One Minute Mandarin: A beginner's guide to spoken Chinese for professionals - Softcover

Coyne, Peter

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1741754593 ISBN 13: 9781741754599

Publisher: Allen & Unwin Pty LTD, 2008

Synopsis

Heading off to China for a business trip? Don't know a word but want to impress? Grab One Minute Mandarin and make the most of your travelling time!

One Minute Mandarin is designed for anyone who hasn't got time to study Mandarin seriously, but wants the essential phrases to get by in the street and in meetings. It is written in pinyin rather than Chinese script to make learning easy, and it covers the basics of grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation, with an emphasis on spoken Mandarin.

It includes invaluable phrases and quotes that can be worked into speeches, and tips on etiquette and culture that will make even a brief stay in China a richer experience.

One Minute Mandarin is accompanied by a website with downloadable audio files for your iPod or laptop. You can use it to tune in your ear to key phrases in Mandarin and practise your pronunciation.

About this title

About the Author

Peter Coyne has had 30 years exposure to life and language in China as a student, teacher, corporate executive, business consultant and government official. He holds a Masters in Asian Studies from the Australian National University and is currently working in Taipei. This book is based on his experience of teaching Mandarin to CEOs and other leaders.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

One Minute Mandarin

A beginner's guide to spoken Chinese for professionals

By Peter Coyne

Allen & Unwin

Copyright © 2008 Peter Coyne
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-74175-459-9

Contents

Introduction, 
Chinese Pronunciation A Guide to pinyin spelling, 
1 How do you do Mr Wang? Ní hao Wáng xian sheng?, 
2 I am very happy to meet you Wó hen gao xìng jiàn dào ni, 
3 Welcome to China! Huan yíng ni lái zhong guó, 
4 Long time no see! Háo jiu bú jiàn, 
5 He/she is Chinese Ta shì zhong guó rén, 
6 Can you speak English? Ni huì shuo ying wén ma?, 
7 Let me invite you to dinner Wo qíng ni chi fàn, 
8 Who is he? Ta shì shuí?, 
9 What time is it now? Xiàn zài jí dian?, 
10 I like to eat Chinese food Wó xi huan chi zhong can, 
11 May I? OK? Ké yi ma?, 
12 We are old friends Wó men shì lao péng you, 
13 Beijing is beautiful Beijing hen piào liang, 
14 No problem Méi wèn tí!, 
15 How do you know that? Ní zenme zhi dào?, 
16 What is this? Zhè shì shénme?, 
17 Let me think about it Ràng wó xiang yì xiang, 
18 Heaven's above! Lao tian yé!, 
19 Climb higher see further Gèng shàng yi céng lóu, 
20 Ladies and Gentlemen! Xian sheng men, nu shì men, 
21 A Beginner's Vocabulary for Adults, 
22 An Introduction to the Chinese Writing System, 
Appendix A Common Chinese surnames and forms of address, 
Appendix B Country names, 
Bibliography, 

CHAPTER 1

How do you do Mr Wang?

Ní hao Wáng xian sheng?

ni [n + be] you; 2nd personal singular

hao [how] good; well; fine; OK

ní hao (lit. you good) hello; how are you; how do you do?

This is the most common form of greeting in China today. It can also be used as the response. You should be aware that this is an instance of one of the most common tone changes — where two third tones appear together the first becomes a second tone with no change to the meaning. Many examples follow. You can say:

Ní hao ma?

Ma is unstressed; similar to the unstressed first syllable in mature. Used at the end of a sentence this is one of the most common ways to create a question. Ma is one of a number of sound particles used in Chinese that have no inherent meaning by themselves. For example you can say:

Hao ma?OK? All right?; Shall we?

By adding the particle men [m + open] you create a plural, such as ni men. Note that this syllable is unstressed. Men is one of the few language particles in Chinese that cannot be used alone. It can only be added to certain nouns referring to persons when no definite number is mentioned, for example:

péng [up + sing] you [yoh] men friends

tóng [toong] zhì [jr] men comrades

A polite version of ni is nín. This may be used by a guest to a host or when addressing someone older or in a position of authority to show respect. This form of address may be used by you as a visitor or guest, as in nín hao ma. In China today this polite usage has re-emerged.

A general response to nín hao ma? can be:

Hen hao xiè xie Very well, thank you.

hen [h + open] very; quite. Always precedes an adjective. It is slightly weaker than 'very' in English and often does not add much to the meaning.

xiè xie [She + yeh as one syllable sounds a little like the English 'share'] thank you. The second syllable is unstressed.

Xiè xie is an example of a word which is devised of a repetition of one sound. This is a feature of the Chinese language. Many examples are given in this book.

Related Expressions

Qian xiè wàn xiè I cannot thank you enough! (lit. a thousand thanks)

qian [chi + any] one thousand

wàn [one] ten thousand

Wéi [w + may] hello; hey there! (Used on the telephone or to attract someone's attention.)

Ni zhen hao How good of you; You're really good.

zhen [djen] true; real

Hao jí le That's delightful; I'd be delighted.

