Intermediate Spoken Chinese

Ruth Guerriera has been chatting with her friend Ma Cihui in the student coffee shop at Capital University of Economics and Business in Beijing. Guerriera suddenly feels quite ill, so Ma takes her friend to the university hospital.

Basic Conversation 22-1

1. GUERRIERA	Cíhuī, wŏ juéde hĕn bù shūfu.
	Cihui, I don’t feel very good.
2. MA	Shémme dìfang bù shūfu? Nĭ shì bu shi shēngbìng le? Yào bu yao qù yīyuàn kànkan?
	Where does it hurt? Are you sick? Do you want to go to a hospital to see a doctor?
3. GUERRIERA	Tóu téng, ĕxin, xiăng tù. Húnshēn méi jìnr, hăoxiàng hái yŏu diănr fāshāo. Yĕxŭ shi gănmàole. Wŏ xiăng yòngbuzháo qù yīyuàn. Xiūxi liăngtiān jiù huì hăode.
	My head hurts, I’m nauseous, and I feel like throwing up. I’m weak all over and I may have a fever. Maybe I caught a cold. I don’t think I need to go to a hospital. If I rest for two days then I should be all right.
4. MA	Xiànzài zăowăn qìwēn biànhuà tĭng dàde. Yī bú zhùyì jiù róngyi zháoliáng. Nàobuhăo hái huì zhuănchéng fèiyán. Wŏ xiăng nĭ zuìhăo hái shi qù yīyuàn kànkan.
	There’s now a huge change in temperature from morning to evening. The minute you’re not careful, it’s easy to catch cold. If you don’t get better, it could even turn into pneumonia. I think you had best go to a hospital to see a doctor.
	(to nurse, after they arrive at the hospital)
	Tóngzhì, wŏ zhèiwèi péngyou bìngle. Tā bú dà huì shuō Hànyŭ. Néng bu néng gĕi tā zhăo yíwèi dŏng Yīngyŭde dàifu?
	Comrade, this friend of mine is ill. She can’t speak Chinese very well. Could you find her a doctor who understands English?
5. NURSE	Nín dĕng yíxiàr. Nèiwèi dàifu zhèng mángzhe ne.
	Wait just a moment. That doctor is busy right now.

Build Up

1. Guerriera
Cíhuī	Cihui (given name)
hĕn bù shūfu	very uncomfortable
Cíhuī, wŏ juéde hĕn bù shūfu.	Cihui, I don’t feel very good.
2. Ma
shémme dìfang bù shūfu	what place is uncomfortable
shēngbìng	become sick [VO]
shì bu shi shēngbìngle	is it that you got sick
yīyuàn	hospital [PW]
qù yīyuàn kànkan	go to a hospital to see a doctor
Shémme dìfang bù shūfu? Nĭ shì bu shi shēngbìng le? Yào bu yao qù yīyuàn kànkan?	Where does it hurt? Are you sick? Do you want to go to a hospital to see a doctor?
3. Guerriera
tóu	head [N]
téng	be painful, hurt [SV]
tóu téng	head hurts
ĕxin	be nauseous, feel like vomiting [SV]
tù	spit, throw up [V]
ĕxin xiăng tù	be nauseous and want to throw up
húnshēn	entire body [N]
jìn(r)	energy [N]
méi jìnr	have no energy
húnshēn méi jìnr	whole body has no energy
fāshāo	have a fever [VO]
yŏu diănr fāshāo	have a little fever
yĕxŭ	perhaps, maybe [MA]
gănmào	catch cold [V]
yĕxŭ shi gănmàole	maybe it’s that (I) caught a cold
yòngbuzháo	not need to [RC]
yòngbuzháo qù yīyuàn	not need to go to a hospital
xiūxi liăngtiān	rest for two days
jiù huì hăode	then it will get better
Tóu téng, ĕxin, xiăng tù. Húnshēn méi jìnr, hăoxiàng hái yŏu diănr fāshāo. Yĕxŭ shi gănmàole. Wŏ xiăng yòngbuzháo qù yīyuàn. Xiūxi liăngtiān jiù huì hăode.	My head hurts, I’m nauseous, and I feel like throwing up. I’m weak all over and I may have a fever. Maybe I caught a cold. I don’t think I need to go to a hospital. If I rest for two days then I should be all right.
4. Ma
zăowăn	morning and evening [MA]
qìwēn	temperature [N]
biànhuà	change [N]
qìwēn biànhuà	temperature change
zháoliáng	catch cold [VO]
yī bú zhùyì jiù róngyi zháoliáng	the moment you don’t watch out it’s easy to catch cold
nào	suffer (from an illness) [V]
nàobuhăo	suffer from an illness and not get better [RC]
zhuănchéng	turn into [V+PV]
fèi	lung [N]
fèiyán	pneumonia [N]
nàobuhăo hái huì zhuănchéng fèiyán	if one doesn’t get better it could even turn into pneumonia
Xiànzài zăowăn qìwēn biànhuà tĭng dàde. Yī bú zhùyì jiù róngyi zháoliáng. Nàobuhăo hái huì zhuănchéng fèiyán. Wŏ xiăng nĭ zuìhăo hái shi qù yīyuàn kànkan.	There’s now a huge change in temperature from morning to evening. The minute you’re not careful, it’s easy to catch cold. If you don’t get better, it could even turn into pneumonia. I think you had best go to a hospital to see a doctor.

