nighttime-study

[nighttime-study]

今天的成语 An Idiom I Learned Today

recently learned about a new idiom and thought i would share! not sure if it counts as a 成语 per se, since it is 8 characters instead of 4. nonetheless here it is.

三天打鱼，两天晒网 sān tiān dǎ yú, liǎng tiān shài wǎng

literally: fish for 3 days, sun-dry the net for 2 days figuratively: to lack perseverance; to not earnestly work toward something

example: 你要是三天打鱼两天晒网，那你永远不会进步。 If you "fish for 3 days but sun-dry the next for 2," then you won't ever improve.

it's the idea that if you work towards something for 3 days but then rest for 2, you're basically wasting your time and not putting in as much effort as you could—since you could be putting that effort in all 5 days.

it's definitely a very chinese concept 😅 i'm pro resting myself LOL

#chinese langblr #mandarin langblr #chinese learning #chinese #mandarin chinese

[nighttime-study]

All the shishi words I know

Last year I learned the word 时事, and it struck me how many shishi words there are. For fun, I listed out all the ones I'm familiar with. You can see more at MDBG (but a Chinese-Chinese dictionary would probably have many more).

世世 shìshì - from age to age

世事 shìshì - affairs of life / things of the world

事事 shìshì - everything

事实 | 事實 shìshí - fact

失事 shīshì - (of a plane, ship etc) to have an accident (plane crash, shipwreck, vehicle collision etc) / to mess things up

实事 | 實事 shíshì - fact / actual thing / practical matter

实施 | 實施 shíshī - to implement / to carry out

实时 | 實時 shíshí - (in) real time / instantaneous

时事 | 時事 shíshì - current trends / the present situation / how things are going

时时 | 時時 shíshí - often / constantly

试试 | 試試 shìshi - to have a try

逝世 shìshì - to pass away / to die

I ran some stats based on my Anki deck, and there also a lot of qishi words: 其实、气势、骑士、启示、歧视、启事. But not as many as shishi. Maybe we need a poem of shishis to go alongside the 施氏食狮史 poem?

#chinese language #chinese #mandarin chinese #chinese langblr #chinese vocab

[nighttime-study]

N- Verbs in Chinese

A quick cheat-sheet of chinese verbs begnning with N!

Narrate - 叙述 - xùshù

Navigate - 导航 - dǎoháng

Need - 需要 - xūyào

Neglect - 忽视 - hūshì

Negotiate - 谈判 - tánpàn

Nominate - 提名 - tímíng

Normalize - 正常化 - zhèngchánghuà

Notice - 注意 - zhùyì

Notify - 通知 - tōngzhī

Nourish - 滋养 - zīyǎng

Nurse - 护理 - hùlǐ

Nurture - 培养 - péiyǎng

#chinese #mandarin chinese #chinese vocab #chinese langblr

[nighttime-study]

10 traditional characters that I didn't know existed

In 2023 I started learning to write traditional characters by hand, so I've been paying extra attention to differences between traditional and simplified forms. In some cases, I didn't even realize the traditional and simplified forms were different!

Here are 10 sets of simplified and traditional characters with subtle differences, 8 of which I only discovered recently. Definitions are adapted from MDBG.

（1）抛 | 拋 pāo

The difference is SO subtle with this one. I have to hold the screen 3 inches from my face to see it. The simplified version has 7 strokes, but the traditional version has 8.

抛 | 拋 pāo - to throw / to toss / to fling / to cast / to abandon

抛弃 | 拋棄 pāoqì - to abandon / to discard / to renounce / to dump (sb) 抛开 | 拋開 pāokāi - to throw out / to get rid of 抛物线 | 拋物線 pāowùxiàn - parabola

（2）滚 | 滾 gǔn

I actually prefer the traditional version, particularly when I'm writing by hand. When I write the simplified version, the 衣 strokes on the bottom always looks awkward under 公 to me.

滚 | 滾 gǔn - to boil / to roll / to take a hike / get lost!

摇滚 | 搖滾 yáogǔn - rock 'n' roll (music) / to rock / to fall off 滚开 | 滾開 gǔnkāi - to boil (of liquid) / boiling hot / Get out! / Go away! 滚烫 | 滾燙 gǔntàng - boiling / scalding 打滚 | 打滾 dǎgǔn - to roll about

（3）匀 | 勻 yún

I think these look pretty much the same when handwritten, but on the computer they are distinct. I definitely prefer how the simplified one looks.