Jí [gee] le (l + her) Used to register an extreme and can be used after many adjectives.

Wáng [w + hung] This is a common surname, often rendered in English as Wong. It is a small but appreciated courtesy to pronounce correctly the name of the person you are speaking to (A full list of common surnames is at Appendix A).

Note that there is a general preference in Chinese for an order of precedence to be established and what is considered the most important will be expressed first. In the case of Ní hao Wáng xian sheng the surname precedes the title. While there are many similar examples at the purely linguistic level it is useful to keep this in mind as a general expression of Chinese pragmatism — first things first! In keeping with this principle the above sentence can also be expressed as:

Wáng xian sheng ní hao ma?

xian [see + any] sheng [sh + her + sing] Mr; sir (lit. first born).

It is used in direct address to follow surnames. This can be used to mean 'gentleman' or 'my husband'. Note that sheng is unstressed here. The plural is:

Xian sheng men gentlemen (plural)

You may hear the term xian sheng used very occasionally as a title referring to a woman in which case it is an extremely respectful term for a distinguished person, for example, a university professor.

Proverb

A quote from Confucius (551–479 BC) that is part of his account of his gradual progress and attainment of wisdom. The full quote puts this into context:

At fifteen, I set my mind on learning.

At thirty, I took my stand.

At forty, I had no doubts.

At fifty, I knew the will of Heaven.

At sixty, my ear was attuned.

At seventy, I follow all the desires of my heart without breaking any rules. (Analects: 2.4.; Leys trans.)

The Analects comprise of responses Confucius provided to his 72 disciples who toured the countryside with him during the turbulent times of the Warring States period. Originally reviled by the Communist Party and progressive thinkers, the reputation of China's foremost sage has undergone a remarkable revival in recent years and his works that articulate a secular humanist ethical tradition are at the forefront of a popular resurgence of interest in China's classical literary heritage. Modern editions of this venerable text are widely available in most bookshops and a recent commentary from a television lecture series is said to have sold some four million copies in China.

CHAPTER 2

I am very happy to meet you

Wó hen gao xìng jiàn dào ni

wo [war] I; me; first person singular

As noted in Chapter 1 men may be added to create the plural: wo men we

Wo ma? (who) me?

gao [gow] xìng [shing] be happy; delighted; elated

Chinese adjectives include the verbs 'to be', so this expression means 'to be happy'. Hence you may ask the question:

Q: Ni gao xìng ma? Are you happy/pleased?

A: Hen gao xìng I am very pleased/happy.

Gao used by itself is an adjective that means to be tall or high. You can say:

Ta hen gao He is (very) tall.

Jiàn [gee + any] to see; to meet

This sound appears in the phrase:

Zài jiàn goodbye; see you again

zài [its + eye] again

dào [dow] to arrive (at); to reach; get to (a place)

The word is used here to indicate the result of an action, for example, 'the result of my seeing (you) is that I am happy'. In its original meaning this word can be used in expressions like:

Wo men dào le We have arrived; we're here.

Dào le ma? Are we there yet?

The unstressed particle le is widely used to indicate a completed action. It can also be used to indicate that a change of circumstances has taken place. Listen out for it; its usage remains one of the most difficult in the language to master!

The possessive

The possessive is created by using the particle: de [her]; the sound in this usage is unstressed.

Wo de my; mine

Wo men de our; ours

Ni de your; yours

Ni men de you (plural); yours

Wo de ma? Is it for me; is it mine?

Ni de ma? Is this yours?

Note that the de is sometimes dropped, especially after plurals.

Grammar note

In Chinese, nouns as well as verbs do not take endings to indicate plural or tense (men used to form the plural of words denoting persons being the exception). Words can be considered as building blocks that can be moved around to create sentences that overall conform to the subject-verb-object word order as in English. The context will usually (but not always) determine the subject and tense of the verb. This permits much flexibility as well as ambiguity — that may be used intentionally! It is also important to bear in mind that subjects may not be overtly expressed.

As subjects (and objects) may be omitted where they are understood, sentence structures in spoken Chinese can be greatly simplified. It is another display of the Chinese genius for economy and filtering out what is considered extraneous. Therefore the Chinese language is very good at cutting to the chase in communication or avoiding a subject entirely, which might be the prerogative of the speaker and something to which an attentive listener is attuned.

Another useful expression when meeting someone involves the use of:

Yuán [you + Anne] affinity; connection; reason

Yuán fèn [orphan] a providential opportunity; fate/luck by which people are brought together

Wo men you yuán fèn we were fated to meet

Yuán is also used in such words as: yuán gù: cause; reason; yuán yóu: cause; origin

A popular saying has it that if people are fated to meet they will, no matter how far apart and if not they will miss each other even though they come face to face. This use of yuán in this expression reflects the enduring presence of Buddhism (fó jiào) [for + gee + cow] in Chinese life. Yuán is used to express the Buddhist concept of karma.

