User Comments - John
John
Posted on: How to Weigh an Elephant
September 13, 2011 at 6:31 AMThe relevant story about Archimedes (阿基米德): The Golden Crown. (spoiler alert!)
Posted on: Los Angeles
September 13, 2011 at 3:10 AMHi! Good questions.
For 加班 (jiābān), the "have to" was added in to make the translation smoother. In English, we usually say "have to work overtime" because without "have to" it might sound like they're doing it of their own initiative. But 加班 (jiābān) definitely implies "having to" work overtime.
As for the next sentence, the 没好 (méi hǎo) just means "didn't get (totally) better." There's no implied 起来 (qǐlai).
Posted on: What's Your Name?
September 13, 2011 at 3:05 AMAre you talking about the second sentence in the dialogue?
你叫什么名字？ (Nǐ jiào shénme míngzi?)
There's no "ma" because it's not a yes/no question. It's a question word question, the question word being 什么 (shénme), "what."
Posted on: Airport Check-In Problems
September 13, 2011 at 2:30 AMWe say similarly repetitive things in English, like "due to natural causes."
You can't just say "由於天氣." As for exactly why, I'll let the native speakers chime in...
Posted on: What's That Website?
September 13, 2011 at 2:12 AMSteve,
Glad you find it useful! I point it out precisely because I myself have found this kind of help useful in my own studies.
Posted on: Field Trip to the Zoo
September 6, 2011 at 6:04 AMHi! Good question.
There is a tone change rule involving 一. According to the rule, the pronunciation of 一 often changes from "yī" to "yì" (or "yí"). However, according to the rules of pinyin, 一 should still be written as "yī" in pinyin. Learners of Chinese need to be familiar with the rule and pronounce it correctly accordingly. Thus, the correct pinyin transcription for 一 should be "yī", and we will fix any inconsistencies.
As for 一直 versus 总是, as a general rule, the former emphasizes a peristent, unchanging state (not being hope, working practically non-stop, being in someone's heart, etc.), while the later is often something that happens repeatedly and consistently (forgetting something, asking questions, coming to work late, etc.).
Posted on: Just Call Me...
September 2, 2011 at 2:13 AMThat's not such a bad kind of confusion (considering the alternative).
It forces you to explain your name over and over, which is kind of annoying, but on the other hand, it's also good Chinese practice!
Posted on: Just Call Me...
September 2, 2011 at 2:11 AMYes, that's because my Chinese name is 潘吉 (Pān Jí).
I don't use it that much (only for certain things).
Posted on: Resume Revisions
August 31, 2011 at 5:27 AM哈哈，Jenny很聪明！
Posted on: Airport Check-In Problems
September 13, 2011 at 10:18 AMYes, you can move it around like that. Your sentence is also correct.
刚好 is usually placed together with a time, emphasizing that the two happen to coincide.