bú dà	not very much [PH]
bú dà huì shuō Hànyŭ	can’t speak Chinese very well
dàifu	doctor [N]
yíwèi dŏng Yīngyŭde dàifu	a doctor who understands English
Tóngzhì, wŏ zhèiwèi péngyou bìngle. Tā bú dà huì shuō Hànyŭ. Néng bu néng gĕi tā zhăo yíwèi dŏng Yīngyŭde dàifu?	Comrade, this friend of mine is ill. She can’t speak Chinese very well. Could you find her a doctor who understands English?
5. Nurse
zhèng mángzhe ne	is just being busy
Nín dĕng yíxiàr. Nèiwèi dàifu zhèng mángzhe ne.	Wait just a moment. That doctor is busy right now.

2A. Nĭ shì bu shi shēngbìng le? “Are you sick?” The shì bu shi here literally means “Is it the case that...or not?” This construction is used frequently to create questions and is a little less direct than an affirmative-negative question or ma question.

2B. For “I got sick,” you can say either Wŏ bìngle or Wŏ shēngbìngle. Shēngbìng “get sick” is a verb-object compound, so its two constituent syllables can be separated. Examples:

Compare shēngbìng with the word bìng, which can function both as a verb “get sick” and as a noun “illness” (19-1: 3-4).

2C. Distinguish carefully the pronunciation of these two words: yīyuàn “hospital” vs. yīnyuè “music” (17-1).

2D. As regards the use of the word yīyuàn “hospital,” in English we say “stay” in a hospital, but in Chinese one says “live” in a hospital, using the verb zhù. Example:

2E. Kànkan here means “see a doctor.” This is a synonym of kànbìng “see a doctor” (SV1).

3A. To say “I have a headache,” use the double topic-comment construction Wŏ tóu téng, lit. “As for me, the head is painful.” The same pattern is used for “I have a stomach ache”: Wŏ dùzi téng. Note that in these expressions, there is no verb yŏu “have”; you could NEVER say *Wŏ yŏu tóu téng. To say “It really hurts,” say Hăo téng ó! In Southern China, instead of téng, many speakers use the verb tòng, which has the same meaning as téng.

