Zhāng Qíng: Xiàzhōu jiùyào qīmòkǎoshì le! 张晴： 下周 就要 期末考试 了！ Zhang Qing: We will have the final exam next week!
Lǐ Chéng: Shìya. Nǐ fùxí de zěnmeyàng le? 李成： 是呀。你复习得 怎么样 了？ Li Cheng: Yeah. How’s your preparation going?
Zhāng Qíng: Hái méi kāishǐ …
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Bìngrén: Yīsheng, zhèzhǒng yào zěnme chī? 病人: 医生， 这种 药 怎么 吃？ Patient: Doctor, how is this medicine to be taken? Yīsheng: Yìtiān chī sān___, yí __chī liǎngpiàn. 医生: 一天 吃 三 ___，一__吃 两片。 Doctor: …
In Chinese, a classifier is special and some classifiers are easily confused in meaning and usage, like “次(cì)” and “遍(biàn).” “次(cì)” and “遍(biàn)” both can be used to describe frequency or how many times you have done something. However, “次(cì)” emphasizes the frequency of a …
In last week’s test, we learned about the idiom “喝西北风(hē xīběifēng)”, which means getting nothing to eat or having to live on air. Now in this issue we will get to know about two other kinds of “风(fēng)”: “东风(dōngfēng)” and “耳边风(ěrbiānfēng).”
“东风(dōngfēng)” …
Correct Answer: B “给(gěi)” In the Chinese language, “给(gěi)” is most frequently used as the verb “to give.” Example Gěi wǒ yìbēi chá. 给 我 一杯 茶。 Please give me a cup of tea. But in phrases such as, “给你打电话 (gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà) give …
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Nǐ míngtiān ___ wǒ dǎ diànhuà. Wǒ yào ___ nǐ yìqǐ qù chāoshì. 你 明天 ___ 我 打 电话。 我 要 ___ 你 一起 去 超市。 Please call me tomorrow. I want to go to …
Correct Answer: B In the Chinese language, both “过(guò)” and “了(le)” can be used following verbs to show that something has happened.
They are both usually used in the same structure: Subject + Verb + “过(guò)” / “了(le).”
However, their precise meanings differ from one …
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Zhāng Wěi: Wǒ zuì xǐhuan chī de Zhōng’guó cài shì Běijīng kǎoyā. Nǐ chī __ ma? 张 伟：我 最 喜欢 吃 的 中国 菜 是 北京 烤鸭。 你 吃 __ 吗？ Zhang Wei: My favorite …
Answer: B The translation of “喝西北风(hēxīběifēng)” is “to drink the northwest wind.” It is a Chinese idiom which means getting nothing to eat or, essentially, having to live on air. The idiom comes from the philosophy of Taoism — “吸风(xīfēng) to absorb the air,” which …
In the Chinese language there are many interesting idioms, or turns of phrase. How many do you know? How about the following one? What is the implied meaning of the Chinese idiom – “喝西北风(hēxīběifēng)”? A. to predict the weather B. to have nothing to eat …
Answer: B In option A, “蜜蜂(mìfēng)” means “bee” and “蜂蜜(fēngmì)” means “honey.” In B, “苹果(píngguǒ)” is “apple” but the character combination “果苹(guǒpíng)” doesn’t hold any meaning in Chinese. In option C, “国王(guówáng)” refers to “a king” and “王国(wángguó)” is his “kingdom.” Finally, in D, “白雪(báixuě)” …
In Chinese, some two-character words or phrases will take on new meanings if the order of the two characters is swapped. For example, “牛奶(niúnǎi)” means “milk” but “奶牛(nǎiniú)” means “cow”, “喜欢(xǐhuān)” is “to like” but “欢喜(huānxǐ)” is “happy”, and “刷牙(shuāyá)” means “to brush one’s teeth” …
Try this test to check your mastery of the pinyin of “扫地” and “扫把”. Please choose the correct answer to fill in the blanks. Zhāng Yáng zhèngzài yòng ( ) ( ). 张 阳 正在 用 扫把 扫地。 Zhang Yang is sweeping the floor with …
Answer: C In Chinese there are a few polyphones, or characters with multiple pronunciations, “扫(sǎo/sào)” in the test is one of them. The two pronunciations of “扫(sǎo/sào)” express different meanings. “扫(sǎo)” means “sweep” in English, as in to clean the dust and rubbish away, like …
Answer: B “对(duì)” and “双(shuāng)” are two Chinese measure words. They can both be translated as “a pair of” in English, and there are only a few differences between them. In the Chinese language, “双(shuāng)” is used to describe things that often come in pairs …
Please choose the correct answer to fill in the blanks. Wǒ xīn mǎi le _____ yùndòngxié hé _____ ěrhuán. 我 新 买 了 _____ 运动鞋 和 _____ 耳环。 I bought a new _____ sneakers and _____ earrings. A. 一对(yíduì), 一双(yìshuāng)
B. 一双(yìshuāng), 一对(yíduì)
Answer: A In Chinese, “经常(jīngcháng)” and “通常(tōngcháng)” are both used as adverbials. “经常(jīngcháng)” means “often or frequently”, which is a time adverbial emphasizing that the action happens many times, and that the time between each occurrence is very short. On the other hand, “通常(tōngcháng)” means …
In Chinese, we use “经常(jīngcháng)” or “通常(tōngcháng)” to express frequency. Do you know the differences between the two? Take the following test to have a try! Wǒ zuìjìn _____ jiābān. 我 最近 _____ 加班。 I _____ work overtime these days. A. 经常(jīngcháng)
B. 通常(tōngcháng)
