When you’re learning a language, it’s almost impossible to directly translate everything into your mother tongue. This is certainly true for native English speakers studying Chinese. Today, I’m going to introduce you to some interesting Chinese words that really require you to think in Chinese, as they cannot be translated directly into English.<\/p>\n
\u4e1c\u897f (d\u014dng x\u012b)<\/strong><\/p>\n This word – meaning “thing” or “stuff” – directly translates into English as “East\/West.” However, it is not used to talk about direction. Here’s the most common phrase associated with this word: “go shopping<\/strong>” or “buy something<\/strong>” (\u4e70\u4e1c\u897f – m\u01cei d\u014dng x\u012b). Way back in the Han Dynasty, Luoyang<\/strong> (\u6d1b\u9633 – lu\u00f2 y\u00e1ng) and Chang’an<\/strong> (\u957f\u5b89 – ch\u00e1ng’\u0101n – now Xi’an) were the two biggest commercial cities in China. At that time, Luoyang was referred to as “East Capital<\/strong>” (\u4e1c\u4eac – d\u014dng j\u012bng – now the Chinese name for Tokyo) and Chang’an was called the “West Capital<\/strong>” (\u897f\u4eac –\u00a0x\u012b j\u012bng). If people went shopping in Luoyang, they’d say “buy East<\/strong>” (\u4e70\u4e1c – m\u01cei d\u014dng) and if they headed to Chang’an, they’d say “buy West<\/strong>” (\u4e70\u897f – m\u01cei x\u012b). Over time, this evolved into the simple expression that we have today – \u4e1c\u897f<\/strong>. Here are a few examples of this Chinese word in action:<\/p>\n \u6211\u60f3\u53bb\u8d85\u5e02\u4e70\u4e1c\u897f – w\u01d2 xi\u01ceng q\u00f9 ch\u0101o sh\u00ec m\u01cei d\u014dng x\u012b<\/p>\n I want to go to the supermarket to buy things.<\/p>\n \u8fd9\u662f\u4ec0\u4e48\u4e1c\u897f\uff1f- zh\u00e8 sh\u00ec sh\u00e9n me d\u014dng x\u012b<\/p>\n What’s this?<\/p>\n \u6211\u8981\u5403\u4e1c\u897f – w\u01d2 y\u00e0o ch\u012b d\u014dng x\u012b<\/p>\n I want to eat something.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u5de6\u53f3 – zu\u01d2 y\u00f2u<\/strong><\/p>\n At first glance, you might translate this simply as “left and right.” While it’s true that’s one way you can use this, it can also mean “about”\/”approximately.” There isn’t an interesting story attached to this word, but you will hear it quite often in daily life. Here are a few examples:<\/p>\n \u8d70\u8def\u5341 \u5206\u949f \u5de6\u53f3 – z\u01d2u l\u00f9 sh\u00ed f\u0113n zh\u014dng zu\u01d2 y\u00f2u<\/p>\n About a 10 minute walk.<\/p>\n \u6211\u4eec\u7684\u516c\u53f8\u4e00\u5171\u6709\u4e09\u767e\u4eba\u5de6\u53f3 – w\u01d2 men de g\u014dng s\u012b\u00a0y\u00ec g\u00f2ng y\u01d2u s\u0101n b\u01cei r\u00e9n zu\u01d2 y\u00f2u<\/p>\n Our company has approximately 300 people.<\/p>\n \u4ed6\u8eab\u9ad81\u70b95\u7c73\u5de6\u53f3 – t\u0101 sh\u0113n g\u0101o\u00a0y\u00ec di\u01cen w\u01d4 m\u01d0 zu\u01d2 y\u00f2u<\/p>\n He’s about 1.5 meters tall.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u9a6c\u4e0a – m\u01ce sh\u00e0ng<\/strong><\/p>\n Although it’s certainly possible to use these two characters in their direct translation – “on the horse” – it’s more common to hear them used in oral Chinese meaning “right away”\/”quickly.” As the story behind this word goes, there was a general who heard that the Emperor was gravely ill. He was so worried that he remained on his horse and headed to the capital immediately. Here are a few common examples for you to put to use:<\/p>\n \u6211\u4eec\u9a6c\u4e0a\u5c31\u8d70 – w\u01d2 men m\u01ce sh\u00e0ng ji\u00f9 z\u01d2u<\/p>\n We’ll leave at once.