3B. Ĕxin (which can also be pronounced with Tone One on the second syllable as ĕxīn) means “feel like vomiting, feel nauseated, be nauseous.” It can refer both to physical discomfort, as when you’re sick, and to mental or emotional discomfort, as when someone makes you feel sick; so it sometimes also has a meaning more like “disgusting.” Examples:

3C. Húnshēn means “the entire body,” “all over one’s body,” or “from head to toe,” so Húnshēn méi jìnr means “My whole body has no energy.” Some more examples of húnshēn:

“They forgot to take an umbrella, so they’re soaked to their skin (lit. “entire body is wet”).

3D. (Wŏ) yŏu diănr fāshāo “I have a bit of fever.” Review the pattern yŏu (yì)diăn(r)... “have a little…,” “be a little…,” or “somewhat…,” which you learned in 19-1: SV5.

3E. The Chinese equivalent of English “I have a cold” is Wŏ gănmàole and NOT *Wŏ yŏu gănmào.

3F. Xiūxi liăngtiān jiù huì hăode here means “If I rest two days, I’ll get better.” Review the pattern huì...-de “be likely to” or “will” that was introduced in 12-2.

4A. Zăowăn is an abbreviation for zăoshang gēn wănshang “morning and evening.” Be aware that, in other contexts, zăowăn can also have the meaning “sooner or later.” For example:

4B. Xiànzài zăowăn qìwēn biànhuà tĭng dàde “There’s now a huge difference in morning and evening temperatures.” This is actually a series of four topic-comment constructions, one embedded inside the other. The sentence could be analyzed and translated literally as follows:

4C. Yī bú zhùyì jiù róngyi zháoliáng “The minute you’re not careful, it’s easy to catch cold.” Note the pattern yī...jiù... “as soon as,” “the moment,” “the minute,” or “once” (17-2: 8C).

4D. Zháoliáng “catch cold” is a near synonym of gănmào, which was introduced in line 3. However, besides functioning as a verb, gănmào can also function as a noun meaning “a cold.” Moreover, gănmào as both verb and noun is used wherever Chinese is spoken, while zháoliáng is a colloquial term used mostly in North China.

4E. Some stative verbs can be followed directly by verbs (21-3: 8A). Róngyi “be easy” is one such stative verb. Notice that the meaning of róngyi in the phrase róngyi zháoliáng isn’t just “easy” but rather “easy to,” that is, “easy to catch a cold.” Another example of róngyi followed directly by a verb in the sense of “easy to”:

4F. Tā bú dà huì shuō Hànyŭ “She isn’t very well able to speak Chinese” or “She can’t speak Chinese very well.” Bú dà means about the same as bú tài “not very much” or “not very well.” Examples:

4G. (Nĭ) néng bu néng...? “Can you/could you...?” is a common and moderately polite way of making a request in Chinese. English works the same way; the expected answer to the English question “Could you close the door?” isn’t “Yes, I could” but rather “Sure, I’ll be happy to,” followed by a response to the request. In neither language is one looking for a true answer to the question asked.

4H. Chinese people often go to the emergency rooms of hospitals even for minor illnesses. Some Chinese people are superstitious about saying the word zàijiàn in “unlucky” places like hospitals, funeral homes, jails, or at accident scenes. Remember that the literal translation of zàijiàn is “see you again” and implies “see you again in this same place.” If you find yourself in a place where you or your interlocutor would rather not appear again, it might be better to use the somewhat formal expression Băozhòng “Take care of yourself,” or you could just say Wŏ xiān zŏule, wŏmen zài liánxì “I’ll be on my way, we’ll be in touch.”

SV1. Kànbìng “see a doctor (of a patient)” can in some contexts also mean “see a patient (of a doctor).” For example:

AV, A. PARTS OF THE BODY. Besides the names listed, there are also Chinese names for parts of the body that English lacks or rarely uses, for example, rénzhōng (the vertical separation between the skin between your upper lips and your nose), xiōngkŏu (the center of the chest right below the breastbone), and dānyănpí “single eyelid” vs. shuāngyănpí “double eyelid.”

