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Collected Chinese Word of the Day posts in Random Order
Most recent addition from June 16/2011
临行 and 临刑
(pinyin for both is lín xíng)
pronounced the same but the first
means "before departure" and the second means "before carrying out a
death sentence". Think about the way this potential confusion
could be used.
鞭长莫及
(biān cháng mò jí literally "whip long nothing reach)
beyond the reach of the whip = be too far away for authority to
reach
哭鼻子
(kū bízi literally cry + nose)
whine, which of course is
crying through the nose. Delightful.
This is the word for whine our Chinese teacher, Chen Fu, gave us, but
it's not in Wenlin or in Pleco. Wenlin gives "whine" as 吭唧 (kēngji
literally "throat/utter a sound + squirt) which doesn't strike me as
accurate. Pleco does better with 哼鼻子 (hēng bízi literally "groan,
snort; hum" + "nose"). I like that one, but I like the one Chen Fu
gave us, which is probably very oral and may be regional..
不好意思
(bù hǎo yìsi)
feel embarrassed ②find it embarrassing
工作
(gōng zuò literally "work" + "do") n. work or job
Bonus word, 饭碗
(fànwǎn literally "rice bowl) = 1. rice bowl 2. job, means of
livelihood
公园
(gōngyuán literally public + garden)
n. park
分心
(fēn xīn literally "divide" + "heart")
v./n distract or
distraction. A divided heart is distracted.
旅游
(lǚ yóu literally "travel" + "swim/float")
tour
笑话
(xiào hua)
n. joke
约会
(yuēhui)
n. appointment, engagement, date
持续
(chí xù)
persist
技术
(jì shù)
n. technology, skill, technique
割包皮
(gē bāopí literally "cut" + "wrap" + "skin")
v.o. circumcise
报纸
(bào zhǐ literally "report paper")
n. newspaper
锻炼
(duàn liàn)
v. engage in physical exercise
关系
(guānxi)
n. relation; relationship
抽烟
(chōu yān)
v. smoke cigarette (About the only think I don't like
about China. It's still a smoking country.)
白鹭鸟
(bái lù niǎo literally "white" + "egret" + "bird")
egret or white
crane
新年快乐
(xīn nián kuài lè litterally "new" + "year" + "happy")
Happy
New Year
回忆
(huí yì literally return + remember)
v./n. recollect; recall or
memory
烟花鞭炮
(yānhuā biānpào literally "smoke flower whip canon")
fireworks
刀子嘴 豆腐心
(dāozi zuǐ dòufu xīn literally "knife mouth, tofu heart")
bark
worse then bite
日程表
(rì chéng biǎo literally day+ procedure + table/list)
n.
schedule; agenda
春节
(Chūn jié)
n. Spring Festival (Lunar New Year)
假期
(jià qī literally "borrow" + "time")
n. holiday, vacation
典礼
(diǎn lǐ )
n. ceremony; celebration
租
(zū)
v. rent; lease
圣诞老人
(Shèng dàn lǎo rén literally "holy born old person")
n. Santa Claus
好玩
(hào wán literally "good + play")
fun
怒气
(nù qì literally "anger" + "vital energy")
n. anger; rage; fury
圣诞节
(Shèng dàn jié literally "holy" + "birth" + "festival")
Christmas
感谢
(gǎn xiè)
v./n. thank; be grateful
野地
(yě dì literally "wild earth")
wilderness
恭喜
(gōng xǐ)
congratulations
巧事
(qiǎo shì literally "coincidental event")
coincidence
蜜月
(mì yuè literally "honey month")
honeymoon (it's still happening
for us)
美国
(měi guó literally "beautiful country")
the United States of
America
驾照
(jià zhào literally "drive + license; permit)
n. driver's
license
牙医
(yá yī literally "tooth doctor")
dentist
雾化吸入
(wù huà xī rù literally "fog change inhale enter")
atomizer
inhaler (for putting a fog into my lungs)
清真教
(Qīng zhēn jiào literally "clear true teach")
Islamism
减速带
(jiǎn sù dài literally "reduce speed belt")
speed bump
关系 (guān xi)
relationship
无神论者
(wú shén lùn zhě literally "without god theory" + nominalizer
meaning "one who")
n. atheist
暴躁
(bào zào literally violent impetuous)
high maintenance
oldest addition from January 1, 2010
圣诞
(Shèng dàn jié literally birth God festival)
Christmas
跳伞 (tiào sǎn literally "jump umbrella" Note that sǎn, "umbrella",
actually looks like one 伞)
v. o. parachute; bail out
马上
(mǎ shàng literally "horse up")
right away
你别瞪着鼻子上脸
(nǐ bié dèng zhe bí zi shàng liǎn
literally "don't get nose up face" )
don't get your nose out of joint, don't get snooty, don't get your
knickers in a knot
___________________________________________________________
个体主义
(gè tǐ zhǔ yì literally
"individual doctrine")
best candidate so far as a translation of
"individualism". My dictionary translates "individualism" into
个人主义 (gè rén zhǔ yì
literally "individual person doctrine") but that translation is always
given a very negative connotation by my students, as you can see on the
banner photograph at the top of this page.
