English  English

  English-French
  English-Spanish
  English-German
  English-Portuguese
  English-Russian
  English-Chinese
  English-Korean
  English-Japanese

Chinese   Chinese
French   French
German   German
Italian   Italian
Japanese   Japanese
Korean   Korean
Portuguese   Portuguese
Russian   Russian
Spanish   Spanish

Reviews Users * Journals * More Users

Screenshots


Custom Search



Top     Links     About Us     E-mail Us   


  Chapter 6 - Sitting at the Table


  Vocabulary


饭馆fànguǎnrestaurant
果汁guǒzhījuice
可口可乐Kěkǒu KělèCoca-Cola
汽水qìshuǐsoda
菜 单càidānmenu
餐巾cānjīnnapkin
筷子kuàizichopsticks
杯子bēizicup
玻璃杯bōlibēiglass
匙子chízispoon
瓢子píaozispoon (big)
叉子chāzifork
刀子dāoziknife
酱油jìangyóusoy sauce
奶油nǎiyóubutter
黄油huángyóubutter
碗wǎnbowl
盘子pánzidish
瓶子píngzibottle
茶chátea
水shuǐwater
牛奶níunǎimilk
汤tāngsoup
青菜qīngcàigreen vegetables
饭fànrice, food
米mǐrice
麺mìannoodles
炒chǎofried

 Look at the Characters

水
米
館
shuǐ
mǐ
fàn
water
rice
cooked rice, food

New Combinations

喝水
水星
水銀
水果
水手
水文

米粉
米色
米飯
米酒
米黄
米粒

吃館
館店
館桶
館碗
館桌
館票
館量

水洩不通
水中橯月
 (drink + water)
(water + planet)
(water + silver)
(water + fruit)
(water + hand)
(water + study)

(rice + powder)
(rice + color)
(rice + food)
(rice + wine)
(rice + yellow)
(rice + kernel)

(eat + food)
(rice + shop)
(rice + bucket)
(rice + bowl)
(rice + table)
(rice + ticket)
(rice + capacity)

(water leaks not through
(water middle catch moon
drink water
Mercury
mercury
fruit
sailor
hydrology

ground rice, rice flour
cream-colored
cooked rice
rice wine
cream-colored
grain of rice

dine
restaurant
big eater, good-for-nothing
means of livelihood, job
dining table
meal ticket, meal card
appetite

very crowded
fish for the moon, fruitless attempt
 hē shuǐ
Shuǐxīng
shǔiyín
shuǐguǒ
shuǐshǒu
shuǐwén

mǐfěn
mǐsè
mǐfàn
mǐjǐu
mǐhuáng
mǐlì

chī fàn
fàndìan
fàntǒng
fànwǎn
fànzhuō
fànpìao
fànlìang

shuǐxìebùtōng
shuǐzhōnglàoyuè

Look at the Language

1. Asking a Question

There are two general ways to phrase a question in Chinese. The first is to attach a special "question particle" word, such as "ma" to the end of the sentence:


你會說英文.
你會說英文嗎?
他要湯.
他要湯嗎?
你要買花.
你要買花嗎?
你好嗎?
Nín huì shuō Yīngwén.
Nín huí shuō Yīngwén ma?
Tā yào tāng.
Tā yào tāng ma?
Nǐ yào mǎi huā.
Nǐ yào mǎi huā ma?
Ni hao ma?
You can speak English.
Can you speak English?
He wants soup.
Does he want soup?
You want to buy a flower.
Do you want to buy a flower?
How are you?

The second method is to take the negating word bu and wrap the verb around both sides of it:

懂
不懂
你懂不懂?

好
不好
好不好?

買
不買
你買不買花
dǒng
bùdǒng
Nǐ dǒngbùdǒng?

hǎo
bùhǎo
Hǎobùhǎo

mǎi
bùmǎi
Nǐ mǎibùmǎi huā?
understand
not understand
Do you understand? (You understand, not understand?)

OK, good
not good
OK? (Good (or) not good?)...How are you?

buy
not buy
Are you going to buy a flower?

One exception to this format – use mei instead of bu when asking a question with the verb you (have). The you mei you pattern is quite frequently and very widely used:

有
沒有

有沒有錢?
我沒有錢.

你有沒有汽車?
他有沒有糖?
yǒu
méiyǒu

Yǒuméiyǒu qían?
Wǒ méiyǒu qían.

Nǐ yǒuméiyǒu qìchē?
Tā yǒuméiyǒu táng?
 have, own, possess, there is
not have, none

Do you have any money (have/no have money)?
I don't have any money (I no have money).

Do you have a car?
Does he have candy?

Still another way to ask a question is to put in a "question word", such as shei (who) or shenme (what):

她是誰?

他是誰?
Tā shì shéi?

Tā shì shéi?
Who is that (she is who)?

Who is that (he is who)?
這是甚麼東西?
那是甚麼顏色?
你的房子在什麼地方?
Zhè shì shénme dōngxi?
Nà shì shénme yánsè ?
Nǐde fángzi zài shénme difang?
What is this? (This is what thing?)
What color is this? (That is what color?)
Where is your house? (Your house at what location?)

N.B.: shénme (what) is commonly written more simply:

甚麼 = 什麼 or = 甚么 or = 什么