Although the word for “arm” is in dictionaries listed as gēbei, in fact many people pronounce this word as gēbe. In southern China, many speakers use the word shŏu, which in the north means “hand,” for both “hand” and “arm”; these speakers don’t use the word gēbei at all. For all speakers of Chinese, the meaning of shŏu includes part of the arm, unlike English “hand.”

The Chinese word pìgu, commonly translated as “buttocks,” actually includes the buttocks and the hips below the hipbone.

AV, B. ILLNESSES AND MEDICAL TERMS. These names of illnesses and medical terms have been grouped by semantic category.

AV10. Kāidāo “operate” literally means “open the knife.” The direction and meaning of the verb depends on the context. Thus, Wŏ míngtiān yào kāidāo can mean either “I’m operating tomorrow” (if you’re the doctor) or “I’m having an operation tomorrow” (if you’re the patient).

AV11. In Chinese, to say “take medicine” one says chīyào, literally “eat medicine.” Many Chinese people, especially older persons, are obsessed with their health and take all kinds of medicines and tonics. When Chinese go to the doctor, they normally expect some kind of treatment, whether an injection, pills, or something else. Penicillin is greatly overprescribed, even for viruses, and IVs are commonly administered even for minor fevers or colds.

AV17–18. Nèikē, usually translated as “internal medicine,” basically means that medicine or bandages are in order, while wàikē means that surgery is necessary. The location of the malady on the body is irrelevant—a skin allergy would involve nèikē even though it’s on the surface of the body, while appendicitis (which obviously involves a problem inside the body) would involve wàikē.

1. kànbìng	see a doctor [VO]
Nĭ yàoshi juéde bù shūfu, zuìhăo zăo yidianr qù kànbìng.	If you don’t feel well, it’s best if you go see a doctor as soon as you can.

B. ILLNESSES AND MEDICAL TERMS
1. késou	cough [V]
2. liú bítì	have a runny nose [PH]
3. săngzi yăle	throat has become hoarse [PH]
4. dă pēnti	sneeze [PH]
5. lā dùzi	have diarrhea [PH]
6. liúxiĕ	bleed [VO]
7. fāyán	be infected, be inflamed [VO]
8. guòmĭn	be allergic [V]
huāfĕn	pollen [N]
duì huāfĕn guòmĭn	be allergic to pollen
9. dăzhēn	give or get a shot [VO]
10. kāidāo	operate [VO]
11. yào	medicine [N]
chīyào	take medicine [VO]
12. Zhōngyào	Chinese medicine [N]
13. yàofāng	prescription [N]
kāi yíge yàofāng	make out a prescription [PH]
14. yàofáng	pharmacy [N]
15. zhĕnsuŏ	clinic [PW]
16. zhùyuàn	be hospitalized [VO]
17. nèikē	internal medicine [N]
18. wàikē	surgery [N]
19. Xīyī	Western medicine; doctor of Western medicine [N]
20. Zhōngyī	traditional Chinese medicine; doctor of Chinese medicine [N]
21. zhēnjiŭ	acupuncture and moxibustion [N]

Wŏ cónglái méi shēngguo bìng.	“I’ve never been sick.”
Tā shēngle yìchăng dà bìng.	“He had a serious illness.”
Tīngshuō tā shēngle yìzhŏng hĕn qíguàide bìng.	“I heard she came down with a strange illness.”

TOPIC 1	TOPIC 2	TOPIC 3	TOPIC 4	COMMENT
Xiànzài	zăowăn	qìwēn	biànhuà	tĭng dàde.
“Now, in the morning and evening, as for the temperature, the change is great.”

Zhèiyang bú dà hăo.	“Like this isn’t very good.”
Tā bú dà cōngming.	“He’s not very smart.”
Nèiyangr bú dà fāngbian.	“Like that isn’t very convenient.”
Wŏ bú dà xiăng qù.	“I don’t very much want to go.”