Why does 負 also mean "minus" and "negative"?

I think it's a mistake to rely too heavily on the glyph origin to interpret meanings of a Chinese morpheme.

It's easy to confuse the origins of Chinese characters and the origins of Chinese words. One is a question about a writing system; the other is a question about etymology and of (primarily spoken) language. In this particular case, the original word pre-dates the entire Chinese writing system. In fact, it can be traced back to before Chinese and Tibetan split! There is still a cognate word meaning "to carry" in Tibetan today. So, the original meaning was "to carry", and the character was invented to convey that meaning. The use of money in that depiction is presumably incidental.

Even when characters make sense when they're invented, language continues to change. No one goes back and changes the character to match. In this case, I would propose the following chain of meanings:

To (literally) carry something
To (metaphorically) shoulder something, e.g., a burden
To owe, e.g., a debt
Negative number (e.g., a debt on a ledger)

Perhaps that chain of meanings is chronologically incorrect. But if so, the right way to answer the question is to start with the original meaning ("to carry") and trace (through literary sources) when the other usages came about and in which order they did so. The original construction of the character is only really helpful in terms of understanding the original meaning, not the subsequent chain of extended meanings.


What are the parts of speech of the words in 车外的阳光格外的刺眼, and why is this 的 correct?

车外： Object + related location/position = place term, n.
的： Aux. term to turn n. into descriptive, usually in possession/belonging relation; or habitually added after multi-character adj. (single character adj. usually is optional with 的)
阳光： n. subject of the sentence
格外： itself is adv. no need to add any aux term.  月亮格外明亮/汉语格外难学
的： Double mistake - no need at all, or even if you want to put aux term, it must be 地
刺： v. as predicate.，literally means "to sting"
眼： n. as object.

Perfect:  车外的阳光格外刺眼。
Not so good:  车外的阳光格外地刺眼。


How should I interpret 最大限度 in 我们最大限度地利用现有港口条件运货?

We exploit the current harbour conditions transport goods to the largest extent.
Here "to the largest extent" means 最大限度地.


How to translate 'hyper-','super-' and 'ultra-' exactly?

In colloquial English, these words all mean pretty much the same thing (though hyper- is used rather infrequently) so using 超 interchangeably shouldn't be much of a concern.

With regard to academic terminology, your best bet is to look up the specific term in question. One easy way to do this is to find the corresponding wikipage in English, and then click 中文 on the sidebar.

For example, in the case of hypergiant vs supergiant, hyper- is translated as 特超, while super- is translated as 超.

Similarly, for sonic we have hyper- as 超高 and super- as 超.

Finally, for high frequency, we have super- becoming 超高, and ultra- becoming 特高.

All of the above translations were found using the aforementioned wikipage method. From just these few examples, though, we quickly conclude that there is no single translation of the three prefixes at hand.

In fact, hypersonic and super high frequency both use the same prefix (超高) as do hypergiant and ultra high frequency (特高).

Thus, unfortunately, a precise translation must be done on a case by case basis.


Is 我的中文水平还是挺有限的 a suitable translation of "My Chinese is still quite limited"?

我的中文水平还是挺有限的。 (My Chinese level is still quite limited)

Nothing wrong with 水平有限 (level is limited) in which '有限' suggests 'not advanced', 'cannot be considered good'
Any adjective that can describe 水平 (level) would do. You can say:
我的中文水平还是挺低的。 (My Chinese level is still quite low)
我的中文水平还是挺一般的。  (My Chinese level is still quite ordinary)
Notice: while 差 (inferior) can describe level, (as in 水平很差),  不好 (not good) or 壞 (bad) cannot. We don't say 水平不好 or 水平壞 because they are not a measurement of level
Side note:
In Cantonese, we have common expressions like 好人有限 (is not that good a person = is a bad person); 好打有限 (is not that good at fighting = bad at fighting - a metaphor for 'not very capable' which can be applied in any area)


Writing critique request: Zhou Ziwang gets an injection from the "doctor"

The sentences are short, implying the passage is colloquial. However, its style doesn't accord to daily language, which makes it translationese.

我爸就带我去了医院，但比起医院那座建筑看起来更像研究所。我爸似乎已经很熟悉这里了，他根本没有问路。哦，我想起他说过有朋友在这里工作。最后我们到了一个房间，进去就看到了医生，见了我们立刻带往了他办公室。医生从抽屉里取出一支注射器，告诉我说打了以后就不会有体重问题了。我感到十分奇怪，但爸爸小声解释说他早就跟医生说过了。听了这话我虽然仍然怀疑，但出于对父亲的信任我没有拒绝注射。打完之后没什么特别的感觉，但医生确定已经完成了，于是走掉了，所以我们也回家了。

Comments:

It seems that you are not used to use link words, so sometimes it's weird in logic.

实验室 is a room complex, while 研究所 is a building complex.

一支注射器

"这会解决你的问题" We don't say like that, which I have only heard in translation works.

这并不能解决你的问题。√
这解决得了你的问题吗？√
这样你的问题就解决了。√
你还有什么问题没解决？√
这不会解决你的问题的。√
这会解决你的问题。x
—— hard to say why.

"我已经告诉了他你来这儿的原因" Oh, it's worse.

你为什么要来我已经告诉过他了。
我已经告诉过他你为什么要来了。
我已经跟他说过你要来的原因了。

"虽然我…但我…因此我" is usually shortened as "我虽然…但…因此"

"而已" Why? I don't see how it is used.

"后果" is usually something bad, and is always used to imply the consequence/effect of something. It cannot be used alone.

你有没有考虑过徇私枉法的后果？√（下场/结果x）
现在锒铛入狱才后悔当初没有多想想贪污腐败的后果。√（下场√结果x）
上述两句区别在于，“下场”必定是已成现实/假定已成现实。
现在家道中落，祖荫尽失，可谓是不思进取的后果。√（结果/下场√）（贬损的语气下场＞后果＞结果）
这样做不用担心有什么后果。√（结果/下场x）
树倒猢狲散，飞扬跋扈的王家没落得个好后果。x（结果/下场√）
利用政策套利，目前还没发现有什么后果。√（结果/下场x）

Should 儿化音 be written down or not? I recommend not.


悲 means sad and 凉 means cold. So you feel both sad and cold. You can translate it as desolate or dismal.

Some definitions from different dictionaries:

According to 《现代汉语规范词典》 悲凄  is 悲伤+凄凉 and 悲伤 means sad, sorrowful and 凄凉 means desolate, cold and lonely.
According to 《现代汉语词典》 悲凄 is 悲哀+凄凉 and 悲哀 means grieved, sorrowful, sad and 凄凉 means desolate, cold and lonely.
Comprehensive Chinese-English Dictionary has sad and cold
MDBG has sorrowful, dismal

I would translate your sentence as Every time he recalled his own experiences, he felt sad and cold in his heart for a while.


What about 按日期顺序 and 按日期倒序?
These are the ones I usually see.


看出来 is idiom for "appear to"

so 看不出来 means "appear not to be"


When to use 了 and when to use 过 to express past actions or events

There are multiple uses for both 了 and 过, so it's good you are just asking about usage to express past action or events.  了, as you probably know, is often used to express a change of state.  Perhaps somewhat relatedly, 了 can be used to express a past action that is still ongoing. But 过 cannot:  when 过 is used to refer to a past event, that past event must have completed.  Additionally -- and most distinctly --  过 is used to express having had the experience of something, rather than a particular instance.  As a simple example, consider the difference between

  我去了长城 (I went to the Great Wall, refers to a single trip)

and

  我去过长城 (I have been to the Great Wall, could be one or more times)

Here the same structure is used intentionally.

When combining them, it emphasizes the completion of a single action or event.  So, for example,

  我去过了长城 (I went to the Great Wall, refers to a single, completed, event)


A children's room would be called 儿童房(er2 tong2 fang2), and if you happen to want to say nursery, if the word nursery happens to fit the use of the room, it would be 保育室 (bao3 yu4 shi4).


How to translate Pinyin with tones marks on Google Translate?

Google Translate did not support translating with Pinyin to Other language, simply input ni hao only lead to google suggesting the best matching chinese words for ni hao then translate it using the suggested best words to the language you selected.

Try to input the pinyin of chinese word with 同音不同字(Sounds same but different words) example: 星星 and 猩猩

Google Translate only will suggest you 星星 but not 猩猩.

Conclusion, you cannot use Pinyin with tones in Google Translate


What's the difference between voiced and "unaspirated" consonants and how can I check if I got it correct?

Voice-Onset Time

As you probably already know, the distinction between voiced vs unvoiced-unaspirated vs unvoiced-aspirated is the relative timing of articulation and voicing (called voice-onset time or VOT):

Voiced stops have a negative VOT (i.e., the voicing begins before articulation)
Unvoiced-unaspirated (sometimes called "lenis") stops have approximately zero VOT (i.e., voicing and articulation co-occur).
Unvoiced-aspirated stops have positive VOT (i.e., voicing begins after a delay relative to articulation).

In IPA, we use discrete symbols to indicate these distinctions (e.g., b/p/pʰ). Lumping VOT measurements into "negative", "zero", and "positive" is just a convenient simplification, though. In fact, there is a range of possible values that it can take on, and languages do, in fact, differ from one another in terms of how they realize "voicing" or "aspiration". However, any given language only distinguishes at most 3 stops on the basis of VOT alone**, so IPA (e.g., b/p/pʰ) is sufficient to describe things.

Measuring VOT

This is all great, but you say that you're learning Japanese (which has very negative VOT on its voiced stops), and as a speaker of Mandarin (zero VOT) and English (slightly negative VOT), you're not sure whether you're producing voiced or lenis stops. You can in fact measure VOT on an audio recording of yourself. Here's a tutorial on using praat to measure VOT on audio recordings.

If that sounds too complicated, you put your hand on your throat and feel when you produce voicing. To practice making voiced consonants having very negative VOT, try to keep your lips closed while starting vibrate your vocal chords. It's hard to do this very long, as your mouth starts to fill up with air, but it can help you see how it feels to begin voicing earlier than releasing a stop.

* It's probably even more complicated than that, but I'm going to assume that VoT is good enough to explain everything.

** Hindi "voiced aspirated stops" are breathy voiced, to respond to the obvious rebuttal.


What is the connotation for gay蜜 and 闺蜜?

gay蜜 is not a formal word, usually used on Internet or in oral languages by the young.

When a girl has a gay male close friend, she will call him "gay蜜".

e.g. "他是我的gay蜜。" means he's my close friend and he's gay.

Is "gay蜜""闺蜜" usually used for young adults (18-30 years old)? Yes.


here some data i managed to compile. it's a bit of a mess, so pls bear with me:

http://bbs.whnews.cn/simple/index.php?t133800.html

品字结构：
鑫森淼焱垚品晶瞐畾矗聶众劦叒尛姦磊孨森蟲譶赑馫雥飍飝毳骉犇羴贔龘皛轟麤靐厽垚壵惢歮皛羴骉驫鱻卉芔灥厵猋舙掱晿刕嚞雥䨺㐂䆐䖃  灥厵叒
田字结构：
燚茻㵘䲜㗊䨻㸚㠭朤叕
三叠字：
雦㴇 㙓㐺渁隻雙䨇 巛彡巜十卄卅卌廿嬲 嫐  奻
左右上下叠字：
吅吕昍昌目䀠炎炏从仌厸㕕双㕛騳多奻㚣誩弜㯤喆屾出
上下叠字：
爻戔哥棗畕圭亖
左右叠字：
囍 孖夶㹜犾㚘㯥皕豩牪龖虤聑朋臸㱛砳玨甡祘竝覞賏踀辡秝兟兢競竸槑雔抙䬕䎜㐩㒭㚁㲎㿟 䡛玆㐨絲㣈㚡㒹㽬䪭兓幵艸斦比羽

http://culchina.net/bbs/dispbbs.asp?boardID=6&ID=10236&page=1

一二三亖、七㐂、十卄卅卌、廿、人从仌众㐺、金鑫、木林森、水沝㴇淼㵘、火炎炏焱燚、土圭垚㙓、士壵、豕豩、牛牪犇、牟、羊羴、馬騳骉驫、、犬㹜犾猋、鹿麤、龍龖龘、虎虤、屮艹艸芔、虫蟲、魚鱻䲜、鳥 隹雔雦雥、飛飝、习羽、古、吉喆嚞、毛毳、口吅吕品㗊、舌舙、耳聑聶、手抙掱、舌、白皛、日昍昌晶、、月朋朤、明 、目䀠瞐、至臸、女奻姦、男、了、子孖孨、山岀出屾、石砳磊、泉灥、刀刕、力劦、心惢、戈戔、百皕、玉玨珏、風䬕飍 、雷靐䨻、雲䨺、厶厸㕕厽、又双㕛叒叕、乂爻㸚、田畕畾、生甡、示祘、立竝、香馫、原厵、見覞、言誩譶、貝賏贔、足踀、車轟、辛辡、糹絲、至臸、禾秝、止歮、大夶、小尛、少、无兓、先兟、克兢、竞競、竟竸、呆槑、干幵、可哥、弓弜、工㠭、个、門、面、牙、齒、文、甲、乙、亦、永、僉、斤斦、兀、且、串、凡、卤 、直矗、喜囍、善、東㯥、朿棗、束、秦䆐、若䖃、夏、春、空、客、寒、宝、舍、県、夕多、户 、启、支、果、比、盖、秉、竹、老䎜、興、來㯤、函、歹㱛、幽、隻雙䨇、井㐩、兄㒭、尭㚁、、旡兂、卪、㔾

