Long time, no see. 好久不見

Dear friends,

Here is the video today, we are going to learn the Chinese word 還 (still), and other three ending tag characters 嗎(ma), 呢(ne), 了(le) in modern Chinese sentences. Please watch the follow video for details:

The video is about the dialogue of two friends come across, as in the figure, named Amy and Billy.

Amy: (first part of the phrase)

Long time, no see.

好久不見

Háo jiǔ bú jiàn

好久(quite a while) + 不(not) + 見(see)

Amy: (second part of the phrase)

How are you recently?

你最近還好嗎

Nǐ zuì-jìn hái hǎo ma

你(you) + 最近(recently) + 還(still) + 好(good) + 嗎(question tag)

note: the Chinese character 還(still) which is used in modern sentences, it's like "kind of" in English sentence. The 嗎(ma) is a question tag, which is added on the end of an interrogative sentence.


Billy: (first part of the phrase)

I'm okay. What about you?

我還好. 你呢

Wǒ hái hǎo. Nǐ ne

我(I) + 還(still) + 好(good). + 你(you) + 呢(ending tag)

note: again, the Chinese character 還(still) which is used in modern sentences, it's like "kind of, passably" in English sentence. The 呢(ne) is another question tag, which is added on the end of an interrogative sentence.


Billy: (second part of the phrase)

How's going recently?

最近還好嗎

Zuì-jìn hái hǎo ma

最近(recently) + 還(still) + 好(good) + 嗎(question tag)

note: this is the same phrase what Amy has just said, except the subject, the first Chinese word 你(you). We don't use a subject in a Chinese sentence here.


Amy: (first part of the phrase)

I have something to do..

我還有事

Wǒ hái yǒu shì

我(I) + 還(still) + 有(have) + 事(thing)

note: the Chinese character 還(still) which is used in modern sentences, it's like "kind of" or just "still" in English sentence.


Amy: (second part of the phrase)

I got to go.

我先走了

Wǒ xiān zǒu le

我(I) + 先(first) + 走(go) + 了(ending tag)

note: the last character 了(le) is an ending tag in modern Chinese sentence, used at the end of a sentence to inform the beginning of an action.


Billy: (first part of the phrase)

Goodbye!

再見

Zài-jiàn

再見(Goodbye) = 再(again) + 見(see)


Billy: (second part of the phrase)

Remember to call me.

記得打電話給我

Jì-dé dǎ diàn-huà gěi wǒ

記得(remember) + 打(send) + 電話(telephone) + 給(give) + 我(me)

note: the 打(send, dǎ) is a verb, originally means "hit, strike," when used as "make a phone call," we use this character 打(send, dǎ). Here the last 2 characters 給(give) 我(me) which are used as "give me a phone call" from modern Chinese.

Please check the analysis of phrases and vocabulary of this lesson via my database site:
http://www.chinese-word.com/lessons/lesson-40.html

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Have a nice day!

Andres Leo