huì bu huì yóuyǒng? 	Can you swim?

Wǒ yóuyǒng yóude bú tài hǎo.	I don't swim too well.

wéixiǎn: “to be dangerous, to be perilous” Also pronounced wēixiǎn.

Zài Táiběi qí mōtuōchē tài wéixiǎn le	.It's too dangerous to ride a motorcyle in Taipei.

Tā bú pà wéixiǎn, tā shénme dōu yào zuò.	He's not afraid of danger. He'll do anything.

gùyì: “intentionally, willfully, on purpose”

Tā gùyì bǎ nèixie shū diū le.	She lost those books on purpose.

Duìbuqǐ, wǒ bú shi gùyì (zuò)de. 	I'm sorry, I didn't do it on purpose.

ràng: “to let, to allow, to cause (someone to do something).” This is a prepositional verb, i.e. ràng and its object both precede the main verb.

Tā bú ràng wǒ zǒu.	She won't let me leave.

Nǐ zěnme kéyi ràng tā zènme bù gāoxìng?	How could you make her so unhappy?

FIRST DIALOGUE FOR PART III

A Canadian man (M) has Just entered an area in Běijīng prohibited to foreigners, having failed to notice a sign in English to that effect. A policewoman (F) calls out to him.

F: Hài! Zhànzhu!	Hey! Halt!

M: Shénme shìr?	What's the matter?

F: Nǐ méi kànjian zhèige páizi ma?	Didn't you see this sign?

M: Òu, duìbuqǐ. Wǒ méi zhùyì. Wǒ bú shi gùyì jìnlaide.	Oh, excuse me. I wasn’t paying attention. I didn't enter here intentionally.

F: Nǐ shi nǎiguo rén na?	What's your nationality?

M: Wǒ shi Jiānádà rén.	I'm Canadian.

F: Ràng wo kànkan nǐde hùzhào.	Let me see your passport.

M: Mm.	Mm.

(The policewoman writes down his name and passport number.)

F: Yǐhòu zhùyì diǎnr. Bié zài zǒucuò le.	From now on pay more attention. Don’t walk into the wrong place again.

M: Wǒ zhǐdao le.		Now I know.

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

zhǐdao le: “now I know,” or “I understand” This is the marker le for new situations.

SECOND DIALOGUE FOR PART III

An American woman and her two children are swimming along the beach in Taiwan. A soldier calls to them.

M:	Èi! Shànglai! Nǐmen shànglai.	Hey! Come up! Come up here.

F:	Yǒu shénme shì a?	What's the matter?

M:	Nǐmen bù kéyi zài zhèli yóuyǒng.	You can't swim here.

F:	Wèishénme?	Why?

M:	Nǐ méi kàndao nèige páizi ma?	Didn't you see that sign?

F:	Kàndao le, búguò ...	Yes, but ...

M:	Páizishang shuō shénme?	What does it say on the sign?

F:	Duìbuqǐ, wǒ bú huì kàn Zhōngwén.	I'm sorry, I can't read Chinese.

M:	Zhèli shi jūnshǐ dìqū. Bù kéyi yóuyǒng. Nǐmen zài zhèli yóuyǒng yǒu wéixiǎn. Xiàcì bú yào zài lái le.	This is a military area here. You can't swim. It's dangerous for you to swim here. In the future you shouldn't come here any more

F:	Hǎo. Xièxie ni.	Very well. Thank you.

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

xiàcì bú yào zài lai le: “in the future don’t come here again (any more).” In addition to meaning “next time,” xiàcì can mean generally “in the future.”