 或

一二三亖、四、七㐂、九、十卄(niàn)卅卌(xì)、廿、人从仌众㐺、金鑫、木林森、水沝(zhuǐ)㴇淼㵘、火炎炏(yán)焱(yàn)燚(yì)、土圭垚㙓、士壵(zhuàng)、豕(shǐ)豩(bīn)、牛牪(yàn)犇(bēn)、牟、羊羴(shān)、兔、馬騳(dú)骉(biāo)驫、犬㹜犾猋(biāo)、鹿麤(cū)、龍龖(dá)龘(dá)(zhé)、虎虤(yán)、屮(cǎo)艹(cǎo)艸芔(huì)卉、虫蟲(chóng)、魚鱻(xiān)䲜、鳥隹(zhuī)雔(chóu)雦(jí)雥(zá)、飛飝(fēi)、飞、习羽、古、吉喆(zhé)嚞(zhé)、毛㲎毳(cuì)、口吅(xuān)吕品㗊、舌舙(huà)、耳聑(zhé)聶、手抙掱(pá)、舌、白㿟皛(pò)、日昍(xuān)昌晶、月朋朤、明、目䀠瞐(mò)、至臸(zhī)、女奻(nuán)㚣姦、男、了、子孖(mā)孨(nì)

山岀出屾(shēn)、石砳(lè)磊、泉灥(xún)、原厵(yuán)、刀刕(lí)、力劦(xié)、心惢、戈戔(jiān)、百皕(bì)、玉玨(jué)珏(jué)、風䬕飍(xiū)、雷靐(bìng)䨻(bèng)、雲䨺、厶(sī)厸(miǎn)㕕厽(lěi)、又双㕛叒(ruò)叕(zhuó)、乂爻㸚、田畕(jiāng)畾(léi)、生甡(shēn)、示祘(suàn)、立竝(bìng)、香馫(xīn)、見覞(yào)、言誩(jìng)譶(tà)、貝賏(yīng)贔(bì)、頁、足踀(cù)、車䡛轟、辛辡(biàn)、禾秝(lì)、止歮(sè)、大夶(bǐ)、小尛(mó)、少、老䎜、先兟(shēn)、克兢(jīng)、竞競(jìng)、竟竸(jìng)、呆槑(méi)、干幵(jiān)、可哥、弓弜(jiàng)、工㠭、个、門、面、牙、齒、文、甲、乙、亦、永、僉(qiān)、斤斦(zhì)、兀、且、串、凡、卤、直矗、喜囍(xǐ)、善、東㯥、朿棗、束、秦䆐、若䖃、夏、春、客、寒、空、宝、宜、妥、盖、舍、県、斗、市、太、天、興、光、企、果、秉、竹、夕多、户、尸、启、支、比、或、来來㯤、去、函、歹㱛、幽、隻雙䨇、井㐩、兄㒭、尭㚁、巜、玄玆、予㐨(xù)、㣇㣈、糹(jiǎo)絲(sī)、幺、奇㚡、倉、入、号、巾、巢、左、臣、易、昔、欠、母、禺、尹、真㒹、夫㚘、畐㽬、音䪭、囚、因、困、全、几、凡、句、區、彐、、、㔾、旡兓(jīn)、卪、、、巿(pó)、桼(qī)、兂、㖖(niè)、、眉、

http://www.xiaohui.com/weekly/20070305.htm

记得当年读初中刚学英语时，常说“我是中国人，不会学外文”，借此来嘲笑那些学英语发狠的同学。哈哈，对头，咱们是中国人，学就应该学中国汉字。不过，既然大家都是中国人，嘿嘿，那么，列在本文 《你认识这些三叠字和四叠字吗? —— 三叠字与四叠字大全》 http://www.xiaohui.com/weekly/20070305.htm 页面中这些字，你认识几个?

鑫 森 淼 垚 焱 靐 晶 卉 芔 轟 磊 畾 厽 馫 飍 灥 厵 犇 猋 赑 贔 蟲 麤 毳 龘 骉 驫 羴 雥 鱻 矗 姦 舙 瞐 聶 品 掱 叒 惢 譶 劦 壵 众 孨 歮 晿 飝 刕 尛 嚞 皛 雦 朤 燚 叕 茻

　　上面这些字是我今天收集整理的汉字三叠字与四叠字大全。三叠字，又叫品字型汉字，指由三个完全相同的字叠成“品”字形而形成的新字；四叠字，指由四个完全相同的字叠成“田”字形而形成的新字。
汉字三叠字与四叠字大全

　　收集整理这个东西，缘起今天下午的时候，在网上看到一个三个牛字叠起来的 犇字，一时想不起起读音，后来一问才知道读 bēn，与奔一个意思， 三头牛一起跑当然就是奔了。貌似以前有个演戏的就叫牛犇。在网上一搜，关于三叠字的介绍有不少，但是没有一个完整的整理集合。维基百科上分别有一个三叠字和四叠字的词条，但数据不全(注: 完成此文后，我在维基百科上更新了此词条)。于是把字典搬出来，借助网络，把所有的三叠字和四叠字找了出来，并注明读音和释义。

　一、三叠字列表(共52个)
　　http://www.xiaohui.com/weekly/20070305.htm

1.
      首先我查的就是与五行相关的三叠字: 金木水土火：
         1. 三金鑫 xīn 多用于商店字号、人名用字,取其金多兴旺之意
         2. 三木森 sēn 本义: 树木丛生繁密
         3. 三水淼 miǎo 会意。从三水。又作“渺”。本义:水大的样子。这个字多用作女孩子的名字，我邻居小孩就叫淼淼。:)
         4. 三土垚 yáo 意思为山高，那么多土当然山高啦。多用于人名。古同“尧”。
         5. 三火焱 yàn 光华,光焰。
   2.
      还有一些跟自然植物有关系的三叠字:
         1. 三雷靐 bìng 雷声
         2. 三日晶 jīng 从三日,表示光亮之意
         3. 三屮卉（芔） huì 会意。小篆字从三“屮”(chè),草木初生。本义:草的总称
         4. 三车轟 hōng 同“轰”,会意。从三车。本义:群车行驶声
         5. 三石磊 lěi 众石，石头多,心地光明坦白
         6. 三田畾 léi 古同“雷”，同“垒”，也表示田间的土地
         7. 三厶厽 lěi 垒土块为墙
         8. 三香馫 xīn 古同“馨”,芳香,散布很远的香气
         9. 三风飍 xiū 惊跑的样子
        10. 三泉灥 xún 三泉
        11. 三原厵 yuán 古同“源”,水源,源泉
   3.
      跟动物有关的三叠字:
         1. 三牛犇 bēn 同奔。有个人的名字叫“牛犇犇”，小名叫“七匹牛”。:)
         2. 三犬猋 biāo 狗奔跑的样子。同“飙”
         3. 三贝赑(贔) bì传说中的一种动物,像龟。旧时大石碑的石座多雕刻成赑屃形状
         4. 三虫蟲 chóng 同虫
         5. 三鹿麤 cū 同“粗”
         6. 三毛毳 cuì 会意。从三毛。本义:鸟兽的细毛
         7. 三龍龘 dá 这个是刚才去台湾维基查词条时发现的。《广韵》说该字之义为“龙飞之状”；《说文》解作“飞龙”。成语：龍行龘龘。龘字是现时大五码编码(big5)当中笔划最多的一个字，共48划。

     8. 三马骉(驫)piāo 众马奔腾的样子
     9. 三羊羴 shān 古同“膻”,也表示群羊。另外是鼻烟品目之一。
    10. 三隹雥 zá 群鸟；聚
    11. 三鱼鱻 xiǎn 古同“鲜”

4.
      下面是跟人物有关的:
         1. 三直矗 chù 会意。从三直。本义:直立
         2. 三女姦 jiān 会意。从三女。本义:奸邪,虚伪狡诈
         3. 三舌舙 huà 播弄是非。古同“话”。
         4. 三目瞐 mò 美目; 目深; 美丽的样子
         5. 三耳聶 nie 会意。从三耳。本义:附耳小语。这么多耳朵凑在一块，当然是咬耳朵说私语了。
         6. 三口品 pǐn 会意。从三口。口代表人,三个表多数,意即众多的人。
         7. 三手掱 pá 俗称扒手为三只手,故写作“掱”。掱手 = 扒手。哈哈，这个很形象。
         8. 三又叒 ruò 古同“若”
         9. 三心惢 suǒ 疑虑；善
        10. 三言譶 tà 说话快
        11. 三力劦 xié 古同“协”，合力；同力。
        12. 三士壵 zhuàng 古同“壮”, 本义:人体高大,肌肉壮实
        13. 三人众 zhòng 人三为众
        14. 三子孨 zhuǎn 谨慎；弱，懦弱；孤儿
   5.
      其他
         1. 三止歮 sè 古同“涩、澁”
         2. 三日晿 chēng 古人名用字. 注意这个字与晶字不同。

        附注：在本文评论的第12楼、第14楼中，一位叫蓝昊的朋友认为“晿 ”字的底部，不是日字，而是一个曰字。我查证了一下，认为他说得有道理。不过由于没有翻到权威的证据，估且仍列在这里。

     3. 三飞飝 fei
     4. 三刀刕 lí 姓氏
     5. 三小尛 mó 古同“麽”，细小，微细
     6. 三吉嚞 zhé 古同“哲”,聪明,有智慧
     7. 三白皛 xiǎo 皎洁，明亮
     8. 三隹雦 chóu 古同“集”, 群鸟在木上也

　四、四叠字列表(共17个)
　　http://www.xiaohui.com/weekly/20070305.htm

　　除了三叠字，还有四叠字。顾名思义，四叠字由四个完全相同的字叠成“田”字形而形成的新字。目前计算机系统能够显示四个四叠字，其余的已经被 Unicode 标准收录，但现在的系统和字库还没有支持，所以不能够被显示。

1.
      计算机能够显示的四叠字
         1. 四月朤 lǎng 古同“朗”。本义:明亮。四个月亮当空照，不明亮都没天理了。:)
         2. 四火燚 yì 火貌
         3. 四又叕 zhuó 连缀,短；张网的样子
         4. 四屮茻 mǎng 众草；丛生的蕨类

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/三叠字

三叠字
三叠字是指汉字中一类由三个完全相同的字叠成“品”字形而形成的叠字。现将已知的此类字列于下表：

[编辑] 漢字中的三疊字

以下標示的為汉语拼音。

* 鑫 拼音：【Xīn】發音同：【音】注音：【ㄒㄧㄣ】
* 森 拼音：【Sēn】發音同：【蔘】
* 淼 拼音：【Miǎo】發音同：【秒】
* 焱 拼音：【Yán】發音同：【炎】
* 垚 拼音：【Yáo】發音同：【搖】
* 犇 拼音：【Bēn】發音同：【奔】
* 驫,骉 拼音：【Biāo】發音同：【飆】
* 羴 讀音：【Shān】發音同：【杉】
* 猋 拼音：【Biāō】發音同：【飆】
* 麤 拼音：【Cū】發音同：【粗】
* 鱻 拼音：【Xiān】發音同：【鮮】
* 蟲 拼音：【Chóng】發音同：【崇】
* 贔, 赑 拼音：【Bì】發音同：【毙】
* 众 （「眾」的簡化字） 拼音：【Zhòng】發音同：【仲】
* 品 拼音：【Pǐn】發音同：【品】
* 掱 拼音：【Pá】發音同：【爬】
* 劦 拼音：【Xián】發音同：【协】
* 晶 拼音：【Jīng】發音同：【精】
* 磊 拼音：【Lěi】發音同：【壘】
* 姦 拼音：【Jiān】發音同：【奸】
* 聶 拼音：【Niè】發音同：【涅】
* 毳 拼音：【Cuì】發音同：【脆】
* 矗 拼音：【Chǔ】發音同：【觸】
* 飝 拼音：【Fēi】發音同：【飛】
* 刕 拼音：【lí 】發音同：【离】
* 厽 拼音：【Lěi】發音同：【垒】
* 叒 拼音：【ruò】發音同：【若】
* 壵 拼音：【Yáo】發音同：【搖】
* 尛 拼音：【Má】發音同：【麻】
* 孨 拼音：【zhuǎn】發音同：【转】
* 歮 拼音：【sè】發音同：【涩】
* 惢 拼音：【suǒ】發音同：【所】
* 皛 拼音：【xiǎo】發音同：【晓】
* 畾 拼音：【léi】發音同：【雷】
* 嚞 拼音：【zhé】發音同：【哲】
* 舙 拼音：【huà】發音同：【hua】
* 譶 拼音：【tà】發音同：【踏】
* 雥 拼音：【zá】發音同：【杂】
* 灥 拼音：【xún】發音同：【寻】
* 飍 拼音：【xiū】發音同：【修】
* 馫 拼音：【xīn】發音同：【興】
* 厵 拼音：【yuán】發音同：【员】
* 靐 拼音：【bìng】發音同：【雷】
* 龘 拼音：【dá】發音同：【踏】
* 赑 拼音：【bì】發音同：【闭】

[编辑] 三疊字的功能

1) 表示加三倍的東西之獨特：

鑫 xin1 (很富的，越來越大的豐富) 姦 jian1 (姦淫) 猋 biao1 (快) 鱻 xian1 (鮮) 惢 suo3 (善) 瞐 mo4 (美目的) 麤 cu4 (粗)

2) 集合概念：

驫 / 骉 biao1 (馬群) 羴 shan1 (羊群) 磊 lei3 (堆) 垚 yao2 (堆) 众 zhong4 森 sen1

2) 小的與多有的：

毳 cui4 (鸟兽的细毛 / 寒毛) 晶 jing1 (本指星星，現代表示光亮) 蟲 chong2 (蟲子)

