“说曹操，曹操到 (shuō Cáo Cāo, Cáo Cāo dào) Speak of the Devil and He Appears”
Origin
The story about “说曹操，曹操到 (shuō Cáo Cāo, Cáo Cāo dào) speak of the devil and he appears” was from《三国演义(sānguó yǎnyì)》The Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
汉献帝 (Hàn Xiàndì) Han Xiandi (an emperor in the Han dynasty) was attacked by 李傕 (Lǐ jué) Li Jue and 郭汜(Guō Sì) Guo Si.…
1、Jīntiān hěn cánkù, míngtiān gèng cánkù, hòutiān hěn měihǎo, dàn jué dàduōshù rén dōu sǐ zài míngtiān wǎnshàng, kàn bú jiàn hòutiān de tàiyáng. 今天很残酷，明天更残酷, 后天很美好，但绝大多数人都死在明天晚上，看不见 后天的太阳。 Today is cruel and tomorrow is crueler. The day after tomorrow will be wonderful; however, most people die on tomorrow night and won’t see the sunshine the day after tomorrow.…
去网吧 (Qù wăngbā) Go to an Internet Cafe
Beginner Level 初级 (chūjí)
Dărăo yí xià, qĭngwèn “Internet Cafe” yòng hànyŭ zěnme shuō? A：打扰 一下，请问 “Internet Cafe” 用 汉语 怎么 说？ Excuse me, how to say “Internet Cafe” in Chinese? Ò, zhège ya, wŏmen jiào wăngbā. B：哦，这个呀， 我们 叫 网吧。 Well, we say “wăngbā.”…
寒假 (hánjià) Winter Vacation
The character “寒 (hán)” means cold and “假 (jià)” means vacation or holiday.
Example:
Wǒ dǎsuan lìyòng hánjià zài wǎngshàng xuéxiào xuéxí zhōngwén. 我打算利用寒假在网上学校学习中文。 I plan to learn Chinese through online Chinese school during winter vacation.
Got questions? HSK Test General Chinese (Beginner Level) General Chinese (Intermediate Level) …
期末 (qīmò) End of Semester/ End of Term
The character “期 (qī)” means semester and “末 (mò)” means end.
Qīmò jiùyào dào le, wǒ děi kāishǐ zhǔnbèi HSK kǎoshì le. 期末就要到了，我得开始准备HSK考试了。
The end of the semester is coming up soon, so I will be busy with my HSK preparation.…
开窍 (kāiqiào) Be enlightened/
The character “开 (kāi)” means to open and “窍 (qiào)” means aperture.
Example： Wǒ gěi tā jiěshìle hěnduō biàn, tā zhōngyú kāiqiào le. 我给他解释了很多遍，他终于开窍了。
I explained it to him many times. Finally, he became to understand it.
Got questions?…
没戏 (méixì) Hopeless
The character “没 (méi)” means not and “戏 (xì)” means play or show.
Wǒ hái méiyǒu jiēdào lùyòng tōngzhī, gūjì méixì le. 我还没有接到录用通知，估计没戏了。
I have not received an offer yet and I guess it is hopeless.…
无所谓 (wúsuǒwèi) Don’t care
The character “无 (wú)” means not; “所 (suǒ)” means that and “谓 (wèi)”
means to say. Example:
Zhōumò shuí qù cānjiā jùhuì duì wǒ dōu wúsuǒwèi, yīnwéi wǒ xiǎng huíjiā. 周末谁去参加聚会对我都无所谓，因为我想回家。
I don’t care who will go to the party over the weekend, because I want to go home.…
暑期计划 (shǔqī jìhuà) Summer Travel Plan Beginner Level 初级 (chūjí) A: Shǔjià yǒu shěnme ānpái ma? 暑假有什么安排吗？ Do you have any plans for your summer holiday?
B: Shǔjià wǒ cānjiā zhōngwén shǔqībān xué zhōngwén. 暑假我参加中文暑期班学中文。 I am going to take a summer Chinese program to learn Chinese.…
How to Master Chinese Tones? Questions: I’ve just started to learn Mandarin. How could I master Chinese tones?