Unit 6, Vocabulary

bāng máng	to help, to aid, to assist
bèi	by (indicates the one who carries out the action in a passive sentence)
-buliǎo	unable to ... (verb ending)
dǎ diànhuà	to make a phone call, to telephone
diànhuà	telephone, telephone call
dìqū	area, region
diū	to lose
dòng	to move
dòngbuliǎo	unable to move
duàn	to sever, to break
fānyì	to interpret, to translate
fāxiàn	to discover
Góng’ānjú	Bureau of Public Security (PRC)
gútou	bone
gùyì	intentionally, willfully, on purpose
jiàshǐ	driver, pilot; to drive, to pilot
jiàshǐ zhízhào	driver’s license
jǐngchá	policeman
jǐngchájú	police station
jiùhùchē	ambulance
jūnshì	military
kān	to look after, to watch over
-liàng	(counter for vehicles)
lǐng	to collect, to pick up (something which is issued)
liú xuě (xiě, xuè)	to bleed
lùbiān(r)	side of the road
mǎshàng	immediately 
mótuōchē (mōtuōchē)	motorcycle
páizi	sign, poster, plate; brand name, trade mark
qí	to ride by straddling
ràng	to let, to allow, to cause someone to do something
shéi	someone
shìqing	matter, affair, business, thing
-sǐle	like crazy, to death (state verb ending)
tái	to carry (by two or more people)
téngsǐ le	to hurt like crazy, to hurt to death (figuratively)
tuǐ	leg
wàishì	foreign affairs
wàiguó	foreign country
wéixiǎn (wēixiǎn)	to be dangerous, to be perilous, danger
yàoburán	otherwise, or else
yóuyǒng	to swim
zāogāo	oh no! how awful! how terrible! what a mess!; to be awful
zhāojí	to get upset, to be anxious, to be worried
zhào xiàng	to take a picture
-zhe	marker of duration for actions and states
zhuàng	to bump into, to run into, to collide with
zhùyì (zhùyi)	to pay attention, to take notice

Appendix 1

Parts of the body

abdomen	fù(bù)
ankle	jiǎowànzi
appendix	lánwěi
arm	gēbei, gēbo, shǒubì
back	bèi
blood	xiě, xuě, xuè
blood vessel	xuěguǎn(r)
bone	gútou, gǔtou
brain	nǎo(zi)
breast	rǔfáng, nǎi, rǔ
buttocks	pìgǔ
cheek	miànjiá, sāi
chest	xiōngbù, xiōngtáng
chin	xiàba
ear	ěrduo
elbow	gēbeizhǒu(r)
eye	yǎnjīng
eyeball	yǎnzhūzi (colloquial), yǎnqiú
eyebrow	méimao
face	liǎn
finger	shǒuzhítou, shǒuzhǐtou
fingernail	zhījia, zhǐjiǎ
foot	jiǎo
gums	yáchuáng
hand	shǒu
head	tóu
heart	xīnzàng
heel	jiǎogēn
intestines	chángzi
joint	guānjié
kidney	shèn(zàng)
knee	qīgài, xīgài
leg	tuí
lip	zuǐchún
liver	gānzàng
lung	fèi
mouth	zuī, kǒu
muscle	jīròu
neck	bózi
nerve	shénjīng
nose	bízi
rib	lèigǔ, lègǔ
shoulder	jiānbǎng
skin	pífu
spine	jílianggǔ
stomach (belly)	wèi; dùzi 
tendon	jiàn, jīn (colloquial)
thigh	dàtuǐ
throat	hóulong
thumb	mǔzhǐ
toe	jiǎozhítou, jiǎozhǐ
tongue	shétou
tonsils	biǎntáoxiàn
tooth               yá, yáchǐ
wrist	wànzi

*Parts of the body may have several terras which differ as to (1) what areas of China they are used in, (2) the degree of formality, and (3) the contexts in which they are used. Here are examples of each kind of difference: (1) “arm” is gēbei in the speech of Běijīng, but shǒubì in some other parts of the country; (2) “armpit” is gēzhiwō in colloquial Běijīng speech but yèwō in formal speech; (3) for “stomach,” the medical term is wèi; colloquially, it may be called wèi or dùzi; and as a food (e.g. pig's stomach) it is called dǔzi.

For this list, words were chosen which you could, for example, use to tell a physician where you have a medical problem. Words which are either very informal or technical have been omitted.

It is interesting and important to realize that the Chinese and English languages sometimes differ on how they divide the human body into parts. The hip, for example, is a well-known “part of the body” in English, but the Chinese language has no commonly used word which includes all and only what we call the “hip.” Rather, Chinese has a word for “buttocks” (formally, túnbù, or in spoken style, pìgu) which includes the buttocks and hips below the hipbone.

