Comments on: Learning from Others’ Mistakes http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm Tips and Strategies for Learning to Speak Chinese Fri, 22 Aug 2008 02:07:55 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.1 By: syz http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-4166 syz Sat, 10 May 2008 02:10:45 +0000 http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-4166 Really insightful post, Albert. If I were learning English, I'd want you for a teacher! It takes some creative thinking to go beyond "it's wrong, let me correct you" to "why is it wrong." @Ben T: I feel for you. I sometimes resort to the literal translation in English that I know will be understood, rather than idiomatic English. Really insightful post, Albert. If I were learning English, I’d want you for a teacher! It takes some creative thinking to go beyond “it’s wrong, let me correct you” to “why is it wrong.”

@Ben T: I feel for you. I sometimes resort to the literal translation in English that I know will be understood, rather than idiomatic English.

]]> By: Ben T http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-4072 Ben T Thu, 03 Apr 2008 01:24:38 +0000 http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-4072 Just wanted to commend you on a great blog. I just discovered this blog today and was like..."wow! this is pretty cool." It's funny growing up learning Chinese as an ABC. My parents would laugh at me for my English directly translated into Chinese speaking. For example I didn't know the vocabulary for the word "Chef" (now i know it's 厨子--chu zi) so instead i would translate it into 炒飯人 (the cooking guy, or fried rice guy). My roommate also discovered another interesting vocabulary from talking with Chinese people in English. My roommate is multi-racial. His mother is white and his father is Chinese. However, when he tells Chinese people he's mixed or multi-racial they get confused. When he tells them he's "Mixed Blood" then they understand since in Chinese they call it simply "混血" (literally "mixed blood"). Oh thought you might be interested in this post I did about the different free online video lessons they have on youtube (<a href="http://blog.howma.com/?p=70" rel="nofollow">http://blog.howma.com/?p=70</a>). It's kind of interesting. Check it out if you get a chance. Cheers! Just wanted to commend you on a great blog. I just discovered this blog today and was like…”wow! this is pretty cool.”

It’s funny growing up learning Chinese as an ABC. My parents would laugh at me for my English directly translated into Chinese speaking. For example I didn’t know the vocabulary for the word “Chef” (now i know it’s 厨子–chu zi) so instead i would translate it into 炒飯人 (the cooking guy, or fried rice guy).

My roommate also discovered another interesting vocabulary from talking with Chinese people in English. My roommate is multi-racial. His mother is white and his father is Chinese. However, when he tells Chinese people he’s mixed or multi-racial they get confused. When he tells them he’s “Mixed Blood” then they understand since in Chinese they call it simply “混血” (literally “mixed blood”).

Oh thought you might be interested in this post I did about the different free online video lessons they have on youtube (http://blog.howma.com/?p=70). It’s kind of interesting. Check it out if you get a chance.

Cheers!

]]> By: Ian http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-3963 Ian Sun, 02 Mar 2008 08:49:13 +0000 http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-3963 I notice foreigners including myself have a tendency to unnecessarily make distinctions in Chinese where divergent concepts exist in English. I tend to say either 这个(zhe4 ge4) or 这些／这几个(zhe4 xie2/ zhe4 ji3 ge4) before every noun in Chinese because L1 interference makes me think I always have to decide whether something is singular or plural. I also used to say 了(le) after every verb that was in the past because it seemed necessary to specify that. On the other hand, I discovered my English students are always always forgetting to put "s" after a plural noun not because they don't get the concept, but because it just doesn't seem necessary for them to specify the singular or plural of every object they're talking about. Maybe with enough exposure this interference will eventually go away. I notice foreigners including myself have a tendency to unnecessarily make distinctions in Chinese where divergent concepts exist in English. I tend to say either 这个(zhe4 ge4) or 这些／这几个(zhe4 xie2/ zhe4 ji3 ge4) before every noun in Chinese because L1 interference makes me think I always have to decide whether something is singular or plural. I also used to say 了(le) after every verb that was in the past because it seemed necessary to specify that.

On the other hand, I discovered my English students are always always forgetting to put “s” after a plural noun not because they don’t get the concept, but because it just doesn’t seem necessary for them to specify the singular or plural of every object they’re talking about. Maybe with enough exposure this interference will eventually go away.

]]> By: Hank S http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-3941 Hank S Sat, 09 Feb 2008 12:25:10 +0000 http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-3941 Here are a couple for you: Chinese people say "I'm very interesting in something" when they mean "interested", and "he doesn't interesting in" when they mean "he isn't interested in". In Chinese you ask 什么意思 shen me yi si (lit. "what meaning?"). In English, Chinese people say "what's means?" instead of "what does it mean?". Here are a couple for you:

Chinese people say “I’m very interesting in something” when they mean “interested”, and “he doesn’t interesting in” when they mean “he isn’t interested in”.

In Chinese you ask 什么意思 shen me yi si (lit. “what meaning?”). In English, Chinese people say “what’s means?” instead of “what does it mean?”.

]]> By: Joel http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-3934 Joel Mon, 04 Feb 2008 03:24:13 +0000 http://laowaichinese.net/learning-from-others-mistakes.htm#comment-3934 ha, i remember first learning 让 in class, and being like, "What? You can't use the same word for "let" and "make"! That distinction is important!" We first noticed the grammatical value of bad English when we were teaching in Taiwan. I'm four chapters into a book right now written in English by a Yunnan villager called "Mr. China's Son." Aside from being a really interesting memoir, his English I've not found anywhere else: he overly-literally translated a lot of words on purpose. 'University' becomes "big-school," for example, and grammar comes through sometimes, too. It gives the whole thing a really interesting flavour. ha, i remember first learning 让 in class, and being like, “What? You can’t use the same word for “let” and “make”! That distinction is important!”

We first noticed the grammatical value of bad English when we were teaching in Taiwan.

I’m four chapters into a book right now written in English by a Yunnan villager called “Mr. China’s Son.” Aside from being a really interesting memoir, his English I’ve not found anywhere else: he overly-literally translated a lot of words on purpose. ‘University’ becomes “big-school,” for example, and grammar comes through sometimes, too. It gives the whole thing a really interesting flavour.

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