匀 | 勻 yún - even / well-distributed / uniform / to distribute evenly / to share

均匀 | 均勻 jūnyún - even / well-distributed / homogeneous / well-proportioned (figure, body etc)

（4）叙 | 敘 xù

叙 | 敘 xù - to narrate / to chat

叙述 | 敘述 xùshù - to relate (a story or information) / to tell or talk about / to recount / narration / telling / narrative / account 叙事 | 敘事 xùshì - narrative

（5）奥 | 奧 ào

奥 | 奧 ào - obscure / mysterious

It really bugs me that 奥 has a different traditional form, but 澳 (as in 澳门 Macao) does not!

深奥 | 深奧 shēn'ào - profound / abstruse / recondite / profoundly 奥运会 | 奧運會 Àoyùnhuì - Olympic Games; the Olympics (abbr. for 奥林匹克运动会 | 奧林匹克運動會) 奥利给 | 奧利給 àolìgěi - come on, you can do it!

（6）厨 | 廚 chú

厨 | 廚 chú - kitchen

厨房 | 廚房 chúfáng - kitchen 厨师 | 廚師 chúshī - cook / chef 厨艺 | 廚藝 chúyì - cooking skills / culinary talent

Other similar cases: 厮 | 廝 sī - (bound form) together; each other / (bound form) male servant / (bound form) dude; so-and-so 厢 | 廂 xiāng - box (in theater) / side room / side 厦 | 廈 shà - tall building / mansion / rear annex / lean-to / also pr. xià

（7）刹 | 剎 chà/shā

Whether the bottom looks like 朩 or 木 seems to be somewhat stylistic and can vary by font. But the little 点 is a consistent difference.

刹 | 剎 chà - used to transcribe several words originally from Sanskrit

刹那 | 剎那 chànà - an instant (Sanskrit: ksana); split second; the twinkling of an eye

刹 | 剎 shā - to brake

刹车 | 剎車 shāchē - to brake (when driving) / to stop / to switch off / to check (bad habits) / a brake

（8）侣 | 侶 lǚ

侣 | 侶 lǚ - companion

伴侣 | 伴侶 bànlǚ - companion / mate / partner 情侣 | 情侶 qínglǚ - sweethearts / lovers

Other similar cases: 宫 | 宮 gōng - palace / temple / castration (as corporal punishment) / first note in pentatonic scale 吕 | 呂 lǚ - pitchpipe, pitch standard, one of the twelve semitones in the traditional tone system / surname Lǚ

（9）别 | 別 bié

I've known about the traditional form of this character for a while now, but to be honest, it still looks like 别 written incorrectly to me...sorry.

别 | 別 bié - to leave; to part (from) / (literary) to differentiate; to distinguish / (bound form) other; another; different / don't …! / to fasten with a pin or clip / to stick in; to insert (in order to hinder movement) / (noun suffix) category

差别 | 差別 chābié - difference; distinction; disparity 分别 | 分別 fēnbié - to part; to leave each other / to distinguish; to tell apart / difference; distinction / in different ways; differently / separately; individually 区别 | 區別 qūbié - difference / to distinguish / to discriminate / to make a distinction 性别 | 性別 xìngbié - gender / sex 个别 | 個別 gèbié - individually; one by one / just one or two; exceptional; rare

（10）丢 | 丟 diū

OK, I literally just realized there are separate simplified and traditional forms for this character while working on this post 😭 I feel utterly betrayed.

丢 | 丟 diū - to lose / to put aside / to throw

丢脸 | 丟臉 diūliǎn - to lose face / humiliation 丢人 | 丟人 diūrén - to lose face 丢掉 | 丟掉 diūdiào - to lose / to throw away / to discard / to cast away 丢失 | 丟失 diūshī - to lose; to misplace 跟丢 | 跟丟 gēndiū - to lose track of

See similar posts: Characters I used to write incorrectly Characters that look TOO similar Traditional characters that haunt me

#traditional characters #chinese #chinese characters #mandarin chinese

[nighttime-study]

spent this rainy morning changing up my commonplace book set up, but i’m super happy with it! almost finished with the hearing trumpet ☁️

[nighttime-study]

the semester is coming for my neck, and it just started two weeks ago !

thank god for champorado, books, and shark balloons.