4) 誇大：

掱 pa2 (偷) 譶 ta4 (说话快) 舙 hua4 (说是非话) 猋 biao1 (狗奔) 聶 nie4 (附耳小语) 叒 ruo4 (若 （用又［手］表明方法） 飍 xiu1 (惊跑) 犇 ben1 (奔)

正常表示用什麽身體的部分動作的偏旁，這爾是加三倍的，又是用長的寫法的。表示誇大的行爲。

5) 比較級：

矗 chu4 (矗立的) 尛 mo2 (微小的) 皛 xiao3 (喧)

6) 加三倍表現狀況或者景象：

轟 hong1 (三輛車相撞） 品 pin3 （三個箱子） 厽 lei3 (垒) 畾 lei2 雷 (鬼魂頭) 淼 miao3 (水面)

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/二叠字

二叠字，也稱爲雙叠字，指汉字中一类由三个完全相同的字組成的叠字。

表示加倍的東西之獨特

昍 xuān (明) 吅 xuān (喧)

這個功能很稀少的，因此我們認爲例外。三叠字為這個功能更常見的。

[编辑] 加倍指肯定的狀況

奻 nuán (争吵) 夶 bǐ (比) 从 cóng (跟随) 誩 jìng (争论)

與三叠字的第四功能很近。這爾的只是更象形的，和跟三叠字相反不是誇大的。

[编辑] 表示東西雙倍地存在

孖 zī (双生子) 皕 bì (二百) 斦 yín (二斤、公斤、千克) 双 shuāng 二 èr

[编辑] 集合的概念

林 lín (森林)

森林是樹木的集合，如同一群是牛或似的動物的集合。 雖然森林的使用跟群的不同的。

經常用三叠字為這個功能。

http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/四叠字

四叠字

四叠字是指汉字中一类由四个完全相同的字叠成“田”字形而形成的叠字。现已知的此类字共17個，列于下表：

[编辑] 汉字中的四叠字

* 叕 讀音：【茁】 拼音：【zhuó】
* 朤 讀音：【亮】 拼音：【liàng】
* 燚 讀音：【一】 拼音：【yī】
* 茻 讀音：【蟒】 拼音：【mǎng】
* 㠭 (四個工) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
* 㵘 (四個水) 讀音：【漫】 拼音：【màn】
* 㗊 (四個口) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
* 㸚 (四個乂) 讀音：【麗】 拼音：【lì】
* 叕 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個人) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個厶) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個日) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (兩個比) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個田) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個竹) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
*  (四個金) 讀音：【】 拼音：【】
* 䨻 (四個雷) 讀音：【蹦】 拼音：【bèng】
*  (四個龍) 讀音：【哲】 拼音：【zhé】
* 䨻 (四個雲) 讀音：【農】 拼音：【nóng】
* 䨻 (四個興) 讀音：【正】 拼音：【zhèng】

28cc8     #25115112
200db

6b63    正   #12121
23944     #12121

821b    舛
5905    夅

20141

上下

【辰集下】【止字部】  ·康熙筆画：4　·部外筆画：0

【唐韻】【集韻】他達切，音撻。【說文】蹈也。从反止。轉注。本作。　與少別。【佩觿集】少，申兆翻，不多也。，他末翻，蹈也。步字从此。【集韻】作。原从反止，類似从反正。


From  https://zh.wiktionary.org/zh-hant/%E9%A6%AC%E8%99%8E

  詞源
  出自滿語 lalahuhu。
      《滿語雜識》並無此詞，但愛新覺羅‧瀛生在《滿語和漢語中的互相影響》一文曾提及有 lahu 一詞，滿語本義為「打獵沒本領」，北京等地方言謂「行事不利」、「抓不緊」為 lahu。lahu 在北京話就是「喇忽」（而不是「馬虎」），「喇忽」是粗心、疏忽、漫不經心的意思。同樣，王惠樵的《河東方言語詞輯考》中亦謂「河東俗謂人凡事不經意，大大列列為『喇忽』」，而其疊詞亦可引申為對什麼都不在意，如老舍《全家福》第一幕：「林三嫂三十好幾了，還像個孩子，喇喇忽忽的。」，胡零《識時務者》：「沒什麼，因為我這個人喇喇忽忽的，有很多不好的地方」。後轉為「馬馬虎虎」

「馬馬虎虎」is sound-alike version of「喇喇忽忽」

It originated from 「喇忽」/「喇喇忽忽」in Beijing area dialect that meant  "careless; negligent; casual"

Eventually the reading of 「喇忽」/「喇喇忽忽」 evolved into「馬虎」/ 「馬馬虎虎」(easier to read and remember perhaps?)

The Manchu language expression 'lahu / lala huhu' which means "no skill in hunting"  was imported from this Beijing dialect phrase.

The Cantonese term 麻麻地 /maa4 maa4*2 dei6*2/ (so-so; not too good, not too bad) was in term, evolved from 馬馬虎虎


how to search words / clauses in classical / literary chinese?

to search words / clauses (combinations of 2-9 characters) in classical / literary chinese, it's straightforward; if you know the methods, and able to visit the recommended sites {some of them are blocked in that "area" :( }

in short:

1   using traditional chinese is a must, no simplified chinese

2   knowledge of variant (異體字)

3   search by google

4   using reliable, trustable databases

5   able to read classical / literary chinese

6   knowledge of cantonese is a plus, a big one

in details:

using traditional chinese is a must, no simplified chinese

as i know, databases containing texts of classical /  literary chinese are all in traditional chinese. and, the imperial collection of four (四庫全書) are written in traditional chinese. meanwhile, simplified chinese was introduce in 1950s, in that area.

occasionally, some modern chinese words has a long history, way back to thousand of years old. so, if one want to know "did" any particular words appear in literatures of yore, the search must be in traditional chinese.

eg  "泊车" ---> "泊車"

knowledge of variant (異體字)

i would recommend these two sites, for checking variant character:

教育部異體字字典

國際電腦漢字及異體字知識庫

sometime, particular character would be used in ancient time, that, another one is used nowadays. so, if search cannot trigger desirable results, use the variant.

eg  並 (u+4e26) --->　竝 (u+7add)

based on my reading experience of numerous books of 四庫全書, 竝 (u+7add) was "trendy" in ancient time, that 並 (u+4e26) is rarely used. so, if "並" do not trigger any result, use "竝"

eg  "沙上並禽池上暝" ---> "沙上竝禽池上暝"

search by google

there're significant differences in searching, by google or bing (no noticeable difference in mac or windows)

sometime, there're hundreds, or thousands of results, my trick is:

  "searchword" -china -.cn -baidu -baike

only using reliable, trustable database

now, this's the core of this answer. remember "garbage in, garbage out"

as at june 2017, recommended sites for searching in literatures of yore are:

Kanseki Repository

this database was opened to public in march 2016, the best in current time. there're minor caveats, for average usage, it scores 90 out of 100.

漢文大藏經

buddhism has a large influence in chinese culture, this one is important.

internet archive

the internet archive has full-text-search function now, searching words in traditional chinese would trigger interesting results :)

chinese text project

this one is, 50 of 100; worth a try before "surrender" (rant: certain ocr scannings are "full of errors")

the only two "dictionaries" that i trust:

國語辭典

粵語審音配詞字庫

personally, i do not believe any sources in simplified chinese; i might read, but, i always counter-check with other reliable sources.

reminder: garbage in, garbage out

able to read classical / literary chinese

though chinese texts are punctuated nowadays, text in literatures of yore are not. so any search results must be read carefully. do the 句讀 independently.

sometime, combination of characters might had other meaning, or, these characters are put together "by chance".

knowledge of cantonese is a plus, a big one

well, cantonese is highly correlated to middle chinese, some terms in ancient time is still used in cantonese today. further, if phonology is touched, cantonese has significant advantages over . . .

stop here now, have fun


At first sight this seems to be a sentence with S-P predicate of type ＂这个士兵胸部受伤了＂or ＂兔子尾巴短＂with 进水 in unusual order P-S (cf. 来了人，发生事故，etc.). A sentence of undoubtedly S-P as predicate type might be 你的脑子水分含量太大 (our brain water content high, i.e. your brain has high water content), a sentence with usual verb predicate might be 脑袋生锈了 (has become rusty，see web), a sentence with nominal predicate (a noun as predicate might be）脑袋一片空白 (mind goes blank).

On the other hand as stated in the other answer, 进水 is a compound verb, cf. bkrs: 进水 (here) to have water get in (one’s ear, shoes etc), to get flooded;
similarly, 进贼 be burglarized (of a house/etc.), example 我们家进贼了.

Note however the following examples with 进 being combined rather freely with other objects (and  了 between 进 and object, see jukuu):

我的鞋里进了沙子. I' ve got some grit / a piece of grit in my shoe.
我眼睛里弄进了一粒灰尘。I've got a speck of dust in my eye.
他的齿缝里嵌进了一小片食物。He had a morsel of food caught between one tooth and another.

Maybe the last two cases are irrelevant since the verbs now are 弄进，嵌进 i.e.弄,嵌 with complement of result 进.

Another compound using 进, 进货:  stock (a shop) with goods, 这星期没进货.
Also note (bkrs) 左边进人, 右边出人 apparently confirming the exceptional order P-S).

There are examples of both 进水了 and 进了水 e.g. 笔记本电脑进了少量水, same for 进贼  e。g。家里进了贼？

Note that compounds (复合词）are of the following 5 types:

并列 (coordinate; coordinating; juxtaposed),
偏正 (endocentric),
动补 (verb complement),
动宾 (verb-object),
主谓 （subject-predicate).

S in the case of 进水 only 4 or 5 could apply; in case of 4 水 would be object of verb 进, case 5 seems doubtful, since in 主谓 compounds the subject seems to always come first.


What do these two seal stamps and these three characters on my Chinese painting mean?

The characters written in black ink is the first name of the painter (寿民 Shoumin). If you Google it, there is a painter named 边寿民(Bian Shoumin) in Chinese Qing Dynasty.

Here is a link to Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bian_Shoumin

You can also Google the word “边寿民” by image to see his other paintings.
If this painting is not counterfeit, It would worth around 500,000 in Chinese Yuan ($80,000).

The clearer seal is “志紋墨寶”. In my understanding, 志紋is also a person’s first name. 墨 means ink, 寶 means treasure. Therefore, “志紋墨寶” means 志紋’s treasured painting.


Why does the `请` take two duplicate words on its verb occasionally (e.g. `请洗洗你的袜子`)

quotation from 外国人实用汉语语法：
(1) the reduplication of a verb implies a short and quick
action

(2) expresses an attempt or trial

(3)expresses a sense of being light and relaxed

and the same goes for  [verb] +一下

请洗你的袜子 seems to make sense in Mandarin


我要打开外套的拉链 is fine.  打开 has the sense of "open".  "I want to open the zipper of my jacket" is a good interpretation.
拉开(unzip) also works. E. g.  拉开拉链; 把拉链拉开;etc.


there's a blog post with examples about just this question here:

http://speakupchinese.tumblr.com/post/115029397455/suoyi-vs-yushi

To quote, it says:

所以 introduces the outcome, just as in English where we use ‘therefore’, ‘as a result’ or ‘so’.

... Moving on to 于是. This is used to place emphasis on the chronology of two connected happenings: A –> B, in continuation. Often it’s used in recounting past events or a story, and translates best to ‘thereupon’, ‘as a result’, ‘consequently’.


Impact of order of bilingual dictionary entries, dictionary searching, and input method on Chinese learning

In most modern dictionaries, there is a preface that allows you to search words up by radical, by directing you to the appropriate page. Most people use this section when they want to learn its pronunciation and/or its meaning.

Some old dictionaries like the Shuowen Jiezi or the Kangxi Dictionary (说文解字 and 康熙大词典 respectively) are all-radical dictionaries, which organize characters by radical.

In an online dictionary, there is a section dedicated to radicals, so it gets even more convenient.

One could also use Cangjie/Wubihua or similar to simulate this "radical-lookup".

Additionally, some dictionaries have a "first-5-stroke preface" that allows searching based on stroke order.

TL;DR: This has already been invented.


问 = ask (to answer question) e.g. 问他今年多大 - Ask him how old he is (It is a question I want to know the answer)

让 = ask (to do something; request; demand) e.g. 我去让他來道歉 - I'll go ask him to apologize (ask here is actually a request or demand) - 让 (ask) here is the same as (make)

Just remember 问 = ask a question; 让 = ask someone to do something.


Why is 有 (yǒu) the only verb that requires 没 while other verbs can use 不?

The Story of 没

As other commenters have noted, looking for logic in language is almost always futile. No natural language is logical. But there is a historical logic to language development; even if the existence of a phrase is a historical accident, it's sometimes interesting to see when that "accident" took place, and why.

Such is the case with 没. One interesting fact I learned from all this that contradicts what some others have said in their answers: 没 is not a contraction or shortening of 没有, at least not originally. MarkDBlackwell is right to point this out in his answer. The development of both words is slightly more complicated.

(All of the following comes from Xu Shiyi's excellent paper "否定词‘没’‘没有’的来源和语法化过程". To save time, I will not differentiate between places where I am quoting, summarizing, and expanding the original text. Apologies to the author; all errors are my own.)

The History of Negatives in Chinese

Before beginning, it's important to distinguish between two different categories of negative words: negative adverbs (否定副词) and negative verbs (否定动词). For our purposes, the former category is any word that can be put before a verb to negate its sense; the word 不 in modern Chinese is a good example. Negative verbs can stand alone at the "center" of a predicate (谓语). The word 没 is sometimes used in this way in modern Chinese. For example, in the sentence,

  屋子里没人.
  wūzi li méi rén
  There is no one in the room.