<\/p>\n \u97f3\u4e50\u4f1a\u9a6c\u4e0a\u8981\u5f00\u59cb\u4e86 – y\u012bn yu\u00e8 hu\u00ec m\u01ce sh\u00e0ng y\u00e0o k\u0101i sh\u01d0 le<\/p>\n The concert is going to begin soon.<\/p>\n \u770b\u8d77\u6765\u9a6c\u4e0a\u8981\u4e0b\u96e8\u4e86 – k\u00e0n q\u01d0 l\u00e1i m\u01ce sh\u00e0ng y\u00e0o xi\u00e0 y\u01d4 le<\/p>\n It looks like it’s about to rain.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u9152\u9b3c – ji\u01d4 gu\u01d0<\/strong><\/p>\n Chances are you’ve probably never seen an “alcohol ghost,” but you have probably encountered a “boozehound,” “wino,” or “drunkard” at some point. If you’re like me and you’re nursing a cocktail at the moment, then you might just be able to describe yourself as such. Or if you’ve got a roommate like mine who always has Bloody Marys ready on Sunday mornings, you could say:<\/p>\n \u4ed6\u662f\u4e2a\u9152\u9b3c – t\u0101 sh\u00ec g\u00e8 ji\u01d4 gu\u01d0<\/p>\n He’s a boozehound.<\/p>\n Of course, this word can also be used more seriously, meaning “alcoholic:”<\/p>\n \u6211\u7684\u7236\u6bcd\u90fd\u662f\u9152\u9b3c – w\u01d2 de f\u00f9 m\u01d4 d\u014du sh\u00ec ji\u01d4 gu\u01d0<\/p>\n My parents were both alcoholics.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u8001\u677f – l\u01ceo b\u01cen<\/strong><\/p>\n This one translates directly as “old board.” Bet you’d never guess that this one actually means “boss” in Chinese. Well, it does! I’m sure plenty of folks out there feel like their boss is about as exciting as an old piece of wood, so I guess this one makes sense after all. Let’s look at a few sentences with this word:<\/p>\n \u6211\u7684\u8001\u677f\u8ba9\u6211\u52a0\u73ed – w\u01d2 de l\u01ceo b\u01cen r\u00e0ng w\u01d2 ji\u0101 b\u0101n<\/p>\n My boss makes me work overtime.<\/p>\n \u4eca\u5929\u8001\u677f\u5f88\u751f\u6c14 – j\u012bn ti\u0101n l\u01ceo b\u01cen h\u011bn sh\u0113ng q\u00ec<\/p>\n The boss is very angry today.<\/p>\n \u6211\u4eec\u7684\u8001\u677f\u662f\u7f8e\u56fd\u4eba – w\u01d2 men de l\u01ceo b\u01cen sh\u00ec m\u011bi gu\u00f3 r\u00e9n<\/p>\n Our boss is American.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n These are just a few examples of words that can’t exactly be directly translated into English. It wouldn’t make much sense if you said in English, “My old board is a real alcohol ghost.” It also wouldn’t make any sense if you said “I’m going to the mall on the horse to buy East\/West.” Learn the Chinese words and how to use them the Chinese way, and forget about trying to translate everything into your native language. Before we go, here’s one more word that should motivate and maybe also confuse you – \u52a0\u6cb9 (ji\u0101 y\u00f3u) – which literally means “add oil,” but can also be used to encourage (as in “go team!” or “you can do it!”) So add some oil and keep working on your Chinese.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When you’re learning a language, it’s almost impossible to directly translate everything into your mother tongue. This is certainly true for native English speakers studying Chinese. Today, I’m going to introduce you to some interesting Chinese words that really require you to think in Chinese, as they cannot be translated directly into English. \u4e1c\u897f (d\u014dng…<\/p>\n