Tag: Chinese Language

Never make these mistakes in Chinese 61

         Wǒ xǐhuɑn shuō hànyǔ, dànshì wǒ zhǐ shuō yìdián’ér 。
False:  我喜欢说汉语，但是我只说一点儿。
         Wǒ xǐhuɑn shuō hànyǔ, dànshì wǒ zhǐ huì shuō yìdián’ér 。
True:  我喜欢说汉语，但是我只会说一点儿。

Continue Reading →

Chinese language vocabulary 汉语词汇 OMG! Chinese Buzzwords! (31)

恐归族 （kǒng guī zú）
home-going phobia clan
The term refers to people who plan to return home for the annual family reunio during the Spring Festival but are put off by the high travel costs and crowded transportation. Most of these people are migrant workers, who have to stay in the area wher they work to spend the festival holidays as train tickets are sold out and they can’t afford planes.

Continue Reading →

Chinese language vocabulary 汉语词汇 OMG! Chinese Buzzwords! (32)

炒冷饭(chǎo lěng fàn)
Rehash, repeat old content, flogging a dead horse

Shanghai locals are mostly rice eaters. So, if there’s any leftover cooked rice, they tend to 炒冷饭, meaning to “stir-fry the cold rice,” usually by adding a spoon of edible oil, a pinch of minced green onion or even an egg. As a result, 炒冷饭 is a common meal among many Shanghainese.

But when the phrase is used figuratively, it means to rehash old materials, repeat old content or reproduce an old idea. It’s like flogging a dead horse or putting old wine in a new bottle in English.

So, this colloquial term has a connotation of cliché, banality, bromide and lack of excitement.
Despite the fact that many Shanghainese do eat 炒冷饭 from time to time, few like it in speeches and writing. Locals also tend to use a vulgar alternative to express their dislike of this type of 炒冷饭: “Why do you always eat today’s fresh rice, but fart yesterday’s gas?”

Continue Reading →