day 84the chinese language

the chinese language

Talk about the Chinese language itself: tones, syllables, dialects, idioms, poetry and writing.

today’s words

• 成语 chéngyǔ · chengyu (four-character idiom)
• 方言 fāngyán · dialect
• 母语 mǔyǔ · mother tongue
• 声调 shēngdiào · tone (of a syllable)
• 音节 yīnjié · syllable
• 言语 yányǔ · speech, words
• 含义 hányì · meaning, implication
• 符号 fúhào · symbol, sign
• 诗词 shīcí · classical poetry
• 诗歌 shīgē · poetry, poems
• 书写 shūxiě · to write (formal)
• 书画 shūhuà · calligraphy and painting
• 横 héng · horizontal; horizontal stroke
• 竖 shù · vertical; vertical stroke
• 尺 chǐ · chi (a third of a metre); ruler
• 寸 cùn · cun (about 3.3 cm), inch
• 识 shí · to know, recognise
• 误 wù · to miss, delay; by mistake
• 限 xiàn · to limit
• 限于 xiànyú · to be limited to
• 尽 jìn · to use up; to the utmost
• 免 miǎn · to exempt, avoid

sentences

• 写汉字的时候，要先写横，再写竖。 · When you write a character, the horizontal stroke usually comes before the vertical.
• 一场大雪把路都盖住了，我差点儿误了飞机。 · A heavy snowfall covered the roads, and I nearly missed my flight.
• 公交车早不来，晚不来，我刚走它就来了。 · Of all the times for the bus to come: right as I walked off.
• 他三岁就开始识字，五岁就会背诗歌了。 · He started reading at three and could recite poems at five.
• 地图上的这些符号表示什么？ · What do these symbols on the map mean?