没 is acting as a verb, not an adverb modifying another main verb. (The use of the word adverb is not exactly right here, by the way, because the category 副词 doesn't exactly correspond to the English category of adverbs, though it's pretty close.)

I'll also be making a distinction between the use of 没 as a "full-fledged verb" (corresponding to its reading "mò" today,meaning "to sink, to be covered") and its use as a negative verb.

Previously (in the oracle bone inscription days), Chinese had many negative adverbs, such as 不 、弗 、勿 and 毋, and later (during the Zhou and Qin dyansty period) added several more, like  非 、匪 、微 、无 、蔑  and 未. Both 无 and 蔑 were themselves negative verbs also, and both had the same meaning as 没有 does today.

没 on the Scene

The first textual evidence for the existence of 没 (as a verb meaning to sink/submerge) is in the Tang dynasty, but various pieces of evidence which I will not repeat here imply that 没 was already being used as a negative verb (not a negative adverb) before the Tang period.

The use of 没 as a verb meaning to sink into water gradually extended until 没 meant to disappear or lose. From a phonetic perspective, though, there is no link between the use of 没 as a full-fledged verb and its use as a negative. (Recall that two different pronunciations of 没 exist today which enforce precisely this difference.) Indeed, many experts have assumed that 没 originated as a negative word because it sounded the same as 未 (wèi, which is still used as a negative adverb today to mean "has not yet").

The author of this work, though, prefers to trace the connection between 没 and 无, which, as I pointed out above, has long had the same meaning as modern "没有."

Phonetic History of 没 and 无

Our knowledge of the phonology of middle Chinese comes mostly from a Song work called <广韵> Guangyun, which listed characters according to rimes [sic]. To indicate the pronunciation of a word, the dictionaries of those days used something called the 反切 method, which split a character up into two other characters, one representing the syllable onset and one representing the rime (rest of the syllable). Wikipedia's article on Fanqie quotes an example from Gari Ledyard of how such a system might work in English: we could encode the pronunciation of the word sough by using the two words sun and now, to show that the word starts with an "s" and ends with the same sound as the word "now." (I am omitting many details.)

These books also come with a table of rimes so that we know basically how the various consonants and vowels were articulated in those days. There were two different syllable onsets (called 明母 and 微母) which sounded similar (the former corresponds to modern initial "m", the latter variously to "w", "v" or "m"): 没 was 明母 (cf. modern méi), and 无 was 微母 (cf. modern wú). Various historical clues allow the author to conclude that the popular pronunciation of those two words (as opposed to the possibly literary pronunciation in the Guangyun) was the same. At that time, 无 also had the meaning of "to lose" when used as a full-fledged verb. This similarity, combined with the at-least similarity in sound, led to an eventual mixing of the uses of 没 and 无. By the Song dynasty, these two words were being used interchangeably. By the Yuan/Ming period, the process was completed, and 没 had replaced 无 as the negative verb meaning "没有."

But what about 没有?

The uses described above all still involve 没 as a negative verb. In fact, the above change also influenced the development of 没 as a negative adverb. 无 could always be used as a negative adverb in addition to being a negative verb, and the compound 无有 had always existed because 无 was viewed as being the direct negative of 有. As 没 gradually replaced 无, so too did 没有 replace 无有. (The form 不有 is attested, but was gradually superseded by 没有 as Chinese negative adverbs consolidated over time.)

There's more to be said about the process by which 没 and 没有 became fully gramaticalized, but I'm out of time and will have to come back later. Will be happy to post more if you're interested.


If I forget how to write a character during the HSK, can I copy it from the supplied exam materials?

I remember when I was in middle school 语文 test, I forgot how to write a character, I jumped to following questions, then occasionally I found that character in question descrpition. That moment..., it is like I found Blackbeard's treasure.

I don't think it is cheating, it is a gift. No one would stop you to look at your exam paper and copy them.


How can both 过 (past actions) and 会 (future actions) turn up in 下过雨以后，空气会好很多?

I learn that "过" is used for past actions, "会" = "will" (for future actions). So, can both 过 and 会 turn up in this sentence?

Your understandings of both characters are correct. But here in this sentence, the usage is a bit similar to "subjunctive mood" in English.

The sentence basically means: "After raining, the air would be much better." You can understand it as "If it rained, the air would be much better."

But honestly, the concepts of "tense" and "mood" are from Roman languages. In Chinese, there is not a prohibition on putting two tenses in one sentence.

For example (I just made up the sentence, might not be perfect):

“我刚试过了苹果的新产品，一发工资我就买！” ("I have just tried Apple's new product, I would buy it on my next payday." )

In English, you have to put the words into the right tense, but in Chinese, it's almost the same for "present perfect" and "simple past".

Here are the standard usages of the two characters in Modern Chinese Dictionary 《现代汉语词典》.

过【·guo】

1 用在动词后，表示完毕：吃～饭再走｜杏花和碧桃都已经开～了。

2 用在动词后，表示某种行为或变化曾经发生，但并未持续到现在：他去年来～北京｜我们吃～亏，上～当，有了经验了。

Comment: Two meanings are similar. Here is the first one. "过" has many other meanings under other tones. This one is "neutral tone", but in oral usage you can use “falling tone” [guò] to emphasis the status of "finished".

会2【huì】

5 （助）助动词。表示有可能实现：他不～不来｜树上的果子熟了，自然～掉下来。

Comment: 会 has more usages than I ever noticed. This one means "will" but without "a will". When someone says “我会去做的。”, it is the same usage but implies "I will do it without you saying." "It's in my plan already."

I'm a native Chinese but inexperienced in explaining my mother tongue. Feel free to ask follow-on questions. I hope my answer could help you.


Can anyone here read handwritten calligraphy and can tell me what this says please? It's on a porcelain plaque

願與彭澤令同醉菊花天
王倚(琦)寫於珠山

愿与彭泽令同醉菊花天
王倚(琦)写于珠山

彭澤令 implies 陶淵明 (Tao Yuan-ming) because he has been the 彭澤令 (Pen-ze county magistrate) and loved 菊花 very much。

菊花天 implies the autumn because 菊花 (chrysanthemum flowers) blossom in the fall.

珠山 implies the 江西景德鎮 because it is a famous hill there.

王倚 may be a mimic name of 王琦 who was a famous artist in the porcelain area several decades ago.

The stamp shows 王印, and the two characters have the inverse colors.

  願與彭澤令同醉菊花天
  Hope to drink (wine) with Tao Yuan-ming in autumn.


Expressing translations between English and Chinese

How do I discuss translation in Chinese?

The simplest:

'猫'的英文是 'cat' / '狗'的英文是  'dog' /  'X' 的英文是 'Y'

More detailed:

中文的'猫'字在英文是 'cat' / 中文的'狗'字在英文是 'dog' / 中文的  'X' 字在英文是 'Y'

For standard translation of 红茶:

'红茶'的英文是 'black tea'
'红茶'在英文译作 'black tea'

For literal translation of 红茶:

红茶在英文的词面上就是 'red tea' ('红茶'  literally means 'red tea' in English)
红茶直译成为英文就是 'red tea' (the direct translation of '红茶'  in English would be 'red tea')

There are many more ways you can rephrase the above examples. I didn't even use the word 翻译 (translate) in any of my examples.


Translation of "go from ... to ..." / 从 ... 到

从不是动词。
从是副词，到是动词。went还可以翻译成变，变成等等


Is there a proverb that means something like an enemy's best tactic is to hide himself?

In 36 stratagems, there's one called Openly repair the gallery roads, but sneak through the passage of Chencang

(明修棧道,暗渡陳倉／明修栈道,暗渡陈仓, Míng xiū zhàn dào, àn dù chén cāng)

Deceive the enemy with an obvious approach that will take a very long time, while surprising him by taking a shortcut and sneak up to him. As the enemy concentrates on the decoy, he will miss you sneaking up to him.


Oops, just remembered.

一言为定。 Yī yán wéi dìng


点儿 actually is not attached to the verb in this case and thus is not an adverb. Instead, 点 is being used as a measure word for the noun 衣服. The 儿 is the result of erhua (儿化) on 点, which is common in northern China.

一点 or 一点儿 is used as a measure to indicate "some" or "a little". When the count for a measure is one (一), it is often optional and can be dropped. Also note that when the noun is understood from context, it can also be dropped, so your sentence could also simply end up becoming 你要多穿点儿. This may end up making it look like 点儿 is modifying the verb, even though that's not the case; it's modifying an implicit noun that had been dropped.

It's true that this phenomenon of word dropping can often make sentences harder to analyze for Chinese learners, but learning when certain parts of sentences can be optional will help your understanding of the language.


Are 总是, 平常, 通常, and 经常 all interchangeable?

总是 is just plainly always.

平常 is usually, as in being part of normal life. For example, 我平常有运动 would literally be "I do exercise as part of my life", interpreted as "I exercise often". If you want to say "Fast food is usually unhealthy", the usually would not be in the sense above, so 快餐平常都不健康 would be incorrect. Rather, that would have a weird meaning like "Fast food is unhealthy most of the time (but it is healthy today)".

通常 is also usually, but in the sense of being the more common/likely/normal/general case. For example, 叶子通常是绿色的 would literally be "Leaves are normally/generally green", and translates to "Leaves are usually green". The same fast food example would work for 通常: 快餐通常都不健康 would be "Fast food is usually unhealthy".

经常 means often. 我经常运动 would, like 我平常有运动, be interpreted as "I exercise often". However, the former directly states “I exercise often", while the latter states "I do exercise as part of my life", so note the difference.

An extra example, 我经常跌倒 means "I fall often", and the average person would not say 我平常跌倒 as it would be like "I usually fall". 我平常走路都会跌倒 "I would fall when I walk in the usual manner" would be more legit. 我走路通常会跌倒 would be "When I walk I usually fall".


It's just historical stuff. European countries that have commerce with China prior to the Ching dynasty and also modern countries after WWII, in general have fancier names.

希腊 for Greece
意大利 for Italy
瑞典 for Sweden
法国 for France
美国 for US
葡萄牙 for Portugal
马来西亚 for Malaysia
日本 for Japan

etc.

You just have to accept them as it is. It's hard to find a pattern why.

Edit: http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/countrynames_chinese.htm

There's very few countries which have 国 in their names, it's more of a short form, like 英格兰 for 英国, 美利堅合眾國 for 美国. Others which have 共和国 in their names are People's Republic, like China, whose official name is People's Republic of China.


(n.) 的大預言 having trouble making sense of this construct

的大预言

预言 means prophecy

大 means big

预言 here most likely is not plural - hence the whole 的大

edit: found this:

http://doraemon.wikia.com/wiki/Chapter_2:Prophecy_of_Doraemon

a chapter called "Prophecy of Doraemon" maybe it matches up to what you are reading...


What is the correct tone for 压 in 高压电 (high voltage) and 低压电 (low voltage)?

According to Chinese daily habits,Chinese prefer the first tone and in many formal situations,like CCTV, the hoster speaks the first tone.But if you want to speak the fourth tone,they can also understand your idea.So you don't care whether the correct tone is first tone  or not (if you're talking with Chinese ).But if you're preparing for exam,I think you should choose the first tone.


Why is 是 in 这件事情到底是解决了?

Simply put, it's for emphasis. In English you might say "has in fact been resolved".


The meaning of 咱 is different in northern China and the rest.

In east-north China, 咱 is the same as 我. People there say 咱 to refer
to him/herself. And it depends whether the speaker is endearing
him/herself. This usage is actually a little bit weird for Chinese
from southern areas.
In the rest provinces of China, 咱 is different from 我。咱 refers to the
both sides of a conversation, and is often used to show closer
relationship or endearment. 咱 is much less frequently used than 我们
there.

So in your example, I think this conversation happens in east-north China since 咱妈 is rare in southern area and it simply refers to 我的妈妈.


Why are some characters more preferred in some areas?

This is called 异体字 and I don't know this concept in English. In the old days, there are often multiple characters for a single 字, if you know some japanese kanji, you would even find more 异体字, some even different from those in China.


Naming siblings with same sounding chinese characters

I never heard of such kind of "taboo". But if you are very sensitive with this for some reasons like you believe in things like 周易取名, you may search 周易取名 on Google or Baidu. I think most of the key/original information is in Chinese.

Anyway, I think 嫣 is a very good name for a girl while 彥 sounds like a boy's name.


相声 is a form of Chinese traditional stand-up comedy where two two performers talk back and forth to each other, telling a funny story or just chatting about a humorous topic. Because it's a traditional Chinese art form and originates in northern China, it has a higher political status than other Chinese art forms. This means that it gets broadcasted across the country on CCTV a lot, and sinophiles like Mark Roswell get introduced to it when they are studying Chinese.

相声 performers who become make a name for themselves can establish their own styles and take on students to pass on their skills. Mr Roswell/Dashan's mentor was a performer named  姜昆. Dashan is not the only foreigner to have studied under a famous artist -- another name that I remember off the top of my head is Julien Gaudfroy (朱力安), a French student of Chinese who also studied 相声.

Probably the best way to get a better feel for 相声 would be to search for the term on Youtube, or if you're in China then search on Youku. Combine it with 大山 or 朱力安 to find videos of these talented performers.


Why is 就 used in ...我实际上在立法会内曾就胶袋问题提出质询...?

ABC calls this a 介词 (converb) and defines it like this:

  with regard to; concerning

Here's the examples they use:

  就A 来说

  Jiù A lái shuō

  with regard to A

And:

  就A 而言

  Jiù A ér yán

  with regard to A

就膠袋問題提出質詢 = as for the inquires raised in regard to the problems with the pastic bags


What is @ ("at") called when giving an email address over the phone?