Proverb

Attributed to the famous general Geng Yan (3–58 AD) when praised by the emperor for his victory over rebels, though his army was greatly outnumbered, during the chaotic period of the consolidation of the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220 AD). The historical context of the original saying is a reminder of the geographical division that was often a part of China's tumultuous past.

CHAPTER 3

Welcome to China!

Huan yíng ni lái zhong guó

huan [hwan] yíng [yet + sing] welcome

Can be used alone with this meaning but also often used in repetition as: huan yíng huan yíng

The word lái [lie], meaning 'to come' may be used in the following ways:

Wo lái le I am coming; I am on my way.

Ni lái ma? Are you coming?

zài [its + eye] lái come again; another ... (e.g. I'd like another beer.)

Zhong Guó is the Mandarin term for China:

zho ng [djoong — oo as in cook] middle

guó [gwor] country

Gúo can be used as a suffix to create a number of country names:

Mei [may] guó the United States of America

Ying guó the United Kingdom

Fa [fah] guó France

Dé [der] guó Germany

Appendix B includes a list of more country names.

The complementary verb is qù [chew] meaning 'to go'. This may be used as follows:

Ni qù ma? Are you going?

Wo qù le I went (there)

Ni qù zh ng guó ma? Are you going to China?

Useful expressions of welcome:

Huan yíng ni lái wo men Welcome to our:

gong [cook] si [mass] company (as in business)

chéng [ch + her + ng] shì [shr] city

gong chang [ch + hung] factory

shou [show] du [do] capital city

jia [gee + ah] home

Wó hen gao xìng lái zhong guó I am very happy to be in China.

There may often be occasions when you may wish to be more effusive in thanking someone for some action. The following may be used:

Tài [tie] xiè xie ni le thank you very much

tài too; extremely. Used before most verbs and adjectives.

Fei [fay] cháng [ch + hung] xiè xie thank you very much

fei cháng very; extremely; highly. This word has the original meaning of extraordinary or unusual and can be used before adjectives to express exceptional degree.

Wo fei cháng gao xìng I am extremely happy.

Proverb

A strategem attributed to the famous general Cao Cao (d. 220 AD) who was one of the most prominent figures to appear during the time of the disintegration of the Han dynasty into the period of the Three Kingdoms (220–265 AD). On one occasion he is said to have urged his distressed army on during the heat of summer by telling them of plum trees up ahead. The thought of the plums was sufficient to produce thirst quenching saliva in the soldiers' mouths that enabled them to continue the march through arid countryside. The expression describes consoling oneself with imaginary thoughts in the face of a hope that cannot be achieved.

CHAPTER 4

Long time no see!

Háo jiu bú jiàn

This phrase means just what it says (lit. 'long time no see') and can be used when meeting again after a long separation, just as we do in English.

jiu [gee + you] be long (referring to time)

To ask 'How long?' (referring to time) use the expression:

Duo [door] jiu?How long will it/does it take?

Related expressions

hen duovery many; very much

Ni lái zhong guó duo jiu?How long have you been in China?

Ni lái (le) duo jiu?How long have you been here?

Jiú yang jiú yang It's a pleasure to meet you (at last). This is a more formal expression that draws on the classical language.

Negatives

Bù [book] not; no

This is one of the most important words used to say 'no' as well as make a negative. It always appears directly before the word it negates which can be a verb, adjective or adverb. Note that bù will change to a second tone when in front of another fourth tone. It can be used as follows:

Bù, bù bù no, no, no! (for emphasis)

Q: Hao ma? OK?

A: Bù hao It's no/not good; not OK

Ta bù gao xìng He is not pleased/happy

Ni bù gao xìng ma? Aren't you pleased/happy?

Wo bù lái I am not coming

Ni bù lái ma? Aren't you coming? Won't you come?

Ni bú qù ma? Aren't you going?

A very useful example of this construction is hao bù hao which is used to create the expression to solicit agreement, as in 'do you think this is OK or not?'. This can be used as a stand-alone expression in relation to any situation where an opinion is sought because you can use it like you would use 'May I?' or 'Shall we?'.

Similar expressions using this construction to form questions (as an alternative to using ma at the end of a sentence) are:

Qù bú qù? Are you going or not?

Lái bù lái? Are you coming or not?

Gao xìng bù gao xìng? (Are you/is he) happy or not?

Wo men qù hao bù hao? Shall we go? Do you feel like going?

The other most important expression of the negative (and one that you may hear much more often than you would like) is: méi [may] which means 'do not have' or 'do not possess' and may be commonly used as follows:

méi you [yoh] there is no; we have no

you to have; possess; there is/are/were

Níyou ma? Do you have it/any?

Ní you méi you? Do you have it/any?

As a stand alone expression it has a wide variety of contextual meanings such as 'no' to negate a verb (see below); I/we do not have it/any; it is off the menu/out of stock/sold out.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from One Minute Mandarin by Peter Coyne. Copyright © 2008 Peter Coyne. Excerpted by permission of Allen & Unwin.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Edition details

• Publisher: Allen & Unwin Pty LTD
• Publication date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1741754593
• ISBN 13: 9781741754599
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 168