User Comments - dave1973

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dave1973

Posted on: How to Say Hello
August 16, 2019, 11:25 PM

When Constance says

"今天我们要说的是。。。“ Jīntiān wǒmen yào shuō de shì

Does this mean today we will talk about?  Can you explain the grammar of 说的是?  How does that mean talk about?

Second question is I thought Chinese grammar is subject + time and this seems to be time + subject.  Are both acceptable?

Thanks

Posted on: I Had A Nightmare
November 16, 2015, 04:01 PM

I can never remember the difference between alligator and crocodile.  So 鳄鱼 suits me just fine. 

Posted on: 11.11 Singles Day
November 12, 2015, 02:57 PM

My boss says she is not 老板 but is 经理.  Is it regional?  She is from 重庆.

Posted on: The God of Thunder
July 31, 2015, 02:54 PM

Maybe I am just old and not caught up Marvel Mania, but my first thought was Raiden instead of Thor.

Posted on: Can Your Kid Speak Yet?
July 08, 2015, 10:30 PM

In the expansion section is 洗一洗 which seems grouped together as a single word.  Are these three characters a single word or some kind of grammatical construct?  Thanks.

Posted on: Haggle For A Good Deal
May 24, 2015, 06:15 PM

Thank you for the great lesson.  I thought numbers were complicated enough with the use of 万(wàn). So if 2500 is 两千五 (liǎngqiānwǔ) then would 2005 be  两千零零五(liǎngqiānlínglíngwǔ) or 两千零五(liǎngqiānlíngwǔ)?

Posted on: Who's That Over There?
March 25, 2015, 03:33 PM

The supplementary vocabulary lists 眼睛 (yǎnjīng) as having a first tone as Fiona states in the lesson itself.  However, the ChinesePod glossary lists 眼睛 (yǎnjing) as having a neutral tone.  Some online dictionaries show first tone and others show neutral.  Is this a regional difference and is one considered more standard than the other?

Posted on: If Not You, then Who?
March 20, 2015, 07:37 PM

In the exercises the sentence:

我不会__,你找别人吧。(wǒ bùhuì__, nǐ zhào biéren ba)

The correct answer was 做 (zuò) making it "I'm not doing it, find someone else."

But another choice was 吃 (chī) which I thought would also fit making it "I'm not eating it, find someone else."  or even just "I'm not eating".  Is that incorrect?

Posted on: If Not You, then Who?
March 13, 2015, 07:20 PM

I was wondering if the inspiration for this lesson was the Life cereal commercial.  When the verb substitution turned out to be 吃 (chī) to eat I figured it was no longer coincidence.

I've been studying long enough to know that subjects, objects and pronouns are frequently dropped from sentences, but can you really just start a conversation with 你做不做? (nǐ zuò bú zuò?) This, to me, leaves the world of telegraphic and enters the realm of downright cryptic.

Posted on: Beijing's Ring Roads
December 11, 2014, 10:31 PM

After listening to this lesson maybe 20 times it suddenly occurred to me, is there no 一环 (yīhuán)?