I’ve been giving a lot of thought lately — and I mean a LOT of thought — to my Chinese name. Of course, not being Chinese myself, I’m at something of a disadvantage. (I know I’ve had some of you fooled on this point, what with me being so awesome with the language and all. […]
Archive for the 'Vocabulary' Category
Dragonflies and Chinese names
Published by January 21st, 2008 in Regional/cultural and Vocabulary. 4 CommentsI’m totally in love with this particle: 吧。
It’s just the coolest little thing. I hear it more and more these days, and I’ve even begun injecting into my own conversations online and via Skype.
For those of you in the Great White North, this must be the most natural particle in the world. It’s roughly equivalent […]
I posted my last entry into another blog somewhere and I had an awesome back and forth with a friend of mine who lives in Hong Kong. She helped clarify things for me a bit about the way the Chinese denote time. I wouldn’t quite call it a “breakthrough,” but it certainly increased my comfort […]
When? With whom? Together?
Published by November 27th, 2007 in Vocabulary and ChinesePod. 6 CommentsWhen people ask me why I started to learn Chinese, I’m reminded of that moment in Dead Poets Society where Mr. Keating (played so expertly by Robin Williams) tells his students the purpose of language: “To woo women.”
Now, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it does have some kernel of truth. I’ve always wanted […]