I've heard at least two versions personally.

One is to use the English reading of "at".

The other is "圈(儿)a". Meaning "a" with a circle around it.

It might be different in different regions.


Why does the Simplified Chinese character 强 have more strokes than its Traditional Chinese counterpart 強?

My assumption has been that the variant 强 was selected as standard because the right hand side of 強 is not its own character, whereas 强 was perceived as easier to remember because it is 弓＋虽. However, etymologically, 強 = 弘 ＋ 虫, so the character reform committee kind of screwed the pooch in that sense.


Exactly how bad is it to call a family member by their given name?

Calling a family member of the older generation by the first name only is taboo. You must address your parents and grandparents with appropriate honorific or pet name e.g. /爸爸，媽媽/ 公公，奶奶
Calling a family member in your generation who is older than your (e.g. older brother, older cousin) by the first name is also not natural.
For uncles and aunts, you can use their first names but must add their titles at the end. e.g. 二叔/ 志強叔，三叔/ 國強叔
You are free to call any family member in your generation who is younger than you by the first name, except if one of your uncles is younger than you, you still have to treat him as your senior.
You are free to call any family member of the younger generation by the first name. However, it is considered too formal. Most people use pet names to call the younger family members. e.g. 小明 instead of 家明


How similar do terms have to be to connect them with 與, 與其，及其？

與： 和，and;
與其： 和他的， and one's;
及其： 还有他的，and also one's;
Back to your examples:

從該日起在此居住與唸書。// fine

2a.該研究美國與其政治方法。// wrong as the reason you said
2b. 該研究美國及其政治方法。// fine, [research on America and its methodology of politics].
2c. 我们很乐意为这所房子及其庭院拍照。 // fine, [take pictures for this house and also its courtyard.]
3a. 辜鴻銘不認可胡適這位新文化的帶頭人與其課程。// wrong, the same reason as 2a
3b. 辜鴻銘不認可胡適這位新文化的帶頭人及其課程。// fine, [disagree/disapprove the leader of ... and also his courses.]


留言 literally mean leave messages. In your context, it could be interpreted as 留的言, the messages left by netizens. Sometimes, 留言 can be a form of comment, or vise versa.


When to use the single character vs double character form of a verb?

I'll try answering this (but be aware I'm just a learner).

The given examples are transitive vs. intransitive verbs:

说 vs. 说话.  Here, 说 is a transitive verb (i.e., it takes an object) whereas 说话 is an intransitive verb (i.e., it doesn't take an object):

  他说“你好”
  He says hello

  你为什么那样说话？
  Why do you speak that way?

We can alternatively think of 话 (noun) as what is being said (说).
吃 vs. 吃饭.  Again, 吃 is a transitive verb whereas 吃饭 is an intransitive verb, so 我吃饭面包 is incorrect, but 我吃面包 is correct.

Again, we can alternatively think of 饭 as the object being eating (吃).

(I also note that both 说 and 吃 can be used as intransitive verbs, e.g., 你别说了 and 他什么都没吃.)

学 vs. 学习

Another example is 学 and 学习 which are both transitive verbs.  So both of these are grammatical:

  我学汉语。
  我学习汉语。

In this case, which do we choose?  See this question: What's the difference between 学 and 学习?  It's somewhat a matter of preference, circumstance, etc.


How do you say "to do" When asking a kid what he wants to do when he grows up?

Well, there's several way to say it. In addition to what you wrote, you can also use 做 or 當. For example, 長大後你想做什麼? or 你長大後想當什麼?

A more formal way, e.g. in essay questions, is to use 志向. For example: 你未來的志向是什麼?


Where can we find the most frequent combination of two Chinese words (搭配)?

I know there are many excellent learners' dictionaries and collocations dictionaries in English, but sadly Chinese lexicography doesn't seem to have done a good job.
Some resources that might help you:
1）search 汉语搭配词典 here on http://www.ucdrs.superlib.net
2）Look up in general dictionaries
现代汉语词典（download it here https://b-ok.asia/book/3583521/fc4154）
（台灣）教育部重編國語辭典：http://dict.revised.moe.edu.tw/cbdic/search.htm
learner's dictionary: 《现代汉语八百词》
3）Use 语料库（Corpus）
http://ccl.pku.edu.cn:8080/ccl_corpus/
http://corpus.zhonghuayuwen.org/CnCindex.aspx
http://bcc.blcu.edu.cn/
search 中文 语料库 on Google for more corpora


Do 和 and 跟 have different grammatical functions？

和 and 跟 may have the same grammatical function, when they introduce a verbal company complement, occurring before the verb. Then both are prepositions. Even more so, in the linked Zdic entries, both of them are respectively used to define the other:

【和】： 连词，跟，同：我～老师打球。
【跟】： 和，同：我～他在一起工作。

In that case, they both describe together with whom the action occurs and can be used interchangeably:

我喜欢和他聊天 and 我喜欢跟他聊天
我和你说一下 and 我跟你说一下
我想和我父母去度假 and 我想跟我父母去度假

As you can see, they are used when the noun refers to a human.

That aside, 和 also works as a conjunction, as Zdic notes (连词), more specifically to coordinate nouns1. In that case, it can't be grammatically replaced with 跟：

西班牙和葡萄牙，我都去过
登机前请您准备好护照和登机牌

Additional Notes
The linked Zdic entries may appear confusing with respect to a point: I say that 跟 is interchangeable with 和 when they both are prepositions, but Zdic uses 跟 to define 和 when it's a conjunction! From the 和 entry:

连词，跟，同：我～老师打球。

介词，向，对：我～老师请教。

The examples provided there also don't do a good job at disambiguating, as the position of the word in both 我～老师打球 and 我～老师请教 is exactly the same.
I think that's a mistake of the dictionary, because 跟 is grammatically equivalent to 和 only when used as a preposition (介词) — in that case, Zdic is more accurate, as 跟 is defined in terms of 向 and 对 just as 和 is.
My examples above show the role of 和/跟 as prepositions by placing the prepositional phrase as not contiguous to the subject of the main sentence.

1: you can't use 和 to coordinate verbs, or entire sentences


The term " to shadow "(跟随/跟著) means 'follow (closely like a shadow)'.
Example:

"Today is your first day on the job, you don't have to do anything, just shadowing John and watch how he works."
(今天是你工作的第一天，你不用做任何事情，只要跟著約翰, 看看他是如何工作便可以了.)

For a noun that describes 'someone who does the shadowing'
I suggest '見習生'
Example:

"you would be John's shadow today"
(你今天就當約翰的見習生吧)

~

見習 (v) to watch and learn
見習生(n) a person on job probation (watch and learn)

見習生 is a general term, It can be a student training in actual work place or a new employee starting a job on probation. Different companies have different training methods. Shadowing is one kind of 見習, which trainee can learn by observing, and not hamper the trainer's regular work routine.


At what age is it inappropriate to call people 小李, 小王, 小刘, etc.? And is it different for males and females?

It is not about the person's age, it is about is the person older or younger than you, and what kind of relationship between you and that person.

If someone is about your age, and you two are close friends or at lease having a friendly relationship, it is OK. to call him 小李 or 老李

If someone close to you is much older than you, it is OK. to call him 老李 but not 小李

If someone close to you is much younger than you, it is OK. to call him 小李 but not 老李

Chinese men don't usually call a female friend 老李, 小李, 老王, 小王 .etc.  (it implies she is one of us guys)

If you are 80 years old, you still can call a 79 years old friend 老李, 小李, 老王, 小王 .etc.


Usage of 的要 in 頭髮太長囉，該剪的要剪一剪了

"的要" is not a term; "的" makes the phrase a noun, so "該(should)剪(cut)的" means "what should be cut". "要" means should/must/shall/will, so the whole sentence literally means "(you) should cut (the long hair) what should be cut".


It's a derogatory word.
It's used to mock poems which abused name of the ancients and historical stories.


This is a criticism from 金以谋 to 陈士铎, both are doctor of traditional Chinese medicine.

立: propose; present

方: 药方, remedy

固: definitely

奇: peculiar

而: but

论: 理论 theory

甚: indeed

正: reasonable

The remedy he presented are definitely peculiar, yet his theories are reasonable deeply.


Is “事出必有因” the most accurate translation for "everything happens for a reason"?


From right to left

花香鳥語 (Flower's Fragrance, birds' songs)

庚子歳 仲春 in the middle of Spring in the year of 庚子

"歳" means "year"(年); "仲" means "middle of"; "春" means "Spring"

The last 庚子年 was 1960; the next 庚子年 is 2020

志航寫 = wrote by Zhi Hang (志航 is the author)


What is the purpose of verb reduplication?

The examples you gave are not verb reduplication
phrases like 笑笑，看看，走走 or 吃吃 are verb reduplication, it serves to indicate the verb is in a slight degree or a casual manner

I sneezed a big sneeze
She sleeps a long sleep

These are just a same word as verb, and then as noun (object) in a same sentence

the first sneeze is a verb; the second sneeze is a noun

the first sleep is a verb; the second sleep is a noun

了 is not a verb, it is a 'verb particle' that indicate 'completion of the action' or 'change of situation.
In your 西游记 examples

指 = point

指了= pointed (the pointing action is completed)

笑了笑 - the first 笑 is a verb; the second 笑 is a 'verb classifier' for counting how many times the subject smiled (since there is only one smile, the action is in a slight degree or casual manner)

晃了晃 - the first 晃 is a verb; the second 晃 is a 'verb classifier' for counting how many times 金箍棒 was swung (since there is only one swing, the action is in a slight degree or casual manner)

转了转 - the first 转 is a verb; the second 转 is a 'verb classifier' for counting how many times 眼珠子 was turned (since there is only one turn, the action is in a slight degree or casual manner)

Since the second 笑, 晃 and 转 are verb classifiers, they work with counting words: 笑了(一)笑, 晃了(三)晃, 转了(八)转

抢了我的东西 (seized my stuffs) - '抢了' is a completed action; 我的东西 is the object
抢我的东西 - (seize my stuffs) - '抢' is a verb; 我的东西 is the object (no indication of either the action is completed or not)

~

'做了坏事' (have done bad thing) - '做了' is a completed action; '坏事' is the object
'做坏事' (do bad thing) - '做' is a verb ; '坏事' is the object (no indication of either the action is completed or not)

~

'得到了满意的答案' (have got a satisfied answer) - 得到了 is a completed action; 满意的答案 is the object
'得到满意的答案' (get a satisfied answer) - 得到 is verb; 满意的答案 is the object (no indication of either the action is completed or not)


What is the name of the artist on this piece?

"馬海德", most likely was "shafick george Hatem" and his wife "周蘇菲".

于延安 is roughly at (于) the communist headquarters (延安)


How do you read "11%" aloud when it refers to percentage points?

This is an article introducing the percentages and percentage points from the National Bureau of Statistics: link
Thought it did not explicitly say how they would be written, from the last sentence of the article:

从上述资料中，我们可以说：国内生产总值中，第一产业占的比重，1993年比1992年下降3.6个百分点（18.2－21.8＝－3.6）；但不能说下降3.6％。

We can see that for perctage point, percentage points would not be written with “%”, but with “个百分点” explicitly.
Also, “xx个百分点” is also how percentage points should read in Chinese.


Linguists divide pre-modern Chinese broadly into two periods: Old Chinese and Middle Chinese. I wanted to preface my answer by noting that Bernhard Karlgren used the term "Ancient Chinese" to refer specifically to Middle Chinese, and it appears that your questions seem to be referring to Middle Chinese as well, though I will be making a note about Old Chinese in my answer.

Middle Chinese is documented as having tones (in particular by the Qieyun in 601) while Old Chinese has been postulated as being atonal. I will go into more detail as I address your questions in order:

The tone contours of the various modern Chinese varieties can appear to be superficially quite different, but the tones themselves are actually quite consistent in the way they evolved from the tones of Middle Chinese. Words that belong to particular tone categories tend to remain in the same tone category across the various modern Chinese varieties, even though the ways the tone itself is pronounced has diverged among differing dialects.

Take for example, the word 平, which generally always has the 陽平 tone across all of the modern Chinese varieties; however, the 陽平 tone itself has evolved into having, for instance, the contour 35 in Standard Mandarin but contour 21 in modern Cantonese.

Various tone categories can end up getting split or merged though during the evolution of any particular Chinese variety due to various phonological environments, so for instance, Middle Chinese 陰去 and 陽去 tones both ended up merging into one 去 tone in Mandarin (with contour 51), while they remained separate in Cantonese (with contours 33 and 22, respectively).

One area where tone mergers were not very consistent is the loss of the checked tones (入) in Mandarin. Words with this tone ended up being redistributed to the other 4 modern Mandarin tones seemingly randomly in Beijing Mandarin (and thus also in Standard Mandarin which is based on Beijing Mandarin); however the redistribution in other dialects of Mandarin appear to more consistent in this regard (refer to the table in this article). One explanation for this inconsistency is that checked tone words in Beijing Mandarin ended up being pronounced in a variety of different tones once the distinguishing feature of checked tone words (namely the stop consonant codas) were lost and the confluence of various dialects in the capital reshaped the tones with which these words were pronounced in different ways.

Refer to the table in this article for how the various modern Chinese varieties map the original tones of Middle Chinese into their modern tones and tone contours.
Japanese and Korean belong to separate language families that are not related to Chinese even though they imported many Chinese words. The time period during which most Chinese words were imported fall squarely during the Middle Chinese period, which was documented as already featuring tones. Japanese and Korean though, are not tonal languages, and because they don't distinguish lexical tone, it's not unexpected that they would also not distinguish tones in the words they imported.

