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help improve read and write Chinese

老兄,你也可以从 三字经 开始。 "人之初 性本善 不操你 不划算"。。。 :d
 
You mean to say every word can be explained by its radicals?

You have given only one convenient example. Try some everyday word, like 还, 海,。Can explain?

字 this word WIN is a hard word to learn but I can show you you can remember how to write this word for life. Also the radicals in this word will show how to win successfully.

If you are challenged or provoked to take on the situation these radicals will guide you to win well and also not to make your opponent to try to revenge the next time if he lose this time.

Can you see the 亡 字 which is often wriiten bigger than the other 4 and is wrriten on top. In winning there is always a loser and loser faces the 亡字. So if you dont win you lose and 亡waiting for you at the top. 亡 means disaster, tragedy death waiting for you if you fail to win.

Next, see the radical 口字 below the 亡字。Use communicate, talk or words to win but not by force 力. If to win by force then the Chinese will write 力字 instead of 口字。亡 will be waiting for you at the top if you use 力 to win.

Next, below the 口字 is radical 贝 bei. 贝字 is the word for shellfish or crowie where it was once a valuable item used for trading of goods. It means value and win something valueable and worthy. For example someone challange you do jump down from a cliff which has no value so no point winning.

next on the left of 贝字 is 月 represent time. Take time to win. Take as much time you have to try to win. Take challenge which give you time to think how to win. If provoked stand back one step to allow yourself time 月 to think how to handle the dispute or provoke. Dont use 力 irrationally to win quickly or impatient but take your time to use find 口字 communicate to win.

the last one 凡字, fan, is to try to win on common ground/ common place/ ordinary which means try to win on things which is you know your ground well. If things you dont know your ground well how to win?

It also means try to win smoothly and as if you did not win. Try to win as if you did not win at all so that you will not invite your opponent to try to win back the next time.

Now you will know how to remember to write 赢字 for life which also help you to win well.

Isn't Chinese word amazing, with moral value teaching in them?
 
Chinese language is the most difficult lingo to master. The writing is in ideagrams. They dont give a clue as to how they sound like when pronounced; they dont clue you in on why the strokes are written in that way. If you forget the word, you have absolutely no idea how to write it. Even tho it may sound the same, if you have those aids, you still can choose the wrong word, e.g. 字 instead of 子。 Also you got to be sure to look under zi and not zhi. Why it's not explainable.
 
I think sam leong can start appointing a mod with Chinese literacy. local standard by O levels must at least able to read 2000 Chinese words.

Maybe more forummers here write more Chinese we can improve and brush up our Chinese literacy over time. We can help each other to correct our mistakes and be bilingual over time, 你们如何呢.

华人多写华文,帮兄弟们认识些普通话。

let me show you how to improve your Chinese over time. If you have iphone or Samsung whatever, download the free 鱼 dictionary. Also download free hand writing Chinese pad. With these 2 downloads when you see a Chinese word which you don't understand use the freehand writing pad and follow the strokes. It will give you a selection of words and you choose the right one and it will take you the dictionary section.

If you are in China, Japan, Viet you can use this 2 helpful downloads to read and learn Chinese signboard, posters and learn as you go.

I picked up and brushed up my read and write Chinese in the past 6 months using the 2 free downloads.

All you need is to know 300 basic words used which enough to read any Chinese newspaper or on the net.

But watch our for Cantonese and Hokkien newspapers, they use the Chinese word to represent their sound which if you read it in Mandarin the sentences don't make sense. You have to read it in Cantonese or hokkien sound.

Which four?

You know you've become competent in Chinese when you have read the four great Chinese literary classical works, and they don't give you a headache.

Read the full version, not the abridged version.
 
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Great_Classical_Novels


Journey to the West 西游记

Romance of the Three Kingdoms 三国演义

Dream of the Red Chamber 红楼梦

The Water Margin 水浒传


----

Once you have mastered the above, move on to Jin Yong's novels, and more contemporary works from people such as these:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lu_Xun
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bing_Xin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cao_Yu
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanmao_(author)

----
To upgrade even further, move on to philosophical/spiritual/religious books.
 
the most impressive chinese literary and philosophical classic, imo, is the i ching (易 經). still applicable today. :p
 
Maternal Surname

It should be 字,not 子


Interestingly, 子 happens to be my ancient maternal surname which was probably written as . The ancient people of China used the maternal surnames before Chou period. After that, many surnames were changed to the paternal ones which we commonly use today.