Another example are the Chinese words xiōngkǒu and xīnkǒu, which refer to the center of the chest just below the breastbone, between the lower ribs. (One often feels indigestion there, for instance.) If English has a word for this part of the body, it is not nearly as common as these Chinese words.

Appendix 2: Medical Conditions, Problems, and Illnesses

abcess	nóngzhǒng
allergic to...	duì...guòmǐn
allergy	guòmǐnzhèng
appendicitis	lánwěiyán
arthritis	guǎnjiéyán
asthma	qìchuǎnbìng
cholera	huòluàn
cold	gǎnmào, shāngfēng, zhāoliáng
cramp	chōujīn
diabetes	tángniàobìng
flu	liúxíngxìng gǎnmào, liúgǎn
food poisoning	shívù zhòngdú
fungus	méi
hemorrhoids	zhìchuāng
hepatitis	gǎnyán
hernia	shàn
indigestion	xiāohuà bù liáng
inflamed	fāyán
inflammation	yánzhèng
measles	mázhěn
nervous tension	shénjīng jǐnzhāng
pneumonia	fèiyán
rheumatism	fēngshī
stroke	zhòngfēng
sunburn	shài tuō pí le
skin peeling	shàihóng le
red	jiào tàiyang shàide
sunstroke	zhòngshǔ
tonsillitis	biǎntáoxiànyán
ulcer (gastric)	wèikuìyáng

Appendix 3:    Furniture and Household Items

bīngxiāng	refrigerator
chāzuò	(electrical) outlet 
chōushuǐ mǎtǒng	flush toilet        
chōutì	drawer           
chuáng	bed
chuānglián	curtain
dēng	light, lamp
dèngzi	stool
diàndēng kāiguān	light switch
diànhuà	telephone
diànlúzi	electric stove; electric heater
diànshàn	electric fan
dìtǎn	carpet, rug                
guìzi	cabinet
hōnggānjī	dryer
jìngzi	mirror
lājī; lèsè (Taiwan)	garbage 
lājītǒng; lèsètǒng (Taiwan)garbage pail	
lājíxiāng; lèsèxiāng (Taiwan)	garbage can
lěngqìjī	air conditioner
lúzi	stove
sàozhou, sàobǎ	broom
shāfā	sofa
shuǐchízi	kitchen sink
shuǐlóngtóu	faucet, tap
shūjiàzi	bookshelf
tuōbǎ	mop
xǐchénqì	vacuum cleaner
xiězìtái	desk
xǐliǎnpén	(bathroom) sink, washstand
xǐyǐjī	washing machine
xǐzāopén	bathtub
yǐzi	chair
yùndǒu	iron
zhuōzi	table 
zìzhǐlǒu	wastepaner basket

Appendix 4

Parts of a house

bìchú	closet
cèsuǒ	toilet
céng	floor, story
chuānghu	window
chúfáng	kitchen
dì	floor
dìbǎn	wooden floor
dìxiàshì	basement
fángdǐng	room
fángjiān	room
fàntīng	dining room
kètīng	living room
lóutī	stairs
mén	door
qiáng	wall
shūfáng	study, library
tiānhuābǎn	ceiling
wèishēngjiān	toilet, bathroom
wòfáng	bedroom
wòshì	bedroom
wūzi	room
xǐzǎofáng	bathroom
zǒuláng	corridor, hall