For a parallel example, English is an atonal language that has also imported a few words of Chinese origin, such as bok choy from Cantonese and feng shui from Mandarin, and the tones with which these words are originally pronounced are similarly ignored in English.
As I mentioned above, the words with stop codas were classified under the checked tone in Middle Chinese, and when the stop codas were lost in Mandarin, their tone contours ended up being redistributed to the other tones. Strictly speaking, yes, this did end up resulting in a loss of information leading to a possible increase in ambiguity; however, this is not an uncommon occurrence in the evolution of any language. Distinguishing features have been lost in the history languages across the world, but their speakers generally make up for it in other ways. Mandarin, in particular, lost many of the distinguishing features that were present in Middle Chinese, leading to a reduced syllable inventory, but it has compensated by increasing the number of disyllabic words in its vocabulary.

It is interesting to note, though, that loss of certain codas in the transition from Old Chinese to Middle Chinese did indeed get transformed to tones. It is postulated that Old Chinese was actually not a tonal language, and words ending in a glottal stop (-ʔ) in Old Chinese ended up cheshirizing to the 上 tone and words ending in -s to the 去 tone. See this article for more details.

Similarly, a later tonal distinction caused by voiced vs. unvoiced initial consonants in Middle Chinese lead to the split of the four 平上去入 tones into two registers, 陰 and 陽, leading to 8 tones (this marked the transition from Early Middle Chinese to Late Middle Chinese). The voiced vs. unvoiced distinction has disappeared in most modern varieties of Chinese (a notable exception being the Wu dialects), but the tonal distinction still remains in many of them.


Can I have some Taiwan restaurant sentences?

I'm from the mainland. But I think you can use these in Taiwan:

where do I pay?: 请问在哪里付钱？

Table for 3, please : 3人用餐，谢谢

Can I have a look at the manu？  ： 我能看看菜单么？

Can you bring something to drink? : 能来点喝得么？


It means "to breeze (in)".

To examine this in more detail, the phrase 飘然而至 simply means "to arrive" in a 飘然 manner", and 飘然 has a couple of interconnected meanings:

very quickly
unrestrained, unencumbered; carefree
flowing loosely

A good overall translation would be "to breeze (in)". However, the precise translation can be adjusted depending on the context. For example:

这寒冷的冬季飘然而至 -> "The cold winter arrived swiftly."
凤凰涅槃, 飘然而至 -> "A phoenix flies over nimbly."
绝世美少女飘然而至 -> "A peerless beauty breezes in."
飘然而至的感伤 -> "Sentimental sadness sweeps over (me)." (inspired by @TommieC.'s answer)


What is the difference in use between 完 and 了?

You can use 完 and 了 together or separately.

了 is usually used to indicate the completion of an action. E.g. 你买了好多东西 (You purchased a lot of stuff). See the question "Tense and use of 了" to learn more.
完 is used to indicate the action of completing/finishing something. E.g. "說話沒完的人" (a motormouth, someone who talks to no end). Usually it's verb + 完.

完了 can have 3 different meanings/uses.

Verb + 完了 can indicate that the (verb) action has come to an end.
Noun + 完了 indicate the feeling of despair or the end of something . E.g., 哎呀，我完了！ (On no, I'm finished/done for!) or 那個車完了(That car is finished/done for!).
完了 by itself (usually at the beginning of a sentence) is usually an exclamation of despair. E.g., 完了, 车没油了！回不了家了！ (We're/I'm done [for], the car's out of gas. We/I can't go [back] home [now]).

没完 can be used to describe things left undone, or something never-ending/eternal. E.g., 活儿还没完 (Work is not done/finished yet) or "說話沒完的人" (a motormouth, someone who talks to no end).


What is the function 就是 and 对 in 这个重大责任， 就是对民族的责任?

"这个重大责任， [是]民族的责任。" - "This major responsibility, [is] the people's responsibility "
"这个重大责任， [就是]民族的责任。" - "This major responsibility, [exactly is]
the people's responsibility "
"这个重大责任， [就是][对] 民族的责任。" - "This major responsibility, [exactly is] the responsibility [to] the people"

In all cases, '这个重大责任' is the topic of a [topic + comment/opinion] sentence

The comment/ opinion:

1b. '是民族的责任'" (is people's responsibility) is the comment on the topic
2b. '是' = 'is' ; '就是' = 'exactly is' ; '就' has many meanings. However, in this sentence, it means 'exactly', which emphasize the verb '是', not only "it is", it  "exactly is"
3b. '对'(toward) = 'to' ; it is a preposition that indicates which object this responsibility is for

民族的责任 = the people's responsibility

[对]民族[的]责任 = responsibility [toward/ to] the people

Rephrase in English grammar: "This major responsibility, is the responsibility to the people"


Putting 了 in both parts of separable verbs: is it mandatory?

开始上了课 is not grammatical. 开始 means 'started', 上了课 means 'have finished class', You cannot "Started to have finished class"

A  grammatical sentence should be 我早上上课 (I attend classes in the morning) --> 我早上上了课 (I have attended classes in the morning)

And yes, you can insert 了 between the verb and noun in any separable verb to indicate it is completed action

Example:

看書 (read book) --> 看了書 (have read book)

吃飯 (eat meal) --> 吃了飯 (have eaten meal)

逃學 (skip classes) --> 逃了學 (have skipped classes)


If you want to express a percentage:

（某集体之中）有十分之七的人去了健身房。
或者：（平均下来）十个人里面有七个去了健身房。
70% of them went to the gym.

If you want to express a number:

这十个人里面有七个去了健身房。
(There are exactly 10 people in total, and exactly 7 people went to the gym.)


What's the structure of this word / sentence? 搬进、走出、跑回

The “进” part is called directional complement.

  Rather simply, as we do in English, you can add a directional word to the verb, to describe where the verb is going. The most common words to indicate a direction are:

  上, up and 下, down <== notice how they kind of look like arrows?
  进, in and 出, out
  过, to cross over
  起, up
  回 to come back.
  到 (to arrive) to

So, “搬进” is “move in/into”, “走出” is “walk out (of)”, “跑回” is “run back to”.


Is a morpheme bound or is it free: any online source?

As far as I know, this is not a free combination.
China has official word statistics. This is used to guide everyday language. The use of words is generally restricted by these official data. If some morpheme combinations are used privately, the resulting words may be too strange to be understood by anyone.
Put another way, the combination of morphemes in Chinese is constrained by words or idioms. Free morpheme combinations can only be used for personal use, or in certain situations (such as emergencies or colloquial expressions).
You can check this online Chinese word website
http://www.xh.5156edu.com/


Such as  :

  不用了。

or

  算了。

or

  别管了。


This is a Chinese pun-like joke known as 歇后语. What they have in common is two parts, where the second part is a homophone of the expected answer to the first.

In this case, "够贱" is supposed to sound like the true answer to "兵器谱排行榜第一位". That may not be obvious at first, and I think this joke was told poorly, but my guess is that "兵器谱排行榜" actually refers to the Eighteen Arms, of which there are four that are considered the "best" (四大兵器), which includes the 剑 or double-edged straight sword. So "够贱" is a homophone of "够剑", or "as good as Jian".

So a proper translation might be:

  You really are the first among the weapons - as good as Jian (so despicable).

With the joke working because "jian" sounds the same as "despicable" in Chinese.

The problems with this joke are:

There's no well-known list known as 兵器谱排行榜
Of the lists that are well known, such as the 四大兵器, although 剑 ranks highly, it doesn't rank first


What is the difference between 主菜 and 主食?

主菜 is typically the best dish in a banquet, in biological terms, the proteins.

主食 is referring to carbohydrates, namely noodles or rice.

In China, we usually eat 主食 with some dishes, and the dishes are called 菜。The dishes could be meat, vegetables, seafood and so on, but not carbohydrates.


Help choosing a Chinese name among a few shortlisted ones

Any answer would be very subjective

In my opinion, 孙博良 is the best choice. Not only it sounds similar to  Paulo, the characters also are common in native Chinese names and with positive meanings.

「博」 as in 「知識淵博」(widely knowledgeable), 「博學多才」 (knowledgeable and talented)

「良」 as in 「善良」(kind-hearted), 「良好」 (good; fine)

When people ask you how your name is written, you can quote: 「博學的博, 善良的良」

Most importantly, this name has 書生氣 (sounds like a scholar's name)


What semantic field underlies 涵 for it to mean 'soak, immerse' and 'tolerate, be lenient'?

The semantic extension is as follows:

To be soaked in water
To have a large capacity to hold water
To have a large capacity to tolerate bullshit
To be lenient (e.g. lenient on someone for their wrongdoings)

References:

《漢語大詞典》


Are there Escher sentences in Chinese? [kinda technical]

"More people have been to Russia than I have" doesn't make sense in English, therefore, it wouldn't make sense in Chinese neither.
(2)-(4) would not be considered grammatical by native Chinese speakers at all.
"Many people have been to Russia more than I have"  (有很多去俄羅斯比我去得多的人 ) does make sense.
As for 病句 (ill sentences), some people do say things ungrammatically, mainly due to mistaken word type (e.g. mistaken adjective as adverb) or wrongly omit things that shouldn't be omitted
Example:

他很有勇氣 (he has courage) --> 他很有勇敢 (he has brave)
勇敢 is mainly an adjective or adverb, using it as a noun require a classifier, e.g. 這份勇敢 (this bravery)

~

無法無天的行動 (lawless act) --> 無法行動 (can't take action)
reduce 無法無天 (lawless) to 無法 (cannot) and omit the adjective marker "的" change the meaning completely

However 驚天動地的行動 (earth-shattering action) can be reduced to 驚天行動 and the meaning of the sentence would not be changed because 驚天 is clearly referring to 驚天動地


As Stumpy Joe says, N and L have merged. Even outside HK it is quite generalized now -- to the point that people below 40 have difficulties -- up to complete inability -- pronouncing initial N-. I don't know how many times I've heard "What is your lame?" or similar stuff...

I work in the wine business, and every time we have to translate a wine name in Chinese for the Chinese back label, if there's a syllable with an N or an L, it is a complete crapshoot. N- syllables sinicized as 利, L- syllables rendered as 呢, etc. When I point out the errors, my Guangdong clients, even the older loubaan, seem to completely miss the issue: 一樣㗎! Not quite, brother. On the other hand, wines imported in the north usually get named with Ns and Ls in their proper places.

For instance, the famous vineyard Pont-Canet is usually transcribed 朋特卡內 (it's imported by just about every company in China, so a Mandarin sinicization prevailed), whereas the excellent La Tour Carnet vineyard, whose wines arrived in China mostly via the south, was named 拉图嘉利. I tried to get that changed to 呢 or similar -- my clients couldn't see what I was talking about. For both 嘉利 and 嘉呢 my clients said gaa.Le(i).

On the other hand, some of my friends, who speak average to good English, are vaguely aware of the L/N issue, but can't control it 100%. N- appearing in L- words happen regularly. A friend of mine is very fond of saying nousy for lousy. I tried to tell him it's Lousy. He said, Yeah, nousy!. Hopeless...


Like a few other simplifications, 兰 is derived from the grass script for the traditional form. The first three strokes are derived from the 草字头 (the grass radical).

Various character forms can be seen on this site.


In typical [ topic + opinion/ comment] structure:

「第一印象」(the first impression) is the topic
「一般(是)很難改變(的)」( generally, is hard to be changed) is the opinion/ comment.

If you write 「一般, 第一印象(是)很難改變(的), the adverb (一般) that should be followed by the verb (是) is now followed by a noun (第一印象) instead, and it is grammatically incorrect.

*see comment from Enrico Brasil on your post:

  Adverbs usually are placed before verbs.

The sentence has to be changed to 「一般(來說), 第一印象(是)很難改變(的)」

一般來說 = generally (adv) speaking (v)


How do you enter a half comma (顿号, dùnhào) with Google Pinyin IME and a French keyboard

Since I figured it out after some more searching and trying, here is the answer:

After starting Google Pinyin IME, right-click on the keyboard button (软键盘 ruǎnjiànpán: software keyboard). From the menu that appears, choose 标点符号 (biāodiǎn fúhào: punctuation marks). This will bring up a keyboard on the screen; the dun comma is on the top row, on the same key as the number 2. You can than enter the dun comma using either the software keyboard or your hardware keyboard. You can then close the software keyboard again by clicking on the keyboard button.

Unfortunately, I am not aware of keyboard shortcuts to do this.


Why does the MacOS Keyboard with Predictive Completion produce 心情舒暢?

This has very little to do with grammar. It is more likely making logical word associations. I have no idea what Cangjie is or how it works － but if you take out an iPhone or iPad or any iDevice and type in xin you can repeat the process that you just did in MacOS, i.e.: 心-->情-->舒暢 (these being the top recommended choices).
Wikipedia talks about this here:

Word prediction
Word prediction (simplified Chinese: 联想; traditional Chinese: 聯想;
pinyin: liánxiǎng; literally "association") is a feature of an input
method that attempts to guess the next series of characters that the
user is attempting to enter. This feature is often used to refer to
two different mechanisms that have similar functions.
One of these mechanisms is akin to an auto-complete function for user
input. While the user is typing the appropriate pinyin, the input
method would take the input and look up all possible word phrases that
might match the user input even though the input is incomplete. For
example, when the user enters "shang", the input method would show
"上海" (Shanghai) as a word candidate under this feature.
The second possible mechanism is the prediction of the user's next
input after the user completes entering a set of words. For example,
in the above example, after user selects "上海" (Shanghai) from the word
candidate list, the input method's pinyin buffer would be empty. Under
this mechanism, the input method would display a list of words that
often follows the word Shanghai, such as "人" (people), "市" (city), "的"
(an auxiliary word).

edit: this kind of 'word prediction' is a key feature of all Chinese IMEs.


