When I learned English, I always made some mistakes which known as \u2018Chinglish\u2019 where I would use English in a Chinese way. Now as a Chinese teacher, I know the words or grammar points that I struggled with are difficult for my native English-speaking students as well. It\u2019s a huge topic that I don\u2019t think I can talk about it in one sitting.. So I decided to start with some very simple and common verbs. Before you start to read, please promise me you won\u2019t tell others that I used these funny English expressions before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The very first thing I remembered I always said was \u2018see a book\u2019 instead of \u2018read a book\u2019. Since in Chinese, \u2018\u770b(k\u00e0n)(see)\u2019 is the right verb for book not \u2018\u8bfb(d\u00fa)(read)\u2019 because you read a book by looking at it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Drink soup\u2019 is another mistake I made. So for you Chinese learners, please remember you don\u2019t \u2018\u5403(ch\u012b)(eat)\u2019 soup but \u2018\u559d(h\u0113)(drink)\u2019 it. I didn\u2019t think that it made sense to use \u2018eat\u2019 for soup until one day I realized the western soup was quite different from Chinese style. If you can\u2019t remember \u2018\u559d\u6c64(h\u0113 t\u0101ng)\u2019 I suggest you go to an authentic Chinese restaurant and order a soup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Eat a pill\u2019 used to be my English way for saying \u2018take medicine\u2019. I have to say I still think the Chinese verb \u2018\u5403(ch\u012b)(eat)\u2019 makes more sense than \u2018take\u2019. It\u2019s the same action as you eat your meal, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a long time, I couldn\u2019t get the verb \u2018\u5750(zu\u00f2)(sit)\u2019 out of my brain when I said \u2018take\/ride a bus\/train\/plane\u2019. So for Chinese learners, please remember it\u2019s not \u2018\u62ff(n\u00e1)(take)\u2019, not \u2018\u9a91(ride) but \u2018\u5750(zu\u00f2)(sit)\u2019+\u8f66(ch\u0113)(vehicle)\/\u706b\u8f66(hu\u01d2 ch\u0113)(train)\/\u98de\u673a(f\u0113i j\u012b)(airplane)\u2019 because you sit within these vessels..<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you hear a Chinese person say, \u2018could you please open your computer?\u2019 don\u2019t be surprise. He\/she probably means \u2018turn on your computer\u2019. In Chinese, \u2018turn on\u2019 and \u2018open\u2019 are the same word \u2018\u5f00(k\u0101i)\u2019. \u2018\u5f00\u7535\u8111(k\u0101i di\u00e0n n\u01ceo)(turn on a computer)\u2019 and \u2018\u5f00\u7a97(k\u0101i chu\u0101ng)(open windows)\u2019 seem like the same type of action to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I really like this topic. I think it not only shows the difference of words but also shows the different reflections of this world between two nations. For example, I had a disagreement with one of my students. I thought radish and carrot belonged to same biological species because they were both named as \u2018\u841d\u535c(lu\u00f3 bo)\u2019 in Chinese. But she couldn\u2019t agree with me at all because she couldn\u2019t see any connection between the two English words. Isn\u2019t that interesting? If you are also interested in this topic, please let me know. I think that\u2019s enough for this time. I hope these tips will help your Chinese and to understand \u2018Chinglish\u2019 better. See you next time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When I learned English, I always made some mistakes which known as \u2018Chinglish\u2019 where I would use English in a Chinese way. Now as a Chinese teacher, I know the words or grammar points that I struggled with are difficult for my native English-speaking students as well. It\u2019s a huge topic that I don\u2019t think…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":4570,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1,176],"tags":[122,93,84],"post_series":[],"yoast_head":"\n