Module Vocabulary

Āyí	auntie	WLF 1
āiyo	ouch	WLF 5
ànmó	massage	WLF 3
āsīpǐlín	aspirin	WLF 5
bāng máng	to help, to aid, to assist	WLF 6
báo	to be thin; to be light (of clothing)	WLF 2
bào	to hold, to embrace	WLF U
bèi	by (indicates the one who carries out the action in a passive sentence)	WLF 6
-buliǎo	(verb ending) unable to...	WLF 6
bú yào	don't	WLF 3
cā	to rub, to wipe	WLF 3
chá	tea	WLF 1
cháng	to be long	WLF 2
cháng	often	WLF 1
chángcháng	often	WLF 1
cháoshī	to be humid	WLF 1
chéng	city, town	WLF 1
chènshān	shirt, blouse	WLF 2
chī	to take (medicine)	WLF 5
chī fàn	to eat	WLF h
chǐcun (chǐcùn)	measurement; size	WLF 2
chuān	to put on (clothing)	WLF 2
chúfáng	kitchen	WLF H
chuí bèi	to pound (someone's) back	WLF 3
chuīgān	to blow-dry	WLF 3
chūntiān (chūntian)	spring	WLF 1
dàbiàn	bowel movement	WLF 5
dàbiàn bù tōng	to be constipated	WLF 5
dǎ diànhuà	to make a phone call, to telephone	WLF 6
dài	to put on, to wear (glasses, gloves, a hat, a watch, jewelry, etc)	WLF 2
dài	to bring, to take with one	WLF U
dài	to lead, to take	WLF h
dàifu	doctor	WLF 5
dǎkāi	to open	WLF 1
dàyī	overcoat 	WLF 2
dī	to be low	WLF 5
diànhuà	telephone, telephone call	WLF 6
-dǐng	counter for hats	WLF 2
dìqū	area, region	WLF 6
diū	to lose	WLF 6
dòng	to move	WLF 6
dòngbuliǎo	unable to move	WLF 6
dōngtiān (dōngtian)	winter	WFL 1
-dù	degree	WLF 5
duǎn	to be short	WLF 1
duàn	to sever, to break	WLF 6
dùzi	belly, abdomen	WLF 5
fángjiān	room	WLF 4
fàntīng	dining room	WLF 4
fānyì	to interpret, to translate	WLF 6
fāshāo	to have a fever	WLF 5
fāxiàn	to discover	WLF 6
fēn	one tenth of a Chinese inch (cùn)	WLF 3
fēng	wind	WLF 1
fēngjǐng	scenery	WLF 1
fùjìn (fǔjìn)	area, neighborhood	WLF 1
fùnǚ	women	WLF 4
fúzhuāngdiàn	clothing store	WLF 2
gànbufú	cadre suit	WLF 2
gānjing	to be clean	WLF 3
gǎnmào	to catch cold; a cold	WLF 5
gǎo	to do, to engage in	WLF 4
gāo wèishēng	to do cleaning	WLF 4
Gōng’ānjú	Bureau of Public Security (PRC)	WLF 6
gōngyù	apartment building; apartment	WLF 4
gōngyùlóu	apartment building	WLF 4
gòu	to be enough	WLF 2
guā	to blow (of wind, typhoons, etc.)	WLF 1
guā	to scrape	WLF 3
guā húzi	to shave (the face)	WLF 3
gútou (gùtou)	bone	WLF 6
gùyì	intentionally, willfully, on purpose	WLF 1
hǎibiān(r)	seashore	WLF 1
hàn	and (Taiwan pronunciation)	WLF 2
hǎoxiàng	to seem (to be), to appear that	WLF 4
hē	to drink	WLF 4
hé	river	WLF 1
hé	and	WLF 2
héshì	to fit; to be suitable	WLF 22
hòu	to be think; to be heavy (of clothing)	WLF 
hóulóng (hóulong)	throat	WLF 5
hú	lake	WLF 1
huài	to be bad; to go bad, to break	WLF 2
huānjìng	environment	WLF 1
húzi	beard OR mustache	WLF 3
jiākè(r) / jiákè(r)	jacket (cut above waist)	WLF 2
jiǎn	to cut (with scissors)	WLF 3
-jiàn	(counter for articles of clothing)	WLF 2
jiào	to ask/tell (someone to do something)	WLF 4
jiàshǐ	driver, pilot; to drive, to pilot	WLF 6
jiàshǐ zhízhào	driver's license	WLF 6
jǐngchá	policeman	WLF 6
jǐngchájú	police station	WLF 6
jiùhùchē	ambulance	WLF 6
juǎn	to curl, to roll up; a roll (of something' a reel (of tape)   1 ,	WLF 3
juéde	to feel	WLF 1
jūnshì	military	WLF 6
kái dāo	to operate; to be operated on	WLF 5
kāishǐ	to begin, to start	WLF 1
kāi yàofāng	to write a prescription	WLF 5
kāishuǐ	boiled water	WLF 5
kān	to look after, to watch over	WLF 6
kàn	to have (a medical problem) treated	WLF 5