How to distinguish between rat and mouse in Chinese?

Actually, in ordinary life, Chinese don't distinguish mice and rats(Frankly speaking, when I was a student, studying English and met the two words, I was also wondering why there are two words in English?). We just call that dirty animal that often appears in the houses "老鼠" or "耗子"(oral word,common in dialects).When we see a mouse(rat?) in a field, we may call it "田鼠"(田 means the field).

仓鼠 is a kind of pet(one of my friends raise two). Wiki tells me rat is "大家鼠" and "mouse" is “小鼠", but I and people around me don't care this.

Of course, in scientific circle, academical researchers will adopt the Binomial Nomenclature(in Chinese, 二名法) system to distinguish them.


Help me translate the red signature seal on this picture?

i agreed with @droooze that, the 2nd & 3rd seal is "湘綉":

http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=湘

綉 (u+7d89) is a variant of 繡 (u+7d61), which means embroider

http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=繡

then, the 1st seal, i recognised it as "石氏"

http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=石

http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=氏

in which "石" is the surname, matched the "writer"'s name "石鍾璵"

the text of the 2nd picture is "活潑玲瓏", roughly vivacious & exquisite

the text of the 3rd picture is "活潑天真", roughly lively & artless

need to explain text of the first one?

have fun :)


The use of '的', please explain to me what is the difference between '自由翱翔' and '自由的翱翔'?

If translated literally, your two phrases would be fly freely and freedom's flying. In this case (the way I'm interpreting it), the 的 functions as a bit of a possessive. If you meant 地, which in this case would turn the 自由 into an adverb (freely instead of free or freedom), then there isn't much of a difference in meaning. However, the four letter phrase is a common trend in Chinese and is often associated with more poetic and metaphorical statements, so would be more beautiful, yes.

(If you are confused about the finer details of the 的、得、地 grammatical construct, in general 得 is used between adverb and verb when the verb is first, and 地 in the reverse situation, while 的 is usually between adjective and noun.)


What does 厉害 mean, and in what context does it mean what?

It is somewhat similar in usage to the word great in English, with the following meanings I can recall:
Impressive or skilled:

他的功夫非常厉害。= He is very skilled in martial arts.
太厉害了，他是怎么做到的？ = Very impressive, how did he manage to achieve that?

formidable:

厉害的角色 = A formidable figure (not one to be messed around with)
厉害的手段 = formidable tactics (in a sporting game, or as part of political intrigue)

severe:

某某股跌得太厉害了 = Stock X has taken a severe fall (in value)

However, 厉害 is not usually the phrase/word of choice to describe a performance (of the arts).


When was punctuation introduced into Chinese?

There were no punctuation marks such as comma in ancient Chinese writings. It's stated in "Punctuations in Chinese Language" and in this forum's thread, "Punctuation Marks in Ancient Written Chinese", where there are two links to some ancient writings. As it's said there, having no punctuation at all, ancient scholars knew the meaning thanks to some structure and "rhythm" in the writing, but I haven't found any official source for this statement.

Regarding its introduction, according to Wikipedia, it seems that punctuation in Chinese became a part of its system in the 20th Century, so it's very recent.

The first book to be printed with modern punctuation was "Outline of the History of Chinese Philosophy (中國哲學史大綱)" by Hu Shi (胡適) in 1919.


外省(outside provinces / other provinces) refers to all provinces other than 本省(own province) - the province you are currently residing. In this case, 外省 means any province other than Île-de-France where Paris is located in.

Paris is a city, so "巴黎10W+" refers to the living cost in Paris only. The quote also mentioned cost outside of Île-de-France "外省7-8万" but did not mention the cost to live in Île-de-France itself.

Either the writer presumed the cost to live in Île-de-France is the same as in Paris, or he thought Paris is a province.


I think is a slang in Taiwan

乾掉了 mean something is turning into boring(usually use after someone say a not funny joke) or the situation that people don't know what to say or react to it

ex1:

You just meet someone new to you

after greeting, you don't know what to say to him, and so does he

this embarrassed situation can be said "乾掉了"

ex2:

you are holding a show and after talking a joke

you are waiting crowd to laught

but there's no one laughing, and a embarrassed silence appear

you can say "this show 乾掉了"


Usage of 的 to refer to a generic class of things

Short answer: yes. Your understanding is mostly correct.
Long answer: what happens in a sentence like

  我喜欢吃好吃的
  I like to eat delicious things

is that you are omitting something that would otherwise appear after 的. In the example above I omitted 东西。
This omission is fine with very generic nouns. I can come up with the following:

东西 (material thing): 我喜欢吃好吃的[东西] I like to eat delicious [things]
事情 (immaterial thing): 我不喜欢复杂的[事情] I don't like complicated [matters/stuff]

You can then omit any other non-generic noun provided that what you are referring to is known from the context.

  你回来的路上能帮我买一些苹果呢？我不要大的。
  Can you buy me some apples on your way back? I don't want the big ones.

If it is not easily understood from context, than you should specify the noun, as in:

  我喜欢可爱的东西
  I like pretty things.

To make up a rule of thumb, just remember that you are omitting something. If you can convince yourself of this, it's easier to distinguish between noun phrases with an omitted noun and regular adjectives.
In your examples above:

不要大的 -- noun phrase with omission -- I don't want the big one(s)
不是大的 -- adjective, with 是 for emphasis -- It's not big!
不大的 -- adjective with end-of-sentence 的 particle (expresses certainty) -- It's definitely not big!
不大 -- negated adjective -- not big

Therefore, the correct way to colloquially express the adjective + omitted noun is by preceding it with a verb, just as if it were a normal sentence.


Grammar for "You flew such a long distance for such a short visit'?

The preferred order of elements in Chinese grammar is often reverse of the English grammar.

"you flew such a long distance for such a short visit" is an example of placing the comment before the topic is common in English.

  "you flew such a long distance for such a short visit" (common English grammar)

"you flew such a long distance" (你飛這麼長的距離) is the comment.
"for such a short visit" (為了這麼短的探訪) is the topic

However, it is more common to place the topic before the comment in Chinese grammar

  "為了這麼短的訪問, 你飛這麼長的距離" (common Chinese grammar)

"為了這麼短的探訪" (for such a short visit)-  topic first
"你飛這麼長的距離" (you flew such a long distance) comment follows

Of course, the order of comment and topic in both English and Chinese can be reversed with some modification

you can write "For such a short visit, you flew such a long distance" in English (which break the sentence in two) or "你飛這麼長的距離就為了這麼短的探訪" (you need a conjunction to connect the two phrases. In this case, you can use '就'(merely)

Note:

"Long distance" can be translated as "長的距離" , "長途" or "遠"

"你飛這麼長的距離' can be rephrased as "你飛這麼長途" or "你飛這麼遠"


In the usage of "什么...之类的" or "什么...啊，什么...啊", 什么 is used for citing examples, with the connotation that there're so many such kind of things.

  ⑦用在几个并列成分前面，表示列举不尽：～送个信儿啊，跑个腿儿啊，他都干得了。

(used before several parataxises, expressing can't list all of them)

For this sentence it could be translated as

  such as 每天用老公的牙刷刷马桶，and 把排泄物混到料理里微笑着看他吃下去 etc，可以拿去回答「人性到底可以有多阴暗」了。


the Master is stopped from investigation?

To add some context:
「夫子至是邦也，必聞其政，求之與？抑與之與？」
this is where OP's quote coming from.

求之與？抑與之與？
求之與？ is basically saying "do you seek it yourself(perhaps doing some investigative work) to obtain the information"

抑與之與？
is saying "or you just hear(hear to believe) what other people are saying"


Is there any mnemonic to remember 支 and 技?

支 is a hand 又 holding a bamboo branch (half of 竹, or 个). Initial meaning is branch, which became 枝; later on 支 meaning was changed to support/assist possibly because those small branches and sticks were used to help prop up against bigger objects to prevent them from collapsing or falling over.
支 is the phonetic component of 技. Unlikely there is any actual link to meaning of 技, but if you want a sort of mnemonic, you can think of it as this:
A hand holding a bamboo branch and can be manipulated skillfully, and the hand can craft many things with bamboo --> skill, craft.


If I don't know your name I may ask: 你的名字是什么？

So of course you could reply: 我的名字是恩瑞克。 or 我的名字叫恩瑞克。 或者 我叫恩瑞克。


This is a common pattern used for emphasizing that something "hasn't even been...":

  v + 都没有 + v

动都没有动 = hasn't even been touched
看都没有看 = hasn't even been looked at
翻都没有翻 = hasn't even been flipped through


I think your Chinese counterpart got confused because you mentioned the importance of drinking tea as part of your lifestyle, yet refusing the tea she offered. Your subsequent clarification on your preference to drink mediocre coffee rather than mediocre tea helps clear the air.

You could have expressed it unambiguously in this manner:

  我对喝茶比较讲究，咖啡就好。
  I am more particular with my tea; coffee will do.

To further elaborate, then you say:

  茶不只是一种饮品，对我而言，是一种生活方式。


Is there a traditional Chinese New Year greeting?

The most common I have heard is

  恭喜发财 gōng xǐ fā cái

Which is a wish of a prosperous coming year. This is very common in Hong Kong and Taiwan, but I heard that it was frowned upon by the communists on the mainland, since it is a wish that does not align very well with communistic ideals.

One story I read related to this is that there was a legend about a monster called 年 (nian2) that would come down from the mountains around new year and eat people. He is afraid of the colour red, so that's why people would put up red paper on and around their doors. The following morning, when you see someone, you would greet them with 恭喜!; 'Congratulations (to still being alive)!', and then wish that they will 发财; 'get rich', i.e. will have a fruitful and prosperous year ahead.

In Taiwan there is a playful childrens' rhyme related to this. The tradition is that adults give children (without an income of their own) red envelopes with cash, 红包. So the adult says "恭喜发财" and the child immediately (and greedily) replies "红包拿来"; 'Give me the red envelope'.


How do I practise grouping characters into words? At which stage of learning should one expect to be good at this?

As a native speaker, I'm trying to introspect my understanding process:
借支 is not a common term. Even in the right context (the money business), it may take a while for a native speaker to realize these two characters are meant to be a word. 笔 isn't really ambiguous as its position in the sentence dictated it has to be a noun, so 支 is the measure word and 借 is the single-character verb 'to borrow'. 借支笔 sounds right, just like the other phrases with a similar pattern that bump into my head when I read this sentence: 借张纸, 借本书, etc.
As you can see, the key knowledge here is the contextual usage and the idiomatic patterns, which is something that really takes many years to build up and comprehend. Most native speakers learn it in elementary and middle school years in both explicit (textbook) and implicit (daily conversation) ways, hardened by a lot of repetitions, homework and examinations. For example, we were taught to differentiate the two possibilities of 把手 in 3-4 grade in elementary school (at age 8-9):

把手坏了 The door handle (把手) is broken.
把手拿开 Move your hand away.

Or 球拍:

球拍 卖 完了 The racket (球拍) is sold out.
球 拍卖 完了 The auction (拍卖) for balls is over.

And our language development comes to a stage that we can say and resolve most of these ambiguous phrases smoothly, generally at age 14-15.
There is a lot of freedom in Chinese grammar and a lot of mix-and-match combinations in the vocabulary, accordingly there are a lot of idiomatic patterns to know before you can segmentate a sentence with ease.
How native speakers deal with it? If there is only one way to make sense of the sentence, other possible segmentations don't really make sense, then there is no ambiguity and nothing to avoid. If it's really ambiguous, the speaker may become aware as soon as he says it and then adds something to clarify, or the audience asks a question or just repeats the sentence in a confused tone to seek elaboration. These methods are no different from any other language.
And yes, there are things that is totally ambiguous, even native speaker couldn't tell. Like 南京市长江大桥, without context you never know which of the two it means:

南京市 长江 大桥 The Yangtze River bridge in Nanjing city
南京 市长 江大桥 The major of Nanjing - Jiang Da Qiao


What does this phrase mean in Chinese “珉，石之美玉者”?

The sentence seems to be the explanation of 珉 in 说文解字.

  珉,石之美者。

It could be literally translated as 珉, the elegant one (the beauty) of the stones; 珉's original meaning is 似玉的美石 (jade-like stone).


Is 猪肉饭 the actual name of a specific Chinese dish or is it merely a description of any pork-and-rice meal?

There is no such word, at least few people say it, in Taiwan. However, we might call a bowl of rice and some slices of roasted pork as "燒(roasted)肉飯"、"燒肉丼(a kind of Japanese famous dishes)".


i think 后会有期 is better.
分别时说的，意思是，以后我们会见面的。


漢典
shows that 形势 means [situation; circumstance; condition; state of affairs]
在其周围环境中所处的情形；或在一定时间内，各种情形的相对的或综合的境况。

According to the context,
the author was talking about
社会形势大好
because there were many 好人好事 everyday.

Thus, I think 形势 means 气氛 here.

The social atmosphere is very good.


What is the difference between 东西 and 用品?

用品 is used for articles that can be used, articles for use (Definitions is 2 dictionaries: 应用的物品 / 供使用的物品).

Some examples:

办公用品: Office supplies, office goods
日用品: articles for daily use
常用品: everyday implement; object of everyday use
床上用品: bedclothes; bedding
体育用品: sporting goods
教学用品: educational supplies, study material

东西 is just a thing.

You should contrast 用品 with 产品.
产品 is something that is produced/manufactured, hence a product (Definitions in 2 dictionaries: 生产出来的物品 / 劳动所创造的物质资料，包括生产资料和消费资料). The last dictionary says it's also used for consumer goods.