[nighttime-study]

x - x / x - x 🍃

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She feels like a study buddy at this point…

[nighttime-study]

Took me until about halfway through college before I realized “study” means “play with the material in a variety of ways until you understand it” and not just “read the assigned chapters and do the homework” and I think that probably should have been discussed at some point prior to that.

[nighttime-study]

In Spanish you're probably familiar with the word el terremoto "earthquake", literally make up of the roots for "earth" [tierra] and "move" [moto being a Greek suffix]

Related to that is el maremoto which is a "tidal wave" or "tsunami", but it literally means "sea quake"

I also saw recently the word lunamoto meaning "moonquake" because the moon apparently has seismic activity and that's going to keep me up at night

[nighttime-study]

13.03.24 wtf is even latin. i’m especially enjoying the difference between the second and third conjugation verbs. like why 🐸

[nighttime-study]

Grumble grumble…

[nighttime-study]

歌词 & 生词 - Lyrics Vocabulary

One of my favorite artists has a new single, and like most of his music the lyrics are quite simple so I thought I would do a vocab list.

持修 [chí xiū] Chih Siou is a singer from Taiwan who is known for his feminine appearance, pop ballads, and loving chicken nuggets. Click here for his instagram!

生词 Vocab：( HSK 4 / HSK 5 / HSK 6 )

到底 / dào dǐ / in the end, finally

为了（為-） / wèi le / for the purpose of, in order to

宇宙 / yǔ zhòu / universe, cosmos, world

欲望（慾-） / yù wàng / desire, longing

驱使（趨勢） / qū shǐ / to urge, to order someone, to spur on

时空（時-） / shí kōng / time and space

伤口（傷-） / shāng kǒu / injury, cut

烂（爛） / làn / to rot, decompose

值得 / zhí de / to be worth, to deserve

留下 / liú xià / to remain, to leave behind

撑（撐） / chēng / to push, to stay, to support

真心 / zhēn xīn / wholeheartedness, sincerity "true heart"

逃避 / táo bì / to escape, to avoid

Here is his newest single with the lyrics below, translated by me! (warning: the video and lyrics are very sad)

没有我的那个宇宙 / A World Without Me

[in brackets are color-coded direct translations]

Please point out any errors!

VERSE 1 到底是为了什么活着 / dào dǐ shì wèi le shén me huó zhe [in the end is for what purpose living] In the end, what are you living for? 为什么我一定要赢呢 / wèi shén me wǒ yī dìng yào yíng ne [why i must going to win (filler particle)] Why must I win? 笑人们被欲望驱使着 / xiào rén men bèi yù wàng qū shǐ zhe [laugh people by desire controlling/urging] Laughing at people who're urged on/controlled by desire 虽然其实我也一样呢 / suī rán qí shí wǒ yě yī yàng ne [even though actually i (emphasis) the same (filler particle)] Even though, actually, I'm the same

VERSE 2 时间又过去了多久 / shí jiān yòu guò qù le duō jiǔ [time again pass (change in state particle) how much] How much time has passed? 伤口都烂掉了 / shāng kǒu dōu làn diào le [wounds all rot (change in state particle)] The wounds are rotting away 还要骗自己会更好吗 / hái yào piàn zì jǐ huì gèng hǎo ma [would lie oneself will be better (question particle)] Would lying to yourself be better? 还有什么是值得留下 / hái yǒu shén me shì zhí dé liú xià [still (have/there is) what is worth/deserve leaving behind] What do you still have that's worth leaving behind? (or) What else is worth leaving behind?

CHORUS 在没有我的那个宇宙 / zai méi yǒu wǒ de nà gè yǔ zhòu [in without me (particle) that (measure word) world] In a world that doesn't have me (or) in a world without me 会不会，会不会 比较好 / huì bù huì, huì bù huì bǐ jiào hǎo [would it, would it, in comparison/comparatively good ] Would it be, would it be better? 在没有我的那个时空 / zài méi yǒu wǒ de nà gè shí kōng [in without me (particle) that (measure word) time and space] In a time and space that doesn't have me (or) without me 会不会你得到 真正的快乐 / huì bù huì nǐ dé dào zhēn zhèng de kuài lè [would it, you to obtain genuine (particle) happiness] Would it be that you're able to reach true happiness?