kàn bìng	to see a doctor; to see a patient	WLF 5
késou	to cough	WLF 5
kètīng	living room	WLF 4
kōngqì (kōngqi)	air	WLF 1
kōngqì wūrǎn	air pollution	WLF 1
kǒudài	pocket	WLF 4
kùzi (yìtiáo)	pant s	WLF 2
lā dùzi	to have diarrhea	WLF 5
lěng	to be cold	WLF 1
liǎn	face	WLF 4
liáng	to measure 	WLF 2, 5
-liàng	(counter for vehicles)	WLF 5
liǎngbiān	both sides, two sides	WLF 3
liāngkuai	to be cool	WLF 1
liáng tǐwēn	to take a person's temperature	WLF 5
liàozi	material, fabric	WLF 2
lìhai	to severe, to be fierce	WLF 5
líkāi	to leave	WLF 1
lǐng	to collect, to pick up (something which is issued)	WLF 6
liú	to remain, to stay; to keep, to save; to grow, to let grow; to leave	WLF 3
liú húzi	to grow a beard or mustache	WLF 3
liúxíngxìng gǎnmào	influenza, flu	WLF 5
liú xuě (xiě, xuè)	to bleed	WLF 6
lùbiān(r)	side of the road	WLF 6
lùyīndài	recording tape	WLF 4
lùyìnjī	tape recorder	WLF 4
máfan	trouble, bother	WLF 4
mǎlù	street, avenue	WLF 4
máoyī	sweater	WLF 2
màozi (yìdǐng)	hat	WLF 2
mǎshàng	immediately	WLF 6
méi shì (le)	everything is all right (now); there's no (further) business	WLF 4
méi wèntí	there's no problem	WLF 3
mián'ǎo	(Chinese-style) cotton-padded Jacket	WLF 2     
mótuōchē (mōtuōchē)	motorcycle		WLF 6
nà	then, in that case	WLF 2
nèikē	internal medicine, general medicine; department of internal medicine	WLF 5
nèikē yīshēng	internist, physician	WLF 5
nèikù	underpants	WLF 2
nèiyī	underwear (undershirts, undershorts, briefs, slips, bras, etc.); Just undershirt (when used in contrast to nèikù, underpants)	WLF 2
nílóng	nylon	WLF 2
niúnǎi	(cow's) milk	WLF U
nòng (lòng, nèng)	to do, to handle, to manage, to make	WLF 3
nòng gānjing	to clean something up	WLF 3
nuǎnhuo	to be warm	WLF 1
páizi	sign, poster, plate; brand name, trade mark		WLF 6
píngcháng	usually, generally, ordinarily	WLF 14
píxié	leather shoes	WLF 2
pò	to be worn out; to break, to tear	WLF 2
qí	to ride by straddling	WLF 6
qìhòu (qìhou)	climate	WLF 1
qín	to be clear	WLF 1
qīngjìng	to be quiet	WLF 1
qípáo	close-fitting woman’s dress with high neck and slit skirt; cheongsam	WLF 2
qiūtiān (qiūtian)	fall, autumn	WLF 1
qù	to go	WLF 2
qúnzi	skirt	WLF 2
ràng	to let, to allow, to cause something to do something	WLF 6
rè	to be hot	WLF 1
rénkǒu	population	WLF 1
sēnlín	forest	WLF 1
shān	mountain	WLF 1
shàngyī	upper outer garment	WLF 5
shāo	to heat, to cook; to burn	WLF 14
shǎo	to be few; seldom	WLF 1
shāohǎo le	to have heated up; to have finished cooking WLF 
shéi	someone	WLF 6
shēng bìng	to get sick, to become ill	WLF 5
shēnbào	to declare, to report	WLF 14
shēnbàodān	customs declaration	WLF U
shénmeyàng	like what; what kind	WLF 2
shēnshàng	on one's body	WLF 2
shì	to try	WLF 3
shì(yi)shi	to give (something) a try	WLF 3
shìqing	matter, affair, business, thing	WLF 6
shōushi	to tidy up	WLF 4
shǒushi	jewelry WLF 4
shuā	to brush	WLF 1
-shuāng	pair	WLF 2
shuā yá	to brush one’s teeth	WLF 1
shūbāo	book bag, tote bag, carryall	WLF 2
shūfáng	library WLF 4
shūfu	to be comfortable	WLF 3
shuǐ	water	WLF 1
shuì jiao	to sleep	WLF 1
shuì wǔjiào	to take a noontime nap	WLF 1
shuìyī (yítào)	pajamas; nightgown	WLF 2
shūshu	uncle	WLF 1
shū tóu	to brush or comb hair	WLF 3
tái	to carry (by two or more people)	WLF 6
táifēng	typhoon WLF 1
tǎng	to lie, to recline	WLF 5