好 - 女 = 子
 
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Great_Classical_Novels


Journey to the West 西游记

Romance of the Three Kingdoms 三国演义

Dream of the Red Chamber 红楼梦

The Water Margin 水浒传


----

Once you have mastered the above, move on to Jin Yong's novels, and more contemporary works from people such as these:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lu_Xun
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bing_Xin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cao_Yu
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanmao_(author)

----
To upgrade even further, move on to philosophical/spiritual/religious books.

some will mix 封神榜 together with them which is wrong. the four u listed is correct.
some will mix 四书with the four u listed, the correct 四书 are 中庸,大学,论语,孟子. all of Confucius Theory which kopiuncle lacks.
 
some will mix 封神榜 together with them which is wrong. the four u listed is correct.


Why talk about 封神榜 ? This drama quite boring. I still prefer "Journey To The West". This Feng Shen Bang was written during the Ming period but the story is a distant Shang period.

One of the character in the Shang period drama could actually be my ancient forefather. Why was it called 封神榜 ? The reason was that his death was so honourable that the king of Chou who also suffered the same fate could empathise with Bi Gan's son that he conferred the royal decree that from thence Bi Gan's decendants will bear the Lin surname instead of the maternal one, Zi. In addition to this, Bi Gan was given the post-mortem title of 国神 or the national deity. Life is not without irony ?

But, in a Korean drama, 国神 Kok San was also used to indicate the status of a certain person who is important to the nation's survival, often wise. I'm not sure whether there is such a rank in ancient Korea because there wasn't a 花郎 Hwa Rang as 'warriors' anyway. Hwa Rang were actually pretty men selected for Buddhist study in Korea. :eek::*:



[video=youtube;IcXvooo_IOg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcXvooo_IOg[/video]
 
同志,

Most of them can be explained by their combination of radicals and there are hundred of radicals in the old Chinese words.

Another example is 毒 du poison. It is written with 母 字 and which represent the most poisonous is the woman's heart, especially the mother. All mothers is very protective of her own children, put 2 or more mothers together all they talk is about their children and you hurt or touched their kids you are dead meat. When you want to know how to write 毒字 remember the 母字。

福 is God blessing which can be describe by the radicals. Only with God you can get his blessing (left hand radical represent God).

There are books which you can buy explaning the formation of old Chinese words.

You mean to say every word can be explained by its radicals?

You have given only one convenient example. Try some everyday word, like 还, 海,。Can explain?
 
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bro, write the same 3 words and the Cantonese people will read it as hai mu hai. There is no Cantonese written words and this is why the Qin empeoror produced the Chinese writing to one size fits all. It is read as shi bu shi by the Hans, Cantonese as hai mu hai. But in writing it is simply written as 是不是。

And special Cantonese words which need attention the Cantonese people will find the closest Chinese word to fit that particular sound they are looking for.

The Japs also use Chinese words in writing like 山 is yama sound for the Japs.

How come in cantonese it's "hai um hai?". How do you write "hai"?

That's the trouble with Chinese. Too many quirks.
 
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Why talk about 封神榜 ? This drama quite boring. I still prefer "Journey To The West". This Feng Shen Bang was written during the Ming period but the story is a distant Shang period.

because some people thought its one of the 四大名著 which it is not.
 
封神榜 is more of the myths of Chinese gods and deities... there are parallels to Homer's Odyssey.
 
同志,

Most of them can be explained by their combination of radicals and there are hundred of radicals in the old Chinese words.

Another example is 毒 du poison. It is written with 母 字 and which represent the most poisonous is the woman's heart, especially the mother. All mothers is very protective of her own children, put 2 or more mothers together all they talk is about their children and you hurt or touched their kids you are dead meat. When you want to know how to write 毒字 remember the 母字。

福 is God blessing which can be describe by the radicals. Only with God you can get his blessing (left hand radical represent God).

There are books which you can buy explaning the formation of old Chinese words.

actually if u want to study how the Chinese words evolve, u should study the 繁体字. 简体字was modify by the Communist China for easy writing.
Malaysia, Taiwan and some overseas Chinese communities still learn, read and write 繁体字.
even jap and korea also using 繁体字.
jap is a culture without words. their language only got our dialect standard. they used to use Chinese words for their language and pronounce the word using their own pronunciations. even until now, their words are only 拼音. still need to use Chinese words in their language to express better.
 
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