以 人主义
(yǐ rén zhǔ
yì)
using person doctrine
特例独行
(tè lì dú
xíng)
special case insist on one's own way (student defined as
"inventive, original")
自主
(zì zhǔ)
act
independently (student defined as "autonomy")
自我实现
(zì wǒ shí
xiàn)
self-realization; self-fulfillment (student defined as "realize
individual value")
有主见的人
(yǒu
zhǔ jiàn de rén)
know one's own mind person (student defined as
someone who has thoughts of his or her own and keeps the position
unwavering. Someone who has principles in his life.)
独立 (dú lì)
independent (student defined as "be independent")
人本主义
(rén běn zhǔ
yì)
human-centered thinking (student defined as "humanism")
___________________________________________
分享
(fēn xiǎng literally "divide enjoy")
v. share
自行车
(zì xíng chē literally "self go vehicle")
bicycle
难以置信
(nán yǐ zhì xìn
literally difficult to believe)
unbelievable
正
(zhèng)
right, straight, correct
气喘吁吁
(qì chuǎn xū xū literally "air pant puff puff")
breathe
hard or pant
小费
(xiǎo fèi literally "small fee")
tip or gratuity
野餐桌
(yě cān zhuō literally "wild meal table")
picnic
table
把玩
(bǎ wán literally "grasp" plus "play")
fondle
结果
(jié guǒ literally "form fruit")
result
静夜思
(jìng yè sī literally "silence of the
night thought/longing")
nostalgia
乡愁 (xiāng chóu literally "hometown worry")
homesickness
绕口令
(rào kǒu lìng literally "coil mouth command") n.
tongue-twister
example:
四十四只石狮子 (sì shí sì zhǐ
shí shī zi note the tones) 44 stone lions
万花 筒 (wàn huā tǒng literally "thousand flowers
tube")
kaleidoscope
难怪
(nán guài literally
"difficult strange")
no wonder
看不见
(kàn bu jiàn literally "look not see")
invisible
歌德派
(gē dé pài literally "song + virtue/morality/ethics/kindness/heart +
group/faction")
Pollyanna
鸡蛋碰石头
(jī dàn pèng shí tou)
Literally "egg meets rock". This very descriptive idiom is used
for an enterprise that is doomed to failure or a quixotic charge into
futility.
The character 碰 (pèng) has several meanings, giving this phrase a
certain richness:
v. ①touch; knock against ②meet; encounter; run into ③take a chance;
explore
乌龟蛋
(wū guī dàn literally "turtle egg")
bastard (slang)
玉米花 or 爆米花
(yù mǐ huā or bào mǐ huā literally "corn flower" or "explode corn
flower")
popcorn
随便
(suí biàn literally "follow convenient")
casual, careless,
wanton, willful, as one pleases
制片人
(zhì piàn rén literally "system component person")
movie producer
混响
(hùn xiǎng n. literally "mix loud")
reverberation
驯服母老虎
(xùn fú mǔ lǎo hǔ - tame the tigress)
Working title
for a Chinese language adaptation of "The Taming of the Shrew"
乐此不疲
( lè cǐ bù pí literally pleasure this not exhausted)
never be bored
- idiom applicable to tedious hobbies like plaiting a whip.
印象深刻
(yìnxiàng shēnkè literally "print image deeply")
impressed.
公牛
鞭子
(gōng niú biān zi )
bull whip (I'll start making one as soon as I
can find a bridge spike and some lead shot.)
绝食
(jué shí literally absolutely cut off + eat)
fast, go on a
hunger strike
都下不了脚了
(dōu xià bù liǎo jiǎo le literally "all not less than foot") = no room
to put down feet/ room is a mess.
尊重宗教信仰
(zūn zhòng zōng jiào xìn yǎng)
respect religious belief
导盲犬
(dǎo máng quǎn literally guide blind dog)
seeing eye dog
你赶火车吗?
(nǐ gǎn huǒchē
ma
literally "You catch a train?")
You've got a train to catch?
You're in a hurry? The same thing we
might say if somebody is in a restless hurry.
First word of the day post done on September 11, 2009
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