So for 用品 the emphasis is more on the usage, and for 产品 it is more on the production.


The whole sentence may be translated to 'The Ansu Prefecture was troubled by (the damages of) the waters of Xu'.

In classical Chinese, parts of speech are easily mutable (詞類活用). Here is a typical case of 意動用法. You can consider 苦 being equivalent to 以⋯⋯為苦 (lit. 'to consider ... as bitter/unpleasant'; 'to be troubled by').

In terms of grammar, 苦 in this instance is not an adjective but a verb.

In terms of meaning, the verb is supposed to indicate the feelings or thoughts (意) of the doer. That is also to say, there is personification of the Ansu Prefecture.

Another example is 異, as in 漁人甚異之 (meaning 漁人甚以之為異 'the fisherman thinks that as odd very much'). Originally an adjective meaning 'different; odd', here 異 as a verb indicates the (dis)belief of the fisherman.

The rest of the sentence is parsed into 徐水 and 害 (n., damage), both translated in 1. 徐 in 徐水 is obviously not the adjective 'slow; gentle'. 徐水 as a whole is currently the name of a district in the Hubei province (which matches with the text), but I think it is better to parse it literally here, given the context of flood.

Excellent observation on monalisa's part. Just to supplement: the classical Chinese for a terrain that is even is 夷. Here 利 as mentioned refers to conduciveness.


Is “little” an appropriate translation for 小 in peoples ‘nicknames’?

No. This translation sounds quite strange, in fact - I don't get the impression that 小燕 is something that even Chinese newspapers** would write, and this kind of name is really reserved for acquaintances/friends.

There very likely isn't an exact English translation; a proper description of 小-- is something like a prefix attached to a surname to indicate affection/endearment for someone younger (similarly 老 is used for someone older). To show similar affection/endearment in English you would really just use their preferred name (whether that'd be their nickname, full name or something else), and the closest example to 小-- in the English-speaking world would be something like the nicknames given to people in Aussie English. From Wikipedia:

  *Litotes, such as "not bad", "not much" and "you're not wrong", are also used, as are diminutives***, which are commonly used and are often used to indicate familiarity. Some common examples are arvo (afternoon), barbie (barbecue), smoko (cigarette break), Aussie (Australian) and pressie (present/gift). This may also be done with people's names to create nicknames (other English speaking countries create similar diminutives). For example, "Gazza" from Gary, or "Smitty" from John Smith. The use of the suffix -o originates in Irish Gaelic[citation needed] (Irish ó), which is both a postclitic and a suffix with much the same meaning as in Australian English.*

To mention someone differently based on age is far more neutral and sometimes even a subtle insult in English, implying either the person is immature (younger) or old-fashioned (older). For example in Scots, you may call someone laddie or lass, or elsewhere among older folks you may mention someone in contrast to their father/children like the younger/elder (Mr.) Potter.

I would just translate it as Mrs Yan; or even better, give the first name instead, as English speakers generally are not acquainted with the fact that Chinese women do not take their husbands' last names when they marry, and the difference in last names may be a bit jarring to read.

**The translation for 小燕 is there because this is a story piece of the struggles of an immigrant couple, and the word choice is important for the reader to emotionally connect to the couple. Using 小燕 makes sense in a Chinese context, but again in English you'd only use the preferred name.

***Diminutives are the key word to search for if you wish to find affection/endearment terms of address in other languages.


How do you say the noun form of "Campaign"

We use 竞选 as noun in your case. 在这次奥巴马的竞选中。The local media prefer using 竞选 than 竞选活动 though both are okay.


What should I use to say "I love you": "wa ai lo" or "wo ai ni"?

Here's a list of how to say "I love you" in several Chinese languages:

Mandarin, Beijing: Wo ai ni
Mandarin, Southwest: Ngo ngai ni
Minnan, Taiwan: Gua ai li
Wu, Shanghai:
(1) Ngu oi nong
(2) Ngu huoe-xi nong
Hakka, Meizhou:
(1) Ngai ai ngi
(2) Ngai jung yi ngi
Yue, Canton:
(1) Ngo oi nei
(2) Ngo jung yi nei

The word for "love" in the second variant in Wu is "歡喜"; in the second variant of Hakka and Yue it is "中意". They are considered somewhat less serious than "愛".


How can I use the idiom 米已成炊 to explain "once I've told you, I can't un-tell you"?

米已成炊 or 木已成舟 can't be used like the way you use them. They describe a situation where you can do nothing but accept the fact because something has already happened and there's no way you could undo it.

Usually, it goes like:

  我已经把我的故事都告诉你了，没有办法再收回来了。 现在米已成炊了，我能怎么办呢？

Or

  我已经把我的故事都告诉你了，现在米已成炊, 没有办法再收回来了。


Difference between 一般 and 一样 meaning “same”

One difference is:

一般  could mean usual, average. As an adjective, you give a description of how something is comparing with the majority i.e, "same as average" or "not average".

For example,
学霸就是学霸， 他的成绩可真不一般。 (The reputation of being the best at school, His grades are no ordinary.)

一般人的跑步速度是每小时25公里左右。(People's running speed is about 15 miles per hour)

牛顿的物理公式可以准确的描述我们一般的生活当中里的物理现象， 可是到了量子力学中， 就不行了。 (Newton's laws can accurately describe our day to day phenomena, But it would fail in quantum realm.)

一样 as an adjective is usually a description of states when comparing between two things. It is weird to use it to compare state of something with the state of the average.

一样 can sometimes mean exactly the same where as you cannot use 一般 to mean two things are exactly the same.


What is the difference between 看到 and 看过?

I think it's easier if you think of 看 as look rather than see (e.g. 给我看一下: let me have a look.) It does not mean the verb resulted, because you can also not see (it, anything, etc.): 看不到
Then you can think of 看到 or 看见 as see (as in, you're looking and you can see it. The 到/见 is resultative, you have achieved your goal.) e.g. 我看到你的钥匙在桌子上: I saw your keys on the table.)
看过 is simply that you have looked in the past, like you have read a book previously (我看过那本书)
Another 结果补语 (resultative complement) is 完 (finished looking [reading]) like 我昨晚看完这本书 (Last night I finished reading this book.)
Another example of the 完 resultative complement is in 吃完了 (finished eating.)
You can see how these resultative complements work with other things, too, like 听:

听: to listen (but you might not be hearing anything, you're listening out for something)
听到/听见: to hear (you can actually hear something)
听不到: cannot hear

You can research 结果补语 (resultative complement) for more information (there are many forms.)


"Subj + 打電話 + Obj" vs "Subj + 給 + Obj + 打電話"

我 晚上 要 打电话 媽媽 : This is invalid.

In the phrase "打电话", "打" is the verb and "电话" is the object. And the "打" here is not a verb that can take two objects. So you must use: 我 晚上 要 給 媽媽 打電話


未有 is often used in Cantonese,while 没有 is often used in Madarin.


How do I say "the school was sold to that big company"?

The position of 给 in the first sentence you have is correct, you would just add 了 to indicate the completion of the act to make it flow better

  那所学校被卖给那个大公司了


The alternative meaning you might be looking for:

Oxford

  2 朋友的妻子 wife of one's friend

Hanyu Da Cidian

  2 已婚妇女的泛称。

a general term for married women

  《红楼梦》第六回
  劉姥姥 便説：‘原是特來瞧瞧嫂子, 二則也請姑太太的安。’


Is there a database/application that sorts characters based on pronunciation, radical, frequency; and disyllabic compound words by frequency?

I hope this pdf, Simplified Chinese Mapping Chart (1956), could help:
This is 简化字总表(Simplified characters full list), an official list that includes 1) simplified characters that may not be used as radicals; 2) simplified radicals and simplified characters that may be used as radicals; 3) frequently used characters.
Another even more comprehensive list with versions and alterations through years can be found on wikipedia 简化字总表 (Chineses only). I guess you would get what you were looking for by translating that page!


What are the best Chinese terms for the correct sense of the English adjective "everyday"?

“日常” is the closest in most contexts. It conveys the sense of "commonplace, mundane" very well.

Some example phrases:
everyday life - 日常生活
everyday conversation - 日常对话/日常会话
everyday clothes - 日常服装

It can also be used as a noun: 我厌倦了重复的日常 (I grew tired of my repetitive everyday life)


How does 儘 + 管 compound to mean "despite”?

One of the meanings of 儘 is no matter (任凭,纵使),

《左传·文十四年》：公子商人，尽其家贷於公。
《礼·曲礼》：虚坐尽后，食坐尽前。俗作尽。

So 儘 + 管 could be translated (literally) to no matter what the influence is

I'm just a native speaker, not a profession. I don't have an answer here, but I may share some of my thoughts that might be helpful.

In the second image, do notice it is 盡 not 儘 (however both characters simplify to 尽, making 尽 has 2 pronunciations(jǐn and jìn)
And in 儘管 it (only) pronounces jǐn
It shall be notice that compounding Chinese characters to words doesn't simplify compound their meanings.
Traditionally, I mean in Classical Chinese, 儘 already means despite. However the meaning of it twisted slightly (in most cases it means to the greatest extent  and always)
The same thing goes with 雖然 and 但是. If you split the characters and find out each of their meanings, you would find that 雖 and 但 literally mean the same.


What is the difference between 诡异 and 奇诡?

Both 诡异 and 奇诡 are adjectives. The "strangeness" translation is incorrect.

诡异 is a commonly used word meaning "strange". It can be used both colloquially and in writing. The idiom "好诡异" you mentioned means "How strange it is!".

奇诡 is a formal word used exclusively in literatures. It is a stronger form of 诡异 and is usually reserved for things that are extremely bizarre or supernatural. Use this word with caution.


Learn Chinese Step 3: Vocabulary Building. Is it the same way to memorize Chinese vocabulary as it is to memorize English vocabulary?

Similar to learning prefix/suffix and transformation of words in Latin derived languages, it's quite important to break down a Chinese character (in Traditional Chinese, 繁體字) into different components.

You will find most of the characters are constructed according to 六書 principles. Also Google for other resources on 六書.

For example, in 葉(leaf) 碟(disk) 蝶(butterfly) the common 枼 component provides for the pronunciation and meaning (thin and flat) for the character.
The 廾，石，虫 indicates the word relates to plants, something hard, insects respectively.
Knowing these rules helps you to learn these three words with less effort.


No, but there is a colloquial proverb (俗语) in this vein:

  三天打鱼，两天晒网

  sān tiān dǎ yú, liǎng tiān shài wǎng

A more modern turn of phrase is:

  五分钟热度

  wǔ fēnzhōng rèdù

... literally "five minutes of zeal / enthusiasm".


I think this is a good example of terrible sentences craft in mandarin, translate to English, later attempt to translate the terrible sentences back to mandarin.

It has nothing to do with taken seat or seat served, but serving.

It is pretty clear to say this in English :

Each waiters/waitress served : 4 tables max
服务生能接待的数目 ：最多4桌/台客人

Each waiters/waitress should only served 4 tables
服务生最多只能接待四桌/台客人

Just be careful when you read some "weird" mandarin and strange English translation. It is quite common as some restaurant owner refuse to consult people(not even amateur) to proofread their menu.


When was 华/華 first used as a reference to China?

In 春秋左傳 (722/468 BCE). http://ctext.org/chun-qiu-zuo-zhuan has the statement 楚失華夏.

Huaxia used to denote tribes that later became the Han people, and later the term shifted to symbolize China. Hua is the beautiful clothes worn by the Chinese, xia is for the grandness of the culture.

  「中國有禮儀之大，故稱夏；有服章之美，謂之華。」《春秋左傳正義》

References:

Wikipedia: Huaxia

維基百科：華夏

維基百科：華夏族

Wikipedia: Xia Dynasty

維基百科：夏朝

維基百科：中華


From 汉语大词典

呗 II
bei
˙ㄅㄟ

1. 助词。表示事实或道理明显，易于了解。
▶ 何永鳌《火焰山上四十天》：「有什么奇怪的，一块红石头呗。」

2. 助词。表示勉强同意或无所谓的语气。
▶ 周立波《暴风骤雨》第一部一：「他想，不明白就不明白吧，反正他们会给他车钱，这就得了呗。」
▶ 草明《乘风破浪》第四章：「他闷闷不乐，低着头说：‘挺好呗。’」

So, the 呗 in your first example is the first meaning above.

But I think in the second one, 呗 may mean 吧.
你帮我把这个整完吧。


Building block
Oxford:

1 child's toy
积木
2 figurative
(basic element)
基础成分
the basic building blocks of matter
物质的构成要素

构成要素 seems to be the winner here.
Results for 社会 + 构成要素 on baidu give us a bunch of different sentences that use this pattern:

什么是社会?它的构成要素有那些?

第三章 社会及其构成要素

论社会的构成要素

...理解中国人的心理与行为_中国传统社会的构成要素(上)...


身 as a classifier means 'a suits of' or "a body full of" but it usually only use '一' (one)  as counting word

Example:

他一身白色衣褲鞋帽 = He in a suits of white clothing, shoes and hat.

他兩身白色衣褲鞋帽 is ungrammatical

一身酒味 = a body full of alcohol smell

兩身酒味 is ungrammatical


Is this sort of usage also common in 普通話, and is it used for the same things?

Yes.

"师傅" means teacher or the guider who guides you to do something at the very beginning. There's a very famous saying: 师傅领进门，修行靠个人。 (Teachers can only guide you, Deeply learning depends on yourself).

Sometimes, 师傅 is a formal statement. E.G: 功夫熊猫(KongFu Panda)'s ShiFu:D,  Here it means "大师" (master). We usually use "老师" when speaking.