User Comments - pearltowerpete
pearltowerpete
Posted on: Fighting over the Bill
June 13, 2009 at 4:14 AMHi jweissgerber
Good question. This is a little difficult to explain briefly here. Please check out the Qing Wen on 把.
If you have more specific questions after that, please send me a personal message or leave a post on the discussion boards.
Posted on: To do
June 13, 2009 at 4:10 AMHi changye,
我也搞不清楚！ ;-)
Hi bill,
I am listening to the 12 MB file with no trouble. Could you try refresh, and clear your cache?
Posted on: To do
June 13, 2009 at 1:41 AMHi all:
Here are today's phrases, courtesy of Connie
办事 bànshì to take care of something (a matter, a piece of business)
办好了 bàn hǎole taken care of
弄坏 nònghuài to bust, to wreck
弄丢 nòng diū to misplace, to lose
你把我的笔弄坏了。 Nǐ bǎ wǒ de bǐ nònghuài le. You busted my pen.
你把我的钱弄丢了。 Nǐ bǎ wǒ de qián nòng diū le. You lost my money!
是我自己把钱弄丢的。我弄错了。 Shì wǒzìjǐ bǎ qián nòng diū de. Wǒ nòngcuò le. I was the one who lost my money. I screwed up.
弄清楚 nòng qīngchǔ To get things clear/straight.
我把衣服弄脏了。 Wǒ bǎ yīfu nòngzāng le. I got my clothes all dirty.
搞坏了 gǎo huài le Wrecked
搞丢了 gǎo diū le Lost
搞清楚 gǎo qīngchǔ to understand, get clear about
我是搞音乐的。 Wǒ shì gǎo yīnyuè de. I work in music (modest, informal)
我是搞语言的。 Wǒ shì gǎo yǔyán de. I work in languages (modest, informal)
你是搞销售的。 Nǐ shì gǎo xiāoshòu de. I work in sales (modest, informal)
搞政治 gǎo zhèngzhì To work in politics, government
你帮我搞一下。 Nǐ bāng wǒ gǎo yīxià. Help me do it (fiddle with, tinker with)
搞定 gǎo dìng Take care of (often by using semi-legal or illicit methods or connections)
很搞得定 hěn gǎo de dìng To be a real "fixer," one who takes care of things
什么事、什么人他都能搞得定。 Shénme shì, shénme rén tā dōu néng gǎo de dìng. He can take care of any problem or anybody
弄好了 nòng hǎo le All fixed up
弄明白 nòng míngbai To get something straight, clear. To understand (informal)
Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 11: Wang in the Doghouse
June 13, 2009 at 1:19 AMHi dangrayson,
The tone of the line in the dialogue is different from other English appositives that we are more familiar with-- for example, "We, the people of the United States..." Its effect is not to clarify who 你 is. This is already clear. Instead, it is to single 你 out for criticism, to put 你 on the spot. In this way, it intensifies the social awkwardness of the exchange, which is the speaker's goal. This is a matter of tone and intensity, rather than specifying the subject.
Translating the phrase as you have suggested would convey the literal meaning of each word, which does have a certain amount of educational value. But my basic duty here is to convey the meaning and tone of the phrase. Such meaning comes from word choice, tone of voice, context and punctuation. It would not be conveyed by including "this person." A native speaker of English would not say that in an argument.
I understand your frustration with the different uses of phrases such as 这个人 and 那个地方. Here, the 这个人 puts Lao Wang on the spot, and makes it impossible to dodge the fact that he's the one being talked about. If Chinese wish to make a lower-intensity criticism, there are ways. When my girlfriend starts a sentence with 有的人... I can generally assume that I have left crumbs on the table again. That construction merely states that "some people [do something that is annoying]." It is much more face-saving.
Other similar constructions, such as 那个地方 after the name of a place, are just empty words. The first time I heard a person buy a train ticket to 兰州，那个地方 I asked a friend if he said that because there are so many homonyms in Chinese and he wanted the seller to know that he was going to the place, Lanzhou, and not some other Lanzhou! But my friend just smiled and replied that this kind of wordiness doesn't convey any information. But it serves the important role of making the phrase seem more friendly, less abrupt.
As always, context and a certain amount of cultural background are vital in understanding the meaning rather than just the words. Thank you for your detailed questions, and please keep asking whenever something is unclear.
Posted on: Welcome to ChinesePod
June 12, 2009 at 8:34 AMHi 8811777
There is a first time for everything.
Posted on: What's Your Surname?
June 12, 2009 at 7:52 AMHi chwaseef
Pakistan is 巴基斯坦 ba1ji1si1tan3.
Posted on: Pre-Marital Health Testing
June 11, 2009 at 11:43 PMHi huasen,
It's never to late to ask a question. If you think one of the CPod moderators won't see it on a board, please copy/paste it to me, shenyajin or matt_c.
提前預防總比到時候出了事強吧
Let's break this sentence down. 提前 means "in advance." 预防 is "to take measures against." 总 means "always," 比 shows comparison. This is the part that feels unfinished-- we will finish it in a bit.
到时候 is a common set phrase, meaning "then, or when the time comes." In a strictly logical sense it's a tautology-- of course something happens when the time comes :-) But people say it all the time. 出事儿 is to have something happen, usually bad, so we can understand it as "to have a problem arise." And then 强 "strong, better" completes the 比 phrase from earlier on. The 吧 softens the tone and seeks agreement.
This kind of sentence is difficult for non-native speakers because there is more stuff between the 比 and the final adjective that completes the 比 phrasse than we are used to seeing. (ex： 北京比上海好玩）.
If this is unclear, please ask again, either on the board or in a message.
Posted on: Dubai
June 11, 2009 at 11:34 PMHi joeborn,
In this phrase, the 可 adds emphasis. It's the equivalent of 真的 -- "We really can't afford..."
The meaning of the sentence would be the same without it.
Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 11: Wang in the Doghouse
June 11, 2009 at 11:24 AMHi dangrayson,
I'm not a native speaker, but I would like to answer your question. You can't add a 是 or a 的 to the phrase 你这个人就知道混日子 in the way you have suggested. It just wouldn't mean anything.
On the other hand, you could say 你是个知道混日子的人, which would have the same meaning.
Adding a 的 where you wanted to reminds me a little bit of the rude construction 你 （他妈的）(plus noun phrase or adjective to describe 你）. But that is a very different construction, and a much harsher meaning.
I hope this explanation helps. If not, please post again or send me a personal message.
Posted on: To do
June 13, 2009 at 4:29 AMHi heroius,
Thanks for the dialect info. 整 took on a darker meaning during the political upheaval of the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. Interesting how a euphemism can conceal very ugly behavior.
Hi onetone,
Please be polite. Sfrrr raised good points. This site is about learning. We can all use helpful feedback.