tàng	to get a permanent	WLF 3
-tào	(counter for suits, sets of things)	WLF 2
téng (tòng)	to hurt, to ache	WLF 5
téngsǐ le	to hurt like crazy, to hurt to death (figuratively)	WLF 6
tiān	sky; heaven; day	WLF 1
tiānqì (tiānqi)	weather 	WLF 1
-tiáo	(counter for pairs of pants)	WLF 2
tīngshuō	to hear that, to hear it said; I hear that, I understand that	WLF 1
tǐwēn	(body) temperature	WLF 5
tóu	head; head of hair	WLF 2, WLF 5
tóufa	hair	WLF 3
tóu téng	to have a headache; headache	WLF 5
tù	to vomit, to spit up	WLF 5
tuǐ	leg	WLF 6
tuōxié	slippers	WLF 2
wàiguo	foreign country	WLF 6
wàikē	surgical department	WLF 5
wàikē yīshēng	surgeon WLF 5
wàishì	foreign affairs	WLF 6
wàishì jǐngchá	foreign affairs policeman	WLF 6
wàitào	coat, jacket (that extends below the   waist) WLF 2
wàng	to forget	WLF 2
wàzi	socks	WLF 2
wèi	stomach WLF 5
wèibìng	stomach trouble, gastric disease	WLF 5
wéixiǎn (wēixiǎn)	to be dangerous, to be perilous; danger	WLF 6
wēndù	temperature	WLF 5
wèntí	question, problem	WLF 3
wòfáng	bedroom WLF 1
wòshì	bedroom	WLF 4
wūrǎn	pollution	WLF 1
wūzi	room	WLF 4
xǐ	to wash	WLF 3
xiǎng	to miss, to think of	WLF 1
xiāngxià (xiāngxia)	in the country, the countryside	WLF 1
xiāngzi	suitcase	WLF h
xiǎoběnzi	notebook	WLF h
xiǎobiàn	to urinate; urination	WLF 5
xiaoxīn	to be careful	WLF h
xiàtiān (xiàtian)	summer	WLF 1
xià xuě	to snow	WLF 1
xià yǔ	to rain	WLF 1
xié	shoe	WLF 2
xiè dùzi	to have diarrhea	WLF 5
xǐng	to wake up	WLF h
xīnxiān (xīnxian)	to be fresh	WLF 1
xǐ tóu	to shampoo, to get a shampoo	WLF 3
xǐzǎo	to take a bath	WLF 4
xǐzǎofáng	bathroom	WLF U
xǐzhuāng	Western-style clothes; Western-style suit	WLF 2
xuěyā	blood pressure	WLF ^(r)j
xuěyā dī	low blood pressure	WLF 5
xuěyā gāo	high blood pressure	WLF 5
xūyào	to need, to require	WLF 2
yá	tooth, teeth	WLF 
yágāo	toothpaste	WLF h
yàngzi	appearance; shape, form; style, design; pattern	WLF 2
yǎnjìng(r)	glasses (spectacles)	WLF h
yào	should; must; it is necessary, to need to	WLF 2
yào	medicine	WLF 5
yàoburán	otherwise, or else	WLF 6
yàofāng	prescription	WLF 5
yídìng	certainly, surely, for sure, definitely	WLF 3
yīfu	clothes	WLF 2
yīshēng	doctor	WLF 5
yīyuàn	hospital	WLF 5
yòng	to use	WLF 2
yóu	oil, grease	WLF 3
yǒu(de) shíhou	sometimes	WLF 1
yǒu shì	to be occupied, to be busy	WLF 3
yǒu (yi)diǎn	a little bit, somewhat	WLF 3
yóuyǒng	to swim	WLF 6
yùbei	to prepare, to get ready	WLF h
yùbeihǎo le	to have prepared	WLF 1
yūn	to be dizzy	WLF 5
yǔxié	rainshoes; rubbers, galoshes	WLF 2
yǔyī	raincoat	WLF 2
yùyuē	to make an appointment (PRC)	WLF 3
zāogāo	oh no! how awful! how terrible! what a mess to be awful WLF 6
zhào	according to	WLF 
zhāojí	to get upset, to be anxkous, to be worried	WLF 
zhào xiàng	to take a photograph	WLF 
zhàoxiàngjī	camera	WLF 
-zhe	(marker of duration for actions and states)	WLF 
zhēnjiū (zhēnjiǔ)	acupuncture and moxibustion	WLF 
zhīpiào	check (as in personal check)	WLF 
zhīpiàoběn	checkbook	WLF 
-zhǒng	kind, sort	WLF 
zhuàng	to bump into, to run into, to collide with	WLF 
zhùyì (zhùyi)	to pay attention to	WLF 
zìjǐ	self, oneself (myself, yourself, etc.)	WLF 
zūchuqu	to rent out	WLF 
zuì	most, -est	WLF 
zuò	to make; to have made	WLF 
zuò fàn	to cook	WLF 
zuò tóufa	to do one’s hair, to have one’s hair done	WLF 
zuǒyòu	approximately, about	WLF 

