User Comments - sclim
sclim
Posted on: Strong
July 4, 2011 at 12:47 AMSouthern Jenny: I was looking up强, and because I'm interested in the derivation of words, my dictionary is set to display the "full" form, and I got 強. How wierd is this? They authorities authorized a "simple" form that takes longer to write than the "full" form!!这么奇怪!
Posted on: Strong
July 4, 2011 at 12:13 AMEn Anglais, we have borrowed, aussi, the phrase, "mot juste", and to be able to use it with facility (facilité) is considered a mark of erudition (érudition). Goodness, Anglish (-Saxonish) hasn't been the same since your countryman William took over 一千年以前 in 1066.
Posted on: Chinese Ethnic Minorities
July 3, 2011 at 11:06 PMCHINESEPOD: Apart from the fact that it's bigger and has a horse head ornament stuck on top (purely cosmetic), it's basically an overgrown二胡. I understand there is a larger version of 二胡called高胡. What are the essential differences between高胡and马头琴?
Posted on: Chinese Ethnic Minorities
July 3, 2011 at 10:56 PMwow, that's amazing -- how close the musical sensibilities of Traditional Mongolian and Appalachian music overlap.
Posted on: Strong
July 2, 2011 at 11:06 PM"Formidable!"...oh, I guess you know that already...pardon, Je m'excuse. (Actually it's the same word in English, although pronounced our own wierd way)*
*Bababardwan and Bodawei take note, this is an excellent example of our "same spelling, different pronunciation" discussion.
Posted on: Swearing at a Driver
July 2, 2011 at 10:19 PMHey, Southern Jenny: there is a phenomenon in English use where "Darn" (Or "Dash" in pre-1970's British Empire) is used for "Damn", at least in the era and locations where "Damn" was considered too offensive to say aloud, and "frickin'" or "friggin'" or "freakin'" for the "f"-word that will remain unvoiced. Could 靠 be a similar euphemism for the "c" word? It seems so phonetically close, with 4th tone and everything, it rhymes, and you say it without your mouth being closed -- it's the perfect situation for when you think "c--4" and say "kao4"
Posted on: Swearing at a Driver
July 2, 2011 at 10:08 PMHe must be from Southern Alberta = Bible Belt country.
Posted on: Swearing at a Driver
July 2, 2011 at 10:05 PM"DWC" reminds me about rude jokes my friends used to make about me, and other obviously recent Chinese immigrants on the streets of Calgary with pathetic driving skills, or rather, flagrant disdain for traffic rules. On a play on a common traffic infraction citation designation "DWI"= "Driving While under the Influence (of Alcohol)", they would mutter "DWO" (="Driving While Oriental"). whenever I would make a bad turn, etc. Fortunately, I have a thick skin, and I thought it was hilarious.
Posted on: Why is everyone looking at me?
July 2, 2011 at 9:35 PMIt's "Whom are you talking about"?
OK, youming8088, I don't know who you are, so don't take this the wrong way. Indeed, you are technically correct. As in another oft-quoted example:
"...and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee. "
However, in this example, note the use of the word 'thee", which reflects the date of publication (1839). If your primary language is not English, you should be advised that "thee" is only used in a literary, ironic or Biblical context nowadays.
"whom" is not obsolete by any means. But it's use borders on the pedantic, at least where I live (urban North America). Sure, when I was young, "whom" was drilled into me with a wooden ruler by my English teachers. But (disclosure), I'm really ancient, so that training is now useless. For the sake of the primarily Chinese speakers (or non-Anglophones) lurking here, "whom" is only used nowadays by sniffy librarians in glasses who can't get dates. (****Political Incorrectness Alert****). If you're a non-Anglophone, I guess you can't win -- you can use "whom" to get points for having the know-how to use it grammatically correctly. But you lose points for sounding a little stiff. Or vice versa.
Posted on: Why is everyone looking at me?
July 4, 2011 at 1:15 AMI do apologise: I really didn't intend this to be ad hominem. I do admit I took a long time to express it, but I still think it is a valid point that in modern English usage, "whom" is used less and less often. The dredging up of an archaic example was to illustrate that "whom" is technically correct, but I hoped the "thee" would help non-native English speakers date the vintage of that usage. I certainly would welcome every help I could get in a foreign language, and I was merely trying to repay the favour. Again, sorry for causing offense.