One pair of confusing adverbs is 总算 (zǒngsuàn) and 终于 (zhōngyú). They both can be translated as "finally" or "in the end," but they subtly different in tone.
Category: Chinese Grammar
Chinese grammar: Comparing 再zai and 又you
Both 再 (zài) and 又 (yòu) express the duplication of an action and can be roughly translated in English to "again". However, 再 is used to express actions that have not yet occurred (the "future again") and 又 is used for actions that have already occurred (the "past again"). They're not interchangeable.
Chinese phrase translation: 团购 (tuángòu) group purchase
团购 (tuángòu) group purchase Usage: 团购的字面意思是团体购物，指认识的或者不认识的人一起买东西，这样可以求得最优价格。团购时，商家一般会给出低于零售价格的团购折扣和单独购买得不到的优质服务，这样就可以卖出更多的产品，从中获利。现在团购的主要方式是网络团购，也有某单位集体购买。“团购”is a type of purchasing behavior that a group of people use to obtain discounts from vendors using their collective buying power. The vendors always offer a lower price as well as additional qualified service in group purchase. They can sell more products and get more profit. Nowadays, the most common way of group purchasing lies on the internet. There are group purchasing such as a company buys goods for it’s employees as well.
Chinese grammar: Comparing 会hui、能neng、可以keyi
This is one of the trickiest comparisons, as 会 (huì), 能 (néng), and 可以 (kěyǐ) are often translated as "can." Sometimes they are explained as: 会 means "know how to", 能 means "to be able to", and 可以 means "to have permission to." Actually, they overlap a little bit. In this article, we will look at their differences.
Chinese grammar: Comparing 突然turan and 忽然huran
Both 突然 (tūrán) and 忽然 (hūrán) express the something happens in a very short time or is unexpected. Both can be translated as "unexpectedly" or "surprisingly", however, 突然 is a bit harsher in tone while 忽然 is a bit softer. Also, their grammatical features are subtly different, as outlined in this article.
Chinese phrase translation: 苦肉计 (kǔròujì) ruse of self-injury
苦肉计 (kǔròujì) ruse of self-injury;Inflict injury upon oneself to gain trust
Chinese grammar: Comparing 才cai and 就jiu
Both 才 (cái) and 就 (jiù) are adverbs that have to do with expressing time, and they are both placed in front of the verb. However, they both have a different tone and feel, and they express different lengths of time.
Chinese phrase translation: 低调 (dīdiào) low profile
低调 (dīdiào) low profile; to be modest or to deal with things simply Usage: “低调”的本义是指频率低的声调。比喻有能力的人不张扬，保持谦虚的态度；有时也比喻简单处理事情，不引人注意。反义词为“高调”。The original meaning of “低调”（ dīdiào） is a tone with low frequency. It is a metaphorical description of a capable person, who is always modest and keeping low profile. The antonym of “低调” is “高调”.
Chinese grammar: Topic-comment sentences
In a topic-comment sentence, the usual word order is rearranged a bit in order to emphasize a certain part of a sentence. The part that is to be emphasized becomes the topic, and moves to the beginning of the sentence, with the comment on the topic coming after the topic has been stated.
Chinese phrase translation: 损友 (sǔnyǒu) bad friends
损友 (sǔnyǒu)bad friends；a friend who likes to kid around
Usage: “损友”指对你的品行产生不良影响的人，也可以指喜欢胡闹搞怪的朋友，多出现在关系亲密的朋友当中。“损友” refers to people whose behavior has a bad influence on your behavior. It also means a person who likes to kid around. Often it is used among close friends.
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