LC Mandarin Chinese flashcards
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32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Third-tone sandhi
- When two third-tone syllables occur together, the first is pronounced in the second tone: 你好 nǐ hǎo is said ní hǎo. The written pinyin keeps the original third tone.
- 不 tone change
- The negative 不 is normally bù, but before a fourth-tone syllable it is pronounced bú, as in 不是 bú shì and 不对 bú duì. Before other tones it stays bù.
- 一 tone change
- Before a fourth tone, 一 is yí (一个 yí ge). Before a first, second or third tone it is yì (一天 yì tiān). Alone, final, or ordinal it stays yī (第一).
- Neutral tone
- Some syllables lose their dictionary tone and are read short and light: the particles 吗, 呢, 吧, 了, 的, 着, and the second syllable of 妈妈 māma and 谢谢 xièxie.
- Retroflex vs. alveolar initials
- zh, ch, sh are said with the tongue curled back; z, c, s with the tongue flat behind the teeth. Contrast 是 shì 'is' with 四 sì 'four'.
- -n and -ng finals
- Both finals are nasal, but -ng ends further back in the mouth and is held longer. Contrast 心 xīn 'heart' with 星 xīng 'star', and 分 fēn with 风 fēng.
- 虽然…但是… (concession)
- 'Although A, but B.' The writer grants A and then states the real point in B, so questions about the main idea are answered from the 但是 clause.
- 不但…而且…
- 'Not only A but also B.' It adds B as the stronger or more important point, so questions asking what the author emphasizes are answered from the 而且 clause.
- 越…越…
- 'The more X, the more Y.' Two clauses share a subject or scale: 越学越有意思 means 'the more you study, the more interesting it becomes'.
- 除了…以外，还/都
- 'Besides A, also/both.' 还 adds B without excluding A; 都 states that every member, A included, does B. Compare 除了汉语，他还学日语 with 除了他，我们都去了.
- Radical 氵 (water)
- The three-dot water radical appears in characters connected with water or liquids: 河 river, 洗 wash, 酒 alcohol, 汤 soup. It hints at meaning, not at pronunciation.
- 大约, 大概, 左右
- These words mark a rough estimate: 大约三十人, 大概三点, 十块钱左右. If a question asks for an exact figure or time, an approximation phrase does not supply it.
- 把 construction
- Subject + 把 + object + verb + result. The verb cannot stand alone and needs 了, 完, 在, 给 or a complement: 我把书放在桌子上, 他把作业做完了.
- 被 passive
- Subject + 被 (+ agent) + verb + result: 杯子被弟弟打破了. It typically reports something unfortunate, and the verb still requires a result element.
- 比 comparison
- A 比 B + adjective: 他比我高. Degree words follow the adjective as 一点儿, 得多 or 多了. Never place 很, 非常 or 太 directly after 比.
- 了: completed action vs. new state
- Verb + 了 marks a completed action (我买了书). Sentence-final 了 marks a new state or change (下雨了, 他来了). The two can appear together in one sentence.
- 过 (experiential aspect)
- Verb + 过 says an action has happened at least once and counts as experience: 我去过中国, 他没吃过饺子. Negation and questions use 没…过.
- 的, 得, 地
- 的 links a modifier to a noun (红色的车); 地 links an adverbial to a verb (慢慢地走); 得 links a verb to its degree complement (跑得很快).
- 才 vs. 就
- 才 means later or slower than expected, or 'only then': 他十点才来. 就 means earlier or faster than expected: 他六点就来了.
- 或者 vs. 还是
- 或者 offers alternatives in statements: 茶或者咖啡都可以. 还是 offers a choice inside a question: 你喝茶还是咖啡？ They are not interchangeable.
- 春节 (Spring Festival)
- Lunar New Year, the first day of the first lunar month. Families eat 年夜饭, give 红包, put up 春联, and the holiday ends on the fifteenth day with 元宵节.
- 中秋节 (Mid-Autumn Festival)
- The fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month. Families eat 月饼, admire the full moon, and treat the date as a time of reunion. 嫦娥 is the associated legend.
- 端午节 (Dragon Boat Festival)
- The fifth day of the fifth lunar month, marked by 粽子 and dragon-boat races. It commemorates 屈原, the poet who drowned himself in the Miluo River.
- Numbers 4, 8 and 9
- 四 sì echoes 死 'to die', so 4 and 14 are avoided in floors, gifts and plates. 八 bā echoes 发 'to prosper'; 九 jiǔ echoes 久 'long-lasting'.
- Red and white symbolism
- Red signals luck and celebration and dominates weddings, 红包 and 春联. White and black belong to mourning and funerals, so white flowers are avoided at happy occasions.
- Chinese name order
- The surname 姓 comes first and the given name 名 second: 王小明 is Mr. or Ms. Wang. Strangers and colleagues use 姓 + title, such as 王老师 or 李经理.
- 十二生肖 (twelve zodiac animals)
- A twelve-year cycle, each year named after an animal from 鼠 rat to 猪 pig. 2024 is the year of 龙 dragon and 2025 the year of 蛇 snake.
- Stroke order rules
- Horizontals before verticals (十), top before bottom (三), left before right (做), outer before inner (月), middle before the two sides (小), and the enclosing stroke closes last (国).
- 顿号 and comma
- The 顿号 、separates items in a list of words or short phrases: 我喜欢苹果、香蕉和葡萄. The comma ，separates clauses, and 和 links only the final pair.
- 《》 title marks
- Double angle brackets enclose titles of books, articles, films and songs, as in 《红楼梦》 or 《西游记》. A title nested inside another takes the single form 〈〉.
- 请假条 format
- A leave note opens with the addressee on the first line, gives reason and dates in the indented body, and ends at the bottom right with 请假人, the name and the date.
- Written vs. spoken register
- Formal writing prefers 十分, 尤其, 稍微 and 然而 over 挺, 特别, 有点儿 and 可是. Spoken fillers such as 然后 should not open every sentence in a composition.