VERSE 3 到底是为了什么撑着 / dào dǐ shì wèi le shén me chēng zhe [in the end is for what purpose push/stay/support] In the end, what are you holding on for? 为什么我不能逃避呢 / wèi shén me wǒ bù néng táo bì ne [why i can't escape (filler particle)] Why can't I escape? 笑人们找不到真心 / xiào rén men zhǎo bù dào zhēn xīn le [laugh people can't find sincerity] Laughing at people who can't find sincerity 虽然其实我也一样呢 / suī rán qí shí wǒ yě yī yàng ne [even though actually i (emphasis) the same (filler particle)] Even though, actually, I'm the same

Taglist: @blue-grama @burlgoat51-blog @hope-and-sleep @mycatmybaby @nighttime-study @potentiallypolyglot @zeesqueere

[nighttime-study]

聊天的词 12

I started using Tandem again!

生词：( HSK4 / HSK5 / HSK6 )

魔幻 / mó huàn / magic; magical

力量 / lì liang / force, power

专辑（專輯）/ zhuān jí / album (of music)

东岸（東岸）/ dōng àn / east coast

重心 / zhòng xīn / center or main part, central core

硕士（碩士）/ shuò shì / master's degree

建议（建議）/ jiàn yì / to suggest

转换（轉換）/ zhuǎn huàn / to convert, to change

直视（直視）/ zhí shì / to look straight at

课程（課程）/ kè chéng / course, academic program

所能 / suǒ néng / according to one's capabilities, as one is able

协助（協助）/ xié zhù / to provide assistance

包括 / bāo kuò / to include

记忆力 (記憶力) / jì yì lì / memory (lit: memory + strength)

句子 & 翻译：

主唱的声音有魔幻的力量。The lead singer's voice has magical power.

整张专辑都很棒。The entire album is great.

你是在东岸，对吧？You're on the east coast, right?

不过我现在要把重心放在法文和英文，因为我之后打算去法国读硕士。But now I'm putting focus on French and English, because I plan to go to France for my Master's.

我建议可以用word繁简转换的功能。I suggest using word traditional-simplified conversion function.

我快不能直视这个课程了。I can barely watch this course.

我会尽我所能地协助你。I will do what I can to assist you.

好多欧美明星说 世界巡回 ，却不包括中国。A lot of European/American celebrities say "world tour", but they don't include China.

你记忆力真好。Your memory is really good.

Taglist: (let me know if you want to be added or removed!) @blue-grama @florphy @hope-and-sleep @mycatmybaby @nighttime-study @potentiallypolyglot @zeesqueere

[nighttime-study]

聊天的词 12

I started using Tandem again!

生词：( HSK4 / HSK5 / HSK6 )

魔幻 / mó huàn / magic; magical

力量 / lì liang / force, power

专辑（專輯）/ zhuān jí / album (of music)

东岸（東岸）/ dōng àn / east coast

重心 / zhòng xīn / center or main part, central core

硕士（碩士）/ shuò shì / master's degree

建议（建議）/ jiàn yì / to suggest

转换（轉換）/ zhuǎn huàn / to convert, to change

直视（直視）/ zhí shì / to look straight at

课程（課程）/ kè chéng / course, academic program

所能 / suǒ néng / according to one's capabilities, as one is able

协助（協助）/ xié zhù / to provide assistance

包括 / bāo kuò / to include

记忆力 (記憶力) / jì yì lì / memory (lit: memory + strength)

句子 & 翻译：

主唱的声音有魔幻的力量。The lead singer's voice has magical power.

整张专辑都很棒。The entire album is great.

你是在东岸，对吧？You're on the east coast, right?

不过我现在要把重心放在法文和英文，因为我之后打算去法国读硕士。But now I'm putting focus on French and English, because I plan to go to France for my Master's.

我建议可以用word繁简转换的功能。I suggest using word traditional-simplified conversion function.

我快不能直视这个课程了。I can barely watch this course.

我会尽我所能地协助你。I will do what I can to assist you.

好多欧美明星说 世界巡回 ，却不包括中国。A lot of European/American celebrities say "world tour", but they don't include China.

你记忆力真好。Your memory is really good.

Taglist: (let me know if you want to be added or removed!) @blue-grama @florphy @hope-and-sleep @mycatmybaby @nighttime-study @potentiallypolyglot @zeesqueere

[nighttime-study]

Common Chinese characters part 1-3 part 4  part 5  part 6-9 (you are here)

#chinese vocab #vocabulary #mandarin langblr #chinese langblr #langblr

[nighttime-study]

Tryna be like her.

Anyways, cried over math last week. Getting the hang of it though?

[original art, please don't steal :) ]