NOTE ON THE DIALOGUE

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART II

guā fēng: ”(there) blows wind” Guā literally means ”to scrape,” but when
used in connection with fēng, ”wind,” it means ”to blow.” Like other
weather expressions, such as xià xuě ”to snow,” the subject fēng usually
follows the verb guā. To say ”very windy,” you say that the wind is big,
either Fēng hěn dà or Guā dà fēng.

Sānyuè: ”by March” A time word before the verb may mean ”by” a certain
time as well as ”at” a certain time.

Sānyuè jiù kāishǐ nuǎnhuo le: ”By March it is already starting to get
warm.⁷¹ When the time word before it is given extra stress, the adverb
jiù indicates that the event in question happens earlier than might be
expected. The marker le after the state verb nuǎnhuo, ”to be warm,”
tells us that it is being used here as a process verb, ”to get warm.”

yǒude shíhou: ”sometimes” This is also said as you shíhou.

xià yù: ”to rain” Literally, ”(there) falls rain.” Now you have seen
three weather expressions where the subject normally follows the verb:
xià xuě, guā fēng and xià yǔ.

³

TÓu, literally ”head,” is used here for ”head of hair.”

⁴

REFERENCE NOTES ON PART II

zuò toufa: ”to do hair” or ”to have one’s hair done” (See the Reference
Notes for Part I on xǐ tou, guā húzi, chuí bèi, cā píxié.)

yùyuē: ”to make an appointment” literally ”beforehand
make-an-appointment.” This is relatively new PRC usage; this word used
to have only the meanings ”a preliminary agreement” or ”to pre-order a
book which has not yet been published.” In Taiwan (or the PRC for that
matter), you may use instead the phrase xiān yuē yige shíjiān, ”to
arrange a time beforehand.” Appointments are not generally required or
accepted in barbershops and beauty parlors in the PRC or Taiwan.

wèntí: ”problem” or ”question.” Méi(you) wèntí is just like the English
”no problem.” In addition to its literal meaning of ”There is no

⁵

NOTES OK THE DIALOGUE

•”Ting” is the wife’s affectionate abbreviation of her husband’s name,
TÍngsōng.

⁶

è: ”to be hungry”