Chinese tones are usually challenging for the beginning-level Mandarin learners. There are several suggestions for you on Chinese tones: First of all, memorize, memorize, and memorize. Try to remember the Chinese tones as much as possible.…
“雷 (léi)” & “山寨 (shānzhài)”
“雷 (léi)”
What does this word mean?
It has been one of the most popular Internet words since 2008. With the original meaning of thunder, the word “雷 (léi)” has been given another meaning on the web. Now it means that one is shocked by some bold actions, or by strange or even embarrassing things.…
辞旧迎新 (cíjiùyíngxīn) Ring out the Old Year and Ring in the New
The character “辞 (cí)” means to bid farewell; “旧 (jiù)” means old or
former; “迎 (yíng)” means to welcome and “新 (xīn)” means new. Example: Háizimen fàng biānpào lái cíjiùyíngxīn. 孩子们放鞭炮来辞旧迎新。
The children are setting off fireworks to see the old year out and welcome the new one.…
Correct answer: C Analysis: A. “Go to school” is the phrase for “上学 (shàngxué).” “上 (shàng)” means to go to and “学 (xué)” means school.
B. “Attend classes” is the phrase for “上课 (shàngkè).” “上 (shàng)” means to go to and “课 (kè)” means lesson.…
Correct answer: A Analysis: A. “冷 (lěng)” is the Chinese character for “cold.” B. “凉 (liáng)” is the Chinese character for “cool.” C. “热 (rè)” is the Chinese character for “hot.” D. “暖 (nuǎn)” is the Chinese character for “warm.”
Got questions?…
Correct answer: B Analysis: A. “Kuàikuàilèlè” is the Chinese pinyin for “快快乐乐cheerful.”
“快 (kuài)” means quick and “乐 (lè)” means cheerful.
B. “Mǎmǎhūhū” is the Chinese pinyin for “马马虎虎careless.” “马 (mǎ)” means horse and “虎 (hǔ)” means tiger.
C. “Tuántuányuányuán” is the Chinese pinyin for “团团圆圆 reunion.”…
Rúguǒ wǒmen bù chénggōng, yídìng yǒurén chénggōng; rúguǒ wǒmen bù chénggōng, hòuhuǐ de yídìng shì wǒmen zìjǐ.b 如果我们不成功，一定有人成功；如果我们不成功，后悔的一定是我们自己。 If we fail, there must be someone who will succeed; if we fail, it will be us who will regret. —from Ma Yun, CEO of Alibaba, one of the most famous e-commerce websites in China.…
蜗居(wōjū) Dwelling Narrowness
房价(fángjià) n. housing price
房奴(fángnú) n. mortgage slave
“蜗居(wōjū) Dwelling Narrownes” is probably the most popular TV series in 2009. It is about a new couple struggling for buying their first “房子(fángzi) house.” The script expresses a confusion of all the houseless families—“the speed of saving money never catches up with that of 房价(fángjià) housing price‘s上涨(shàngzhǎng) rise.”…
一千零一个愿望 (Yìqiān líng yígè yuànwàng) One Thousand and One Wishes
This is a beautiful and inspiring song, especially among young people in China. Listen to the song Míngtiān jiù xiàng hézi lǐ de qiǎokèlì táng. 明天就像盒子里的巧克力糖。 Tomorrow is like a box of chocolates. Shénme zīwè？ 什么滋味？ What is it like?…
赠送 (zèngsòng) Present as a Gift/ Give as a Gift
The character “赠 (zèng)” means to present and “送 (sòng)” means to send
or to give.
Jiàoshòu xiàng xuéyuàn zèngsòng le yìfú mínghuà. 教授向学院赠送了一幅名画。
The professor gave a famous painting to the university as a gift.…
喜庆 (xǐqìng) Happy Event/ Festival/ Jollit
The character “喜 (xǐ)” means happy and “庆 (qìng)” means to celebrate.
Example:
Xīnnián shì gè xǐqìng tuányuán de rìzi. 新年是个喜庆团圆的日子。
New Year is a time for happiness